Franchise Failure Rates

SBA 7(a) loan outcomes · FY2010–FY2019 cohort · Statuses as of June 30, 2026 · Last updated August 17, 2026

The Flame Broiler Franchise Failure Rate on SBA Loans: 1 of 16 Charged Off (Federal Data)

1 of 16
SBA 7(a) loans to The Flame Broiler franchisees (FY2010–2019) ended in charge-off
Charge-off rate, SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY2019 — The Flame Broiler against its industry and all franchises
Charge-off rate, SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY2019: The Flame Broiler 6.2%; Limited-Service Restaurants 10.3%; All franchises 10.2%The Flame Broiler 6.2%; Limited-Service Restaurants 10.3%; All franchises 10.2%0%2%4%6%8%10%The Flame Broiler6.2% (small sample)Limited-ServiceRestaurants10.3%All franchises10.2%
Charge-off rate, SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY2019: The Flame Broiler 6.2%; Limited-Service Restaurants 10.3%; All franchises 10.2%The Flame Broiler 6.2%; Limited-Service Restaurants 10.3%; All franchises 10.2%0%2%4%6%8%10%The Flame Broiler6.2% (small sample)Limited-Service Restaurants10.3%All franchises10.2%

Source: U.S. SBA FOIA dataset, statuses as of June 30, 2026. Figures also in the comparison table below.

1 of 16 The Flame Broiler SBA borrowers failed to repay — too few loans to call a rate; read it as a flag, not a verdict.

1 of 16 SBA 7(a) loans to The Flame Broiler franchisees (2010–2019) ended in charge-off. The sample is small; treat this as a diligence flag, not a verdict. Source: U.S. Small Business Administration FOIA dataset, loan statuses as of June 30, 2026.

What is the The Flame Broiler franchise failure rate on SBA loans?

The Flame Broiler is a Limited-Service Restaurants franchise. This page reports the outcome of every SBA 7(a) loan the U.S. Small Business Administration's public FOIA file attributes to The Flame Broiler franchisees: 16 loans approved between fiscal 2010 and 2019, of which 1 was charged off. Loan statuses are as of June 30, 2026, and the cohort has matured, so these are settled outcomes rather than projections.

How does The Flame Broiler compare with other Limited-Service Restaurants franchises?

The table sets The Flame Broiler's charge-off rate beside its Limited-Service Restaurants peers and the two economy-wide benchmarks. All figures use the same cohort — SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY2019, statuses as of June 30, 2026 — and the same denominator of resolved loans, so they are directly comparable.

The Flame Broiler versus benchmarks, SBA 7(a) loans approved FY2010–FY2019, statuses as of June 30, 2026. Source: U.S. SBA FOIA dataset.
MeasureThe Flame BroilerLimited-Service RestaurantsAll franchisesAll SBA borrowers
Default (charge-off) rate6.2% (small sample)10.3%10.2%8.0%
Loans in sample16———
Defaults1———
Average loan size$198,262———
Charge-off rate by approval year — share of each fiscal year's The Flame Broiler SBA 7(a) loans that later defaulted (FY2010–FY2019); years with fewer than 10 loans are outlined, not filled
Charge-off rate by approval year: FY2014 0% of 1 loans; FY2015 0% of 1 loans; FY2016 0% of 3 loans; FY2017 10% of 10 loans; FY2018 0% of 1 loansCharge-off rate by approval year: FY2014 0% of 1 loans; FY2015 0% of 1 loans; FY2016 0% of 3 loans; FY2017 10% of 10 loans; FY2018 0% of 1 loans0%5%10%0%2014n=10%2015n=10%2016n=310%2017n=100%2018n=1
Charge-off rate by approval year: FY2014 0% of 1 loans; FY2015 0% of 1 loans; FY2016 0% of 3 loans; FY2017 10% of 10 loans; FY2018 0% of 1 loansCharge-off rate by approval year: FY2014 0% of 1 loans; FY2015 0% of 1 loans; FY2016 0% of 3 loans; FY2017 10% of 10 loans; FY2018 0% of 1 loans0%5%10%0%’14n=10%’15n=10%’16n=310%’17n=100%’18n=1

Source: U.S. SBA FOIA dataset, statuses as of June 30, 2026.

Show the numbers behind this chart
Fiscal yearLoansCharged offRate
FY2014100.0%
FY2015100.0%
FY2016300.0%
FY201710110.0%
FY2018100.0%

How to read this

A charge-off means a franchisee borrowed, operated, and failed severely enough that the SBA wrote off the government-guaranteed loan. Unlike franchisor marketing or Item 19 disclosures, this is an observed outcome recorded by a federal agency. One caveat cuts the other way: SBA borrowers are typically less capitalized than all-cash buyers, so these rates can overstate risk for well-funded operators.

How reliable is this number?

The Flame Broiler's figure rests on 16 resolved SBA 7(a) loans approved between fiscal 2010 and 2019 — a matured cohort, so the count is a settled outcome, not a projection. With 16 resolved loans, one default moves the rate by about 6.2 percentage points. Loans approved since 2020 are excluded from the rate because most are still outstanding; they appear on this page as counts only. Every The Flame Broiler figure is recomputed from the public SBA FOIA file on each rebuild.

Small sample (16 loans). A single default moves this figure substantially.

Frequently asked

What is The Flame Broiler's franchise failure rate on SBA loans?
1 of 16 SBA 7(a) loans to The Flame Broiler franchisees (2010–2019) ended in charge-off. The sample is small; treat this as a diligence flag, not a verdict. Source: U.S. Small Business Administration FOIA dataset, loan statuses as of June 30, 2026.
Is The Flame Broiler a safe franchise investment?
Between 2010–2019, 1 of 16 SBA loans to The Flame Broiler franchisees were charged off. The sample is small. This data is one input for due diligence; it is not investment advice.

Cite this page

Franchise Default Rates (2026). The Flame Broiler franchise SBA 7(a) loan outcomes, FY2010–FY2019 cohort: 1 of 16 loans charged off. Derived from U.S. SBA FOIA data, loan statuses as of June 30, 2026.

https://franchisefailurerates.com/franchise/the-flame-broiler/ · Data & methodology · Download the dataset (CSV)