Are the fees and costs payable to Pump It Up or its affiliates refundable?
Pump_It_Up Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
NOTES:
- (1) Fees and costs payable to us or our affiliate. All of these fees and costs are non-refundable, and all are charged uniformly to franchisees currently acquiring a franchise. Generally, all fees are uniformly imposed on our franchisees. In certain unique circumstances, we may defer, reduce or waive a fee for a particular franchisee for a limited period of time.
- (2) "Gross Revenues" means all revenue that you derive from operating the Franchised Business, including, but not limited to, all services and products sold, all video game machine and vending machine proceeds, and all amounts that you receive at or away from the Premises, and whether from cash, check, credit and debit card, barter, exchange, trade credit, third-party coupon providers or other credit transactions. Gross Revenues excludes all federal, state, or municipal sales, use, or service taxes collected from customers and paid to the appropriate taxing authority and will be reduced by: (i) the amount of any documented refunds, credits, allowances, and charge-backs provided to customers in good faith; and (ii) any documented contributions (up to a maximum amount set by us) you make to an approved not-for-profit organization in conjunction with a PIU approved charitable event.
- (3) You must sign any documents we require to authorize us to electronically debit your business checking account or Electronic Depository Transfer Account ("EDTA") automatically for the Royalty, Brand Fund contributions, late fees, interest and any other amounts. Our current form of EDTA documents are attached as Exhibit 3 to the Franchise Agreement. We will debit the EDTA on the dates that payments are due. If you fail to report Gross Revenues of the Franchised Business, we may debit your EDTA for 120% of the highest monthly Royalty and Brand Fund contribution that we previously debited from your EDTA. If we have not previously debited your EDTA for Royalty and Brand Fund contributions, we will determine the amount to debit in our sole discretion based on Royalty and Brand Fund contributions made by other franchisees. Once we determine the amount you actually owe to us, we will debit the EDTA the difference, or we will apply a credit towards your next payment.
Source: Item 6 — OTHER FEES (FDD pages 15–21)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Pump It Up's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, most fees and costs payable to the franchisor or its affiliates are non-refundable. Specifically, Item 6 of the FDD states that all fees and costs payable to Pump It Up or its affiliates are non-refundable and are charged uniformly to franchisees currently acquiring a franchise. However, in certain unique circumstances, Pump It Up may defer, reduce, or waive a fee for a particular franchisee for a limited period of time.
There is one exception to this general rule of non-refundability. The Transfer Fee for transferring a franchise is listed as between $10,000 and $20,000, depending on the level of initial training and support that the prospective transferee will require. A $3,000 transfer deposit is payable when Pump It Up receives notice that the franchisee has identified a potential buyer and signed a purchase agreement. The balance of the transfer fee is due when Pump It Up issues its consent to the transfer. The FDD states that the Transfer Fee is not refundable, and if the closing for the transfer does not occur and/or the prospective transferee has not fully completed the training program, Pump It Up will not refund the Transfer Deposit. However, if during the 12-month period following the initial notice of the transfer, the franchisee identifies another transferee, then Pump It Up will apply the Transfer Deposit to the Transfer Fee for that transferee.
For a prospective Pump It Up franchisee, this means that careful consideration should be given to the ability to pay all required fees, as they are generally non-refundable. The exception to this rule is the transfer deposit, which may be applied to a future transfer if the initial transfer falls through. Franchisees should inquire about the specific circumstances under which Pump It Up might defer, reduce, or waive a fee, although such instances appear to be rare and at the discretion of the franchisor.