Let’s cut to the answer you came for. Yes, a real federal lawsuit was filed involving Blingle-related entities, and it was dismissed in March 2024 on procedural grounds.
The case is called Waldron et al. v. SVHB Marketing LLC d/b/a Horse Power Brands et al., case number 2:23-cv-03485-MSG.
Below, you’ll get the verified facts, what the dismissal actually decided (and didn’t), and how to check the company yourself.
No hype, no scare tactics just what you need to make a clear-headed decision.
What Is Blingle? A Quick Company Overview
Before you weigh any lawsuit, it helps to know what Blingle actually does.
Blingle Premier Lighting is an outdoor lighting company. It handles holiday lights, landscape lighting, permanent exterior lighting, patio lighting, event lighting, and commercial lighting for homes and businesses.
The founder named on the company site is Mike Marlow. The listed address is 2525 North 117th Avenue, Omaha, NE 68164.
Here’s the part that matters most for this topic: Blingle runs on a franchise model. That means local owners operate under one brand name but run their own territories, hire their own staff, and set their own pricing.
Why does that matter to you? Because service quality can vary from one location to the next, and a dispute might involve a single local owner or the parent company — two very different things.
Blingle is backed by HorsePower Brands, a franchise holding company started around 2020 by Josh Skolnick and Zachery Beutler. The company site claims more than two decades of lighting experience, though it doesn’t pin down one exact founding year.
The Verified Blingle Lawsuit: Court Record and Case Details
Here’s the section you can cite with confidence. These are the facts pulled straight from the public court record.
- Case name: Waldron et al. v. SVHB Marketing LLC d/b/a Horse Power Brands et al.
- Case number: 2:23-cv-03485-MSG
- Court: U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
- Filed: September 7, 2023
- Nature of suit: Contract: Franchise
- Plaintiffs: Eight franchise owners
- Defendants in the docket: SVHB Marketing LLC (d/b/a Horse Power Brands), HPB Lighting LLC (d/b/a Blingle Premier Lighting), and Blingle!
- Status: Dismissed March 2024
Want to confirm this for yourself? The docket is public. You can find it on PACER at pacer.gov, or view it through Justia, both under case number 2:23-cv-03485-MSG.
That’s an important point. This isn’t a rumor floating around a forum — it’s a real filing with a case number you can look up in minutes.
What the Blingle Lawsuit Alleged
Now let’s talk about what the franchise owners actually claimed. Keep one thing front of mind as you read: these are allegations. A judge never ruled on whether they were true.
Inflated earnings projections. The franchisees say they were shown revenue numbers before signing that didn’t hold up once they were running the business.
Here’s why that claim carries weight. The Federal Trade Commission — the U.S. agency that regulates franchising — has a rule about this. If a franchisor tells you what you could earn, that figure must appear in the Franchise Disclosure Document, the legal packet a franchisor is required to hand you before you buy.
Inadequate training. Several owners came in with zero lighting experience. They say the training left them unprepared to run the business they’d just bought.
Higher-than-quoted costs. This is the example that sticks with people. A former iFoam owner — a different brand under the same parent company — says his spray foam truck was quoted at around $180,000. After signing, the actual cost landed closer to $225,000. That’s a $45,000 gap on a single piece of equipment.
Excessive ongoing fees. The complaint described a pattern of “exorbitant and unnecessary fees” that showed up after signing, not before.
For the record, HorsePower Brands denied the allegations. The company characterized the claims as “copycat” filings.
Why the Blingle Lawsuit Was Dismissed
This is the part most articles rush past. It deserves your full attention, because the reason for the dismissal changes everything.
The case was dismissed in March 2024 on procedural grounds. In plain terms, the court rejected it over a process mistake — not because the claims were weak.
Here’s what happened. The franchise agreements contained a mediation clause, which is a contract term requiring both sides to sit down and attempt formal mediation before anyone files a lawsuit.
The plaintiffs skipped that step. They went straight to federal court without completing mediation first, so the court dismissed the case.
The judge never examined whether the allegations were true. Think of it this way: the door to court closed before anyone argued the actual case inside.
What the Dismissal Means and What It Doesn’t
This is where people jump to the wrong conclusion in both directions. Let’s clear it up.
The dismissal does NOT mean:
- A judge ruled the allegations were false.
- The company was cleared of any wrongdoing.
- The claims were tested and rejected on their merits.
The dismissal DOES mean:
- The plaintiffs skipped a required contract step.
- The court closed the case without deciding who was right.
- The core questions stay unresolved and part of the public record.
So what’s the real takeaway? The signal isn’t “who won.” The signal is “what unresolved risk still sits here.”
One more pattern worth noting. After this case, similar complaints reportedly surfaced from owners of other HorsePower brands, including iFoam and Mighty Dog Roofing. That’s a reported pattern, not proof of anything — but it’s the kind of thing you’d want to know before you invest.
7 FDD Red Flags to Check Before You Buy a Blingle Franchise
If you’re considering a Blingle franchise, this section does the heavy lifting.
First, one term to know. The Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) is the legal packet a franchisor must give you at least 14 days before you sign or pay a dime. Don’t let anyone rush you past it.
Here’s exactly what to check, item by item:
- Item 3 (Litigation history): Confirm the Waldron case and any other disputes appear here. If a known case is missing, ask why.
- Items 5–7 (Fees and startup costs): Compare every number to what a sales rep told you out loud. Remember the $180K-to-$225K truck gap.
- Item 8 (Supplier restrictions): Check whether you’re forced to buy from specific vendors at set prices.
- Item 12 (Territory): Confirm your protected area, and whether the company can sell a franchise right next to you.
- Item 17 (Renewal, termination, transfer, exit): Read how you can leave and what it costs before you’re locked in.
- Item 19 (Financial performance representations): If there are no earnings claims here, treat any verbal revenue promise with real caution.
- Item 20 (Openings, closures, transfers): A high closure or turnover rate is a warning sign you can’t ignore.
Short on time? Read Item 19 and Item 20 first. They tell you the most in the fewest pages.
12 Questions to Ask Before You Sign a Blingle Franchise Agreement
Copy this list. Bring it to every conversation with a franchise rep or a current owner.
- Where exactly do your earnings claims appear in Item 19?
- What were the average startup costs for your last 10 franchisees?
- How many franchisees have closed, transferred, or exited in the past year?
- Can you give me contact details for former owners, as required in Item 20?
- What support do I get after launch, and for how long?
- Which disputes must go through mediation or arbitration first?
- In what state must I resolve a dispute if one comes up?
- Can you put every recurring fee in writing?
- What’s the total investment range, including working capital?
- How protected is my territory, in specific miles or boundaries?
- What are the renewal and exit terms?
- What happens if I decide to sell my franchise?
One action step above all: call at least three former franchisees from the Item 20 list before you sign anything. Their answers will tell you more than any sales deck.
How to Evaluate Franchise Risk Objectively
Don’t judge an entire opportunity on one dismissed lawsuit. Use a framework instead.
Rate Blingle — or any franchise — on these five factors. Score each one high, medium, or low:
- Legal history: How many disputes exist, and what pattern do they show?
- Franchisee turnover: What do the Item 20 closure and transfer numbers reveal?
- Startup cost transparency: Do the verbal numbers match the FDD?
- Earnings claim clarity: Are income figures documented in Item 19, or only spoken out loud?
- Support and readiness: What training and post-launch help actually comes included?
Here’s your decision rule. For two or more high-risk factors, pause and get a franchise attorney to review the agreement before you sign. When in doubt, slow down — the deal will still be there next week.
What the Blingle Lawsuit Means for Customers
Maybe you’re not buying a franchise. Maybe you just hired Blingle to hang your holiday lights and want to know if you should worry.
Here’s the key distinction. This is a franchise dispute between owners and the parent company. It’s not a consumer safety case, and it’s not a product recall.
So it doesn’t tell you that Blingle’s lighting service is unsafe or fraudulent. The lawsuit was about business contracts, not the quality of the lights on your roof.
Still, a little caution never hurts. Protect any booking with these steps:
- Get your pricing in writing before work starts.
- Read recent reviews for your specific local franchise, not just the national brand.
- Keep records of every payment and agreement.
- Raise any concern with the local owner first, in writing.
Bottom line for customers: one franchise contract dispute doesn’t tell you whether your local installer does good work. Your local reviews and a written quote will.
Blingle Lawsuit FAQs
Is there a real Blingle lawsuit?
Yes. A federal case, Waldron et al. v. SVHB Marketing LLC d/b/a Horse Power Brands, was filed in September 2023 and dismissed in March 2024.
What was the Blingle lawsuit about?
Eight franchisees alleged inflated earnings projections, inadequate training, and higher-than-quoted costs. The docket lists it as a Contract: Franchise dispute.
Why was it dismissed?
The plaintiffs skipped a mandatory mediation step required by their contracts, so the court dismissed it on procedure, not on the merits.
Did Blingle win the lawsuit?
No one won on the merits. The case ended without a ruling on the allegations themselves.
Was there a Blingle lawsuit in 2020?
Public records don’t confirm a separate 2020 case. The verified case was filed in 2023.
Is Blingle still selling franchises?
Yes. The brand still operates and continues to sell territories.
Should customers avoid Blingle?
This is a franchise dispute, not a consumer safety ruling. Check your local reviews and get pricing in writing before you book.
Where can I read the court record?
On PACER (pacer.gov) or Justia, both under case number 2:23-cv-03485-MSG.
