Pittsburgh Review

The Pennsylvania Attorney General’s (AG) office continues to go after retailers who have shown deceptive practices, and Ashley HomeStore was recently a target. AG Josh Shapiro said his office entered into six settlements, called Assurances of Voluntary Compliance (AVC), regarding hang tag violations that have misled consumers.

Shapiro said in a press release last week that the settlements were filed by former Deputy Attorney General Merna Hoffman. Ashley HomeStore in Pennsylvania now needs to give clear information to customers about hang tags on rent-to-own items at 22 stores across the state. Shapiro said, "The law doesn't allow businesses to hide the fine print so they can rip off Pennsylvania consumers," and the recent actions by his office should alleviate the issue.

The Hang Tag law requires that a retailer give basic terms of a transaction to be displayed to consumers on a tag physically attached to items that are rent-to-own. Terms include the rental payment amount, cash prices, the total number and amount of payments, and the cost of the lease.

“You deserve to know the real cost of what you buy, before purchasing it, so you can make smart decisions on how to spend your hard-earned money,” Shapiro said. “My office is committed to enforcing the law against any company that tries to leave consumers hanging.”

The release said that consumers are often unaware of true costs and financing options “due to certain deceptive practices in the industry.” Consumers often do not know they are obtaining rent-to-own financing, and believe it is traditional credit. They also often do not know they could be charged double the cash price of the property, or 152% annual interest, under these financing agreements. 

Shapiro’s office has now settled with 14 owners of at least 175 retail stores, including Ashley HomeStore and other major companies like Mattress Firm and Big Lots, who have 72 and 71 stores respectively. The retailers must now comply with the Rental Purchase Agreement Act.

“Our work here is far from over,” Shapiro said. “We will continue to work with retailers to ensure the law is obeyed and stand ready to fight for any Pennsylvania consumer who is taken advantage of. I encourage anyone who believes they’ve entered a rent-to-own agreement without seeing a hang tag to file a complaint with my office.”

Shapiro’s office in 2020 sued Snap Finance, an out-of-state rent-to-own company that has partnered with more than 1,000 retailers in Pennsylvania. The press release said that Snap Finance played a major role in violating consumer protection laws. Ashley HomeStore and other rent-to-own companies partner with out-of-state companies like Snap Finance for financing options to consumers with poor or no credit, as well as low-income residents.

Anyone who thinks they have been a victim of deceptive business practices with rent-to-own companies and retail outlets can file a complaint online or email scams@attorneygeneral.gov.