Ohio firm accused of deceptive leasing practices reaches Iowa agreement

Iowa has joined 41 others states in a settlement agreement with a Cincinnati company accused of using deceptive practices and advertising to lure consumers to pay far more to lease consumer items than they would have paid had they bought them.

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird announced the settlement with Tempoe LLC Oct. 23.

Bird said a multi-state investigation determined that Tempoe deceived customers into signing lease agreements for goods and services rather than buying them on installment plans or credit. The products covered a broad range, including mattresses, lawn and garden items and tires, and the confusing terms of the arrangements resulted in consumers paying two to three times the purchase price of the products, Bird said.

“No Iowan should be tricked into paying three times the purchase price for a product,” she said in a news release. “Our action bans Tempoe from offering these misleading agreements in Iowa and helps Iowans who were cheated out of their money.”

Under terms of the settlement, all existing leases are canceled and Iowans may keep the products they leased without any further obligation to Tempoe. The value of the products leased from Tempoe nationwide was estimated at $33 million.

The settlement stipulates that Tempoe is prohibited from any future leasing activities in Iowa and cannot provide credit-reporting agencies negative information about Iowans who leased from it.

Iowans with existing leases from Tempoe do not need to take any action, the news release said: Tempoe has automatically canceled their accounts as a result of the settlement. Tempoe will pay penalties of $1 million apiece to the participating states and jurisdictions and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Any affected Iowans with questions can contact the Iowa Attorney General’s Office at 888-777-4590.