Can Christian Brothers Automotive charge franchisees for annual licensing fees for software?
Christian_Brothers_Automotive Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
(d) Software Fees. Franchisor may provide Franchisee with certain software, including, without limitation, point-of-sale software, accounting software, and internet failover software, in return for fees to be established in Franchisor's discretion and set forth in the Confidential Operations Manual or otherwise in writing, and payable by Franchisee. Related to the foregoing, Franchisor may further charge Franchisee for annual licensing or maintenance fees established in Franchisor's discretion and set forth in the Confidential Operations Manual or otherwise in writing, and payable by Franchisee. All fees and charges paid in accordance with this Section 4.03(d) are non-refundable, and subject to change in Franchisor's sole discretion. Franchisor may modify any such software it provides or discontinue the provision of such software at any time.
Source: Item 23 — RECEIPTS (FDD pages 76–372)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to the 2025 Christian Brothers Automotive Franchise Disclosure Document, Christian Brothers Automotive may charge franchisees annual licensing or maintenance fees for software provided to the franchisee. These fees are established at Christian Brothers Automotive's discretion and will be outlined in the Confidential Operations Manual or in writing.
The software provided by Christian Brothers Automotive can include point-of-sale, accounting, and internet failover software. The fees are payable by the franchisee, are non-refundable, and are subject to change at Christian Brothers Automotive's sole discretion.
Christian Brothers Automotive also retains the right to modify or discontinue the provision of any software at any time. This means that franchisees need to be aware that these software costs can change and that the software itself is not guaranteed to remain consistent or even available throughout the franchise term.