As a Bumper Man franchisee, am I prohibited from owning or operating any competitive business, either directly or indirectly?
Bumper_Man Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
Franchisee and its Principals covenant and agree that during the Term, and for a continuous uninterrupted period of two years following its expiration, termination, or an approved Transfer and with respect to a Principal, following the date the Principal ceases to be a Principal under this Agreement, Franchisee and each of its Principals, as applicable, will not, without Franchisor's prior written consent, either directly or indirectly, for itself or themselves, or through, on behalf of, or in conjunction with, any Person or Entity:
- (i) Divert or attempt to divert any actual or prospective business or Customer of the Bumper Business to any Competitive Business, by direct or indirect inducement or otherwise.
- (ii) Do or perform, directly or indirectly, any other act injurious to or prejudicial to the goodwill associated with the Marks and the System, provided, however, that nothing in this Section 17 or elsewhere in this Agreement restricts or is intended to restrict Franchisee's communications with any state or federal law regulator or enforcement authority about potential violations of law.
- (iii) Own, maintain, operate, be employed by, engage in, franchise, lease
property to, advise, help, make loans to, or have any interest in, either directly or indirectly, any Competitive Business.
During the Term, this restriction applies to any Competitive Business located within the United States. Following the expiration of the Term, termination of this Agreement, or an approved Transfer of this Agreement and with respect to a Principal, following the date the Principal ceases to be a Principal under this Agreement, this restriction will apply to any Competitive Business located within 25 miles of the Designated Area and any other Bumper Man business, except as otherwise approved in writing by Franchisor.
If any part of these restrictions is found to be unreasonable in time or distance, each month of time or mile of distance may be deemed a separate unit so that the time or distance may be reduced by appropriate order of the court to that deemed reasonable. If, at any time during the two-year period following the expiration, termination, or approved Transfer of this Agreement or the date any Principal ceases to be a Principal under this Agreement, Franchisee or any of its Principals fails to comply with its obligations under this Section 17(a), that period of non-compliance will not be credited toward satisfaction of the two-year period.
Source: Item 23 — RECEIPTS (FDD pages 45–180)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Bumper Man's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, as a franchisee, you are restricted from engaging in any competitive business, either directly or indirectly, during the term of the franchise agreement. This restriction extends to owning, maintaining, operating, being employed by, engaging in, franchising, leasing property to, advising, helping, making loans to, or having any interest in any competitive business. This non-compete clause is in place to protect Bumper Man's brand, marks, confidential information, and system.
Following the expiration, termination, or approved transfer of the franchise agreement, this restriction continues for a period of two years. During this two-year period, the non-compete applies within 25 miles of the designated area and any other Bumper Man business. The FDD specifies that these restrictions apply to both the franchisee and its principals.
The Franchise Disclosure Document also states that if any part of these restrictions is found to be unreasonable in time or distance, the court may reduce the time or distance to what is deemed reasonable. This ensures that the non-compete clause is fair and enforceable. Additionally, the agreement specifies that non-compliance with these obligations during the two-year period will not be credited toward satisfying the non-compete duration.