Is Acumera liable for Dq Treat's VoIP system performance issues?
Dq_Treat Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
In no event shall Acumera have any liability to Participating Location or any third party for Participating Location's VoIP system performance, including, but not limited to phone registration failures, call quality, dropped calls or other issues regardless of whether the VoIP traffic is configured to pass through the Acumera firewall.
Participating Location acknowledges that Acumera does not provide and does not manage Participating Location's Internet circuit and is not responsible for the performance of said circuit and assumes no liability for issues with Internet speed or performance related to the Internet circuit.
Furthermore, Participating Location's acknowledges that if their Internet connectivity is not a terrestrial (land-based) high-speed always-on cable, broadband, fiber, or dedicated circuit (i.e. T1 or similar), Acumera services may not perform optimally and that under such circumstances Acumera shall have no liability to Participating Location for issues caused by any inadequate or faulty Internet circuit.
Customer acknowledges that if cellular data services are utilized by Customer, either for backup or primary connectivity, by a third-party, not covered under in this Agreement, Acumera shall not be responsible for any charges, including overage charges, incurred by Participating Location associated with the use of those services, including but not limited to circumstances where the data flows through the Equipment and/or the Equipment is managed or co-managed by Acumera to accommodate failover/failback or restrict the flow of said data.
The foregoing limitations, exclusions and disclaimers shall apply, regardless of whether the claim for such damages is based in contract, warranty, strict liability, negligence, tort or otherwise.
Source: Item 17 — The following paragraph is added to the end of Item 17 of the Disclosure Document: (FDD pages 70–378)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to the 2025 Dq Treat Franchise Disclosure Document, Acumera's liability regarding a Participating Location's VoIP system performance is limited. Specifically, Acumera is not liable for VoIP system performance issues, including phone registration failures, call quality, or dropped calls, regardless of whether the VoIP traffic passes through the Acumera firewall. This means that if a Dq Treat franchisee experiences problems with their VoIP system, they cannot hold Acumera responsible for those issues.
Furthermore, Acumera is not responsible for the performance of the Internet circuit used by the Participating Location and assumes no liability for issues with Internet speed or performance related to the Internet circuit. If the Internet connectivity is not a terrestrial (land-based) high-speed always-on cable, broadband, fiber, or dedicated circuit (i.e. T1 or similar), Acumera services may not perform optimally, and Acumera has no liability for issues caused by an inadequate or faulty Internet circuit. This indicates that Dq Treat franchisees need to ensure they have a robust and compatible internet connection to avoid potential VoIP performance issues, as Acumera will not be held liable for problems arising from inadequate internet service.
In addition, Acumera will not be responsible for any charges, including overage charges, incurred by Participating Location associated with the use of cellular data services by a third-party, not covered under in this Agreement. This includes circumstances where the data flows through the Equipment and/or the Equipment is managed or co-managed by Acumera to accommodate failover/failback or restrict the flow of said data. The limitations, exclusions and disclaimers shall apply, regardless of whether the claim for such damages is based in contract, warranty, strict liability, negligence, tort or otherwise.