$183.5 Million Settlement Ends Multi-State Investigation of Acima
Key Facts
Pennsylvania announced a $183.5 million multi-state settlement on November 12, 2026, with Acima Digital and its immediate parent, Acima Holdings, according to a statement from the state attorney general’s office. The settlement closes an investigation into Acima’s marketing of lease-to-own agreements, with the amount distributed among consumer compensation, payments to the states and reductions in lease balances. The attorney general’s office said, "The settlement consists of $43 million in consumer restitution, $10.5 million for the states, and a total of $130 million in lease-balance reductions." The agreement’s components show that most of its value comes in the form of direct reductions in customers’ obligations, alongside restitution and government payments. The states had alleged that the way repayment options and their costs were presented to consumers was misleading.
According to the Pennsylvania attorney general’s office, the states said Acima marketed lease-purchase agreements as 90-day payment programs without disclosing that consumers were automatically enrolled in terms of up to 12 months. The states said this arrangement could lead consumers to pay about twice the advertised cash price of an item. The allegations concern the difference between the repayment period Acima highlighted to consumers and the longer term that could apply to them automatically. That difference could increase the customer’s total cost compared with the cash price, according to the settlement statement. These practices were included in the case resolved by the multi-state agreement.
The settlement requires Acima to clearly disclose the material terms of its agreements in advertisements and during the electronic-signing process, according to the statement. The company must also stop setting cash prices above those set by its retail partners. The terms also prohibit obstructing the termination of agreements through the return of goods, addressing how the company handles customers seeking to end a lease. The attorney general’s office said the company is required not to conceal material terms and conditions during electronic signing. The restrictions go beyond restitution and balance reductions, placing operational requirements on how contracts are presented and handled.
Another condition requires Acima to refrain from reporting lease-purchase agreements to the three major credit reporting agencies for 5 years. According to the Pennsylvania statement, this provision limits the inclusion of those agreements in consumers’ records at the agencies during the specified period. The ban is part of a set of regulatory commitments the company accepted alongside disclosing terms and changing certain business practices. The states say consumers eligible for restitution or lease-balance relief do not need to take any action to be considered for eligibility. The settlement administrator will contact those eligible for restitution, while Acima will contact customers eligible for balance relief.
The investigation dates back to November 2021, when Acima received notice that a multi-state investigation had been opened, according to disclosures by Upbound to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The company’s annual report said Acima received the states’ first settlement proposal in the second quarter of 2024. In its quarterly report, Upbound said the company had reached a preliminary, nonbinding agreement on the main financial and operational terms and was preparing settlement agreements for signing with each state. Upbound also disclosed a separate final settlement that the District of Columbia attorney general’s office reached with Acima during the first quarter of 2026. These events reflect a regulatory process that spanned several years before Pennsylvania announced the multi-state agreement.
The settlement announced on November 12 remains subject to court approval, after a motion for approval was filed with the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, according to the attorney general’s office. The statement said the motion "is still awaiting court approval." In a separate case, a New York court on August 27, 2026, rejected most of Acima’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by the state attorney general, except for allegations that lease-to-own transactions would help customers improve their credit scores. This does not change the fact that the multi-state settlement motion is awaiting a decision by the court with jurisdiction in Allegheny County. Once approval is granted, the relevant parties will contact eligible consumers about restitution or balance relief under the announced process.