Does the Fitstop agreement allow a franchisee to claim they were coerced into signing the agreement?
Fitstop Franchise · 2024 FDDAnswer from 2024 FDD Document
You acknowledge that neither we nor anyone purporting to act for us has made any promises or representations concerning the sales volumes which your Franchise will produce, the profits you will make, your likelihood of success, or any other matter in connection with the proposed Franchise other than those which the Parties set forth in this Agreement and any signed amendments or exhibits or schedules hereto. If we or any of our agents have made such promises, you must ensure that they are set forth in writing in this Agreement or in an amendment, schedule, or exhibit to this Agreement and that we and you sign any such amendment or exhibit. We, in granting this Franchise, are relying on you to see that the Parties reduce to writing all such matters and attach the documentation that describes those representations to this Agreement and to which you considered material to your solicitation. If you do not reduce such representations to writing and attach those documents to this Agreement, you agree that you will not be able to rely in any way on such promises or representations and we will not be bound by them. YOU MUST ENSURE THAT ALL PROMISES AND REPRESENTATIONS FOR PRESENT AND FUTURE RESULTS AND RIGHTS, WHETHER ABSOLUTE OR CONTINGENT, ARE CONTAINED IN THE FRANCHISE AGREEMENT OR THEY MAY BE FOREVER LOST.
Source: Item 23 — RECEIPTS (FDD pages 50–135)
What This Means (2024 FDD)
According to Fitstop's 2024 Franchise Disclosure Document, Section 21.3 addresses promises or representations made during the franchise sales process. It states that Fitstop is only bound by promises or representations explicitly written in the Franchise Agreement, its amendments, schedules, or exhibits.
Specifically, Fitstop requires franchisees to ensure that all promises or representations that they consider material to their decision are documented in writing and attached to the agreement. If a franchisee fails to do so, they agree that they cannot rely on those unwritten promises or representations. Fitstop emphasizes that all promises and representations for present and future results and rights must be contained in the Franchise Agreement to be valid.
This clause aims to prevent franchisees from later claiming they were induced into signing the agreement based on verbal promises or representations not included in the written contract. Therefore, a Fitstop franchisee's ability to claim coercion based on undocumented promises is significantly limited by this provision, as the franchisee is responsible for ensuring all relevant representations are in writing.