Attorney General Schwalb Secures $4 Million from “Rent to Own” Company Acima for Engaging in Deceptive Lease Agreements

Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb today announced that “rent to own” company Acima Digital, LLC and Acima Holdings, LLC (collectively, Acima) will provide $4 million in monetary relief and penalties and reform its business practices to resolve an investigation into the company’s high-cost lease agreements.

The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) alleges that Acima violated the District’s consumer protection laws in several ways, including by attracting customers with misleading advertising, charging hidden markups, and obscuring parts of its lease agreements during sign-up. As a result, thousands of people signed lease agreements that often required them to pay more than double their item’s original retail price, many without fully understanding the terms they signed up for. Now, under the settlement agreement, Acima will provide $900,000 in refunds, $2.7 million in debt forgiveness, and $100,000 in account vouchers to more than 10,000 DC residents, and pay $300,000 in penalties to the District. The company will also be required to more clearly explain the costs and terms of its leases to customers moving forward, avoid misleading advertising, increase training for retail staff, and improve customer service to address common issues, like damaged merchandise, late deliveries, and a difficult return process.

“The hidden markups and buried fees in Acima’s deceptive lease agreements unfairly and illegally increased the cost of household goods for thousands of DC residents,” said Attorney General Schwalb. “Particularly at a time when Washingtonians are struggling to make ends meet, the Office of the Attorney General is putting money back in the pockets of residents who were harmed and ensuring that future customers are treated fairly.”

Acima is a “rent to own” company that partners with over 15,000 stores across the country—including numerous retailers in the District of Columbia and surrounding area—to offer “Rental Purchase Agreements” for household goods like sofas, mattresses, mobile phones, tires, and jewelry. A shopper selects the item they want from a partner store, submits an application to Acima (often through a mobile application), and Acima purchases the item and leases it back to them. Over the course of a lease term, customers typically paid the full retail price of the item, a markup added by Acima, leasing service payments, and additional fees, until the consumer finally became the owner of the item.

Acima markets its products toward financially challenged consumers with poor or no credit. The company’s agreements cost many customers more than 200% of the retail price of the items they sought to obtain. Going back to 2015, Acima has done business under many names, including Simple Finance, LLC, Simple RTO, LLC, Acima Credit, LLC, Simple Leasing, Simple Finance, and Acima Leasing.

OAG alleges Acima’s unlawful conduct included:

• Misleading advertising. For years, Acima falsely advertised “90 day same as cash” or “90 day cash option” to finance purchases, leading customers to believe they could pay for their purchase over three months without interest or fees. Instead, Acima automatically placed consumers into 12-month payment plans with high additional charges, often without consumers’ knowledge or full understanding.
   
• Charging hidden markups. Despite ads claiming to be “same as cash,” Acima charged some consumers a markup of up to $100 dollars over the retail price of their purchase. For years, Acima failed to disclose this markup to the base price of items, and later it was concealed in their contract’s fine print.
   
• Obscuring fees and contract terms. Before 2021, Acima hid key terms of its contracts, including fee amounts, during the sign-up process. Acima also made it difficult for consumers to review the terms of their rental purchase agreements—the company used pop-up windows that blocked text, displayed terms in very small font, and prompted people to electronically sign documents without viewing them.
   
• Deceptively promising “hassle-free returns.” Acima promised that customers could easily return items, but its return process was difficult and confusing. Acima refused numerous return requests. When returns were approved, Acima was often slow to process or pick them up, and required consumers to continue making lease payments while they waited, even for items that were broken or defective.
   

Under the terms of a settlement agreement to resolve OAG’s allegations, Acima will:

• Provide $3.7 million in refunds, debt forgiveness, and account credits to more than 10,000 DC residents.
   
  • Pay $900,000 in refunds to consumers who fully paid off their rental purchase agreements. Over 9,500 DC consumers who entered into rental purchase agreements between January 2015 and December 2023 will receive refunds.
     
  • Provide $2.7 million in debt forgiveness. More than 1,000 DC consumers with outstanding, overdue balances on agreements they entered into between January 1, 2018 and April 29, 2024 will have their debt forgiven.
     
  • Provide $100,000 in vouchers to DC consumers with existing leases. About 1,000 DC consumers with existing leases that were entered into between April 30, 2024 and August 30, 2025 will receive vouchers they can apply to their lease payments.
     
• Pay $300,000 in civil penalties to the District.
   
• Significantly change its business practices. Moving forward, Acima is required to:
  • Clearly disclose the full cost of rental purchase agreements upfront, including all fees.
     
  • Clearly disclose the terms of rental purchase agreements so they are not hidden and can be easily understood.
     
  • Provide training to partner retail staff to ensure they accurately explain Acima’s rental purchase agreements, including costs, terms, and options.
     
  • Avoid misleading advertising. This includes prohibitions on misleading claims like “same as cash” or “no additional fees” in ads for rental purchase agreements. Acima is also barred from misrepresenting rental purchase agreements as loans, financing, or credit, and must accurately describe them as “rental-purchase,” “rent-to-own,” “lease-purchase,” or “lease-to-own.”
     
  • Change customer service practices to fix common issues. Acima will be required to repair or replace merchandise that is damaged at the time of delivery, work with customers to address late deliveries, and promptly process returns and pick up eligible merchandise.
     

DC residents who are eligible for refunds, debt forgiveness, or account credits will be notified by email and mail over the next several months. If you believe you may be eligible but you do not receive a notification, you can contact OAG’s Office of Consumer Protection at consumer.protection@dc.gov.

The settlement agreement is available here. 

This matter was handled by Assistant Attorneys General Gary Tan and Brittany Nyovanie and Director of the Office of Consumer Protection Kevin Vermillion.
 

How to Report Unfair Business Practices

OAG protects DC residents from fraud, exploitation, and deceptive business practices by investigating and mediating consumer complaints, educating residents about their rights, and taking legal action against businesses and individuals that harm residents and break the law. Since January 2023, OAG has obtained nearly $80 million through enforcement actions and settlements on behalf of DC consumers.

To report scams, fraud, or unfair business practices, contact OAG’s Office of Consumer Protection: