By Tom Latek
Kentucky Today
Attorney General Daniel Cameron announced that Kentucky will share in a multi-million dollar settlement involving over 40 states with Tempoe, LLC, in a consumer protection case involving leasing versus buying.
The agreement settles allegations that Tempoe systematically misled its customers, leading them to believe that they were agreeing to an installment plan to purchase merchandise when, those customers were actually agreeing to lease the merchandise. The complicated structure of the lease agreements meant that customers, over the duration of their leases, often paid double or triple the purchase price of the product.
As part of the settlement, Tempoe is permanently banned from engaging in consumer leasing. All existing leases will be cancelled, and consumers may keep the leased merchandise without any further financial obligation to the company. This amounts to $33 million of “in-kind” financial relief to consumers nationwide. In addition, Tempoe will refrain from reporting negative information about lessees to any consumer reporting agency.
Tempoe has also agreed to pay a total of $1 million to the settling states and $1 million to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which has agreed to a parallel settlement with the company.
“For our free-market system to work, everyone must play by the same rules and follow the law,” Cameron said.
Cameron joined in the settlement with the attorneys general from Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
To read a copy of the settlement, click here.