Attorney General Chris Carr today announced that the State of Georgia has entered into a settlement with Tempoe, LLC resolving a multistate investigation into the company’s advertising and leasing through retailers across the nation, particularly retailers of durable goods, such as furniture and appliances. Tempoe also purported to lease services such as car repairs. This multistate investigation – which included 41 states and the District of Columbia – revealed that Tempoe’s marketing and sales practices often misled consumers to believe they were signing up for an installment plan or credit sale when, in reality, they were entering into a lease agreement for products that they could actually never own. The complicated structure of the lease agreements and the lack of required disclosures caused more confusion and often resulted in consumers paying 2-3 times the purchase price of the product or service.
“This latest action will provide financial relief to people across our state, and it’s yet another step in our ongoing efforts to protect Georgia consumers,” said Carr. “We will continue to hold accountable any company that purposefully engages in deceptive tactics in an attempt to mislead or take advantage of hardworking Georgians.”
Through this settlement, Tempoe is permanently banned from engaging in future consumer leasing activities. All existing leases will be cancelled, and consumers may retain the leased merchandise in their possession without any further financial obligation to Tempoe – resulting in approximately $33 million of “in-kind” financial relief to consumers nationwide. Additionally, Tempoe shall not provide negative information regarding lessees to any consumer reporting agency.
Consumers with existing leases do not need to take any action as Tempoe has automatically cancelled their account(s) as a result of this settlement.
Finally, as part of this agreement, Tempoe will pay $2 million: $1 million to the states and jurisdictions participating in this settlement and $1 million to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which has agreed to a parallel settlement resolving the same alleged misconduct.
Carr is joined in this settlement by the Attorneys General of Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, 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, Wisconsin and the District of Columbia.
A copy of the Assurance of Voluntary Compliance can be seen below.
ASSURANCE OF VOLUNTARY COMPLIANCE - TEMPOE LLC ga attorney general
About the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division
Last year, the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division helped 171,548 people and was responsible for obtaining more than $143 million for consumers through several efforts, including legal settlements, mediation, and administration of the Georgia Lemon Law. In FY 2023, settlements with the Attorney General’s Office resulted in payments to the State Treasury in the amount of $21,641,584.85. Additional information can be found here.
The Consumer Protection Division continues to prioritize consumer education and outreach efforts. This includes live speaking engagements, webinars and the distribution of three consumer-dedicated guides, the Georgia Consumer Protection Guide for Older Adults, Cybersecurity in Georgia: A Guide for Small Businesses, Non-Profits and Places of Worship, and the Georgia Military Consumer Protection Guide.
