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What Happens if I Don’t Pay Acima?

Sarah Edwards | January 15, 2024

Sarah Edwards
Legal Expert
Sarah Edwards, BS

Sarah Harris is a professional researcher and writer specializing in legal content. An Emerson College alumna, she holds a Bachelor of Science in Communication from the prestigious Boston institution.

Edited by Hannah Locklear

Hannah Locklear
Editor at SoloSuit
Hannah Locklear, BA

Hannah Locklear is SoloSuit’s Marketing and Impact Manager. With an educational background in Linguistics, Spanish, and International Development from Brigham Young University, Hannah has also worked as a legal support specialist for several years.

Summary: If you don’t pay Acima, you risk hurting your credit, owing late fees, repossession, and facing legal action. If you’ve been sued, SoloSuit can help you respond.

Have you fallen behind on your payments to Acima? Financial difficulties can be incredibly stressful — especially if it looks like they might hurt your credit. But often, people are so overwhelmed that they don’t pay their debts, hoping the problem disappears.

Don’t do this! Ignoring the company and not paying is probably the worst thing you can do. Here’s what happens if you don’t pay Acima (and what course of action you should take instead).

Keep reading to learn more.

What is Acima leasing?

If Acima says you owe money, you might think it’s another debt collector. However, Acima isn’t a debt collection agency. Instead, it’s a lease-to-own company that lets you pay for big-ticket items through a lease instead of buying them outright.

The Acima leasing phone number is (801) 297-1920, and the company’s headquarters is located at 13907 Minuteman Dr., 5th Floor, Draper, UT 84020. Judging by its BBB profile, it isn’t too popular with customers. Acima reviews have an average of 1.11/5 stars.

Here’s how Acima leasing works:

  1. You choose a retail store — more than 15,000 work with Acima.
  2. You apply (this step doesn’t harm your credit).
  3. If you’re approved, you shop online or in-store and choose an item.
  4. Acima buys the item and leases it to you.
  5. Once you get your item, you can lease it until you own it, buy it early, or return it.

Applying for Acima leasing might sound like applying for a loan or a credit card. But this process is a little different — it’s designed for people with little to no credit. According to the Acima website, you can get approved for items worth $300-$5,000 if you meet these basic requirements:

  • At least $750 in income per month in an active checking account.
  • At least three months of income history with your current job or other source of income.
  • A government-issued photo ID.
  • A Social Security Number or a Taxpayer Identification Number.

That might all sound well and good. After all, getting approved for anything can be next to impossible if you have poor credit or very little credit. But there’s a catch here — a really big one. Acima’s lease-to-own program comes with very high fees.

You have an option to buy out of the lease at any point. However, the high fees make it difficult to do so. With a lease term of 12 months, the total markup on an item’s cash price is well over 100%.

What happens if you don’t pay Acima?

Sometimes, life throws us financial curveballs. If one of those curveballs has made it so you can’t repay Acima, you might be up against some serious consequences.

1. Your credit score may be impacted

If you’re late on payments or stop paying, Acima will report that delinquency to credit bureaus. Having even one late payment can significantly lower your score, which can be bad news for your future.

If your credit score is low enough, qualifying for car loans and mortgages can be difficult or impossible. In some cases, a low credit score may also make it harder to find housing.

2. You may owe late fees

Leasing an item through Acima is already much more expensive than buying it outright from the retailer. But if you make late payments or don’t make them, you might owe late fees. When you add these to the hefty markup with Acima’s lease agreements, your debt can easily spiral out of control.

3. Acima might repossess the item

This doesn’t always happen. But if the item you’re leasing to own is valuable enough, Acima leasing might take it back from you. If this happens, you likely won’t be refunded!

4. You might face legal action

If you don’t pay your lease as agreed, Acima leasing might opt to file a debt collection lawsuit against you. Having a lawsuit filed against you makes a difficult situation even more stressful, but all hope isn’t lost! If you receive a letter stating that Acima is suing you for an unpaid debt, you can fight it with a letter in response known as an Answer.

However, if you’re going to file an Answer, you’ll need to act quickly! Different states have different filing deadlines. No matter where you’re located or how much you owe, SoloSuit can help you craft an Answer, file it, and track the progress of your case online.

Many companies will simply drop the lawsuit if they see you’ve filed an Answer. If they don’t, they might be willing to settle for an amount less than what you originally owed.

Check out the following video to learn more about how to draft an Answer to a debt Summons and Complaint.

What should you do if you can’t pay Acima?

If you find you can’t keep up with regular payments on your Acima lease-to-own agreement, the best course of action is to reach out to Acima leasing immediately.

Generally speaking, creditors are just happy to see that you’re trying to pay your debt. They may be able to work out an alternative payment plan with you. You can call the Acima leasing number or send an email to get in touch.

But what if it’s too late, and Acima has already filed a lawsuit against you? In this case, responding to the suit with an Answer letter is the next best step. If you do nothing, the situation may get worse. Let’s look at an example.

Example: Caitlin receives a Complaint that shows Acima is suing her for non-payment. If she ignores the Complaint, the court is likely to make a default judgment against her. That means she will legally owe the entire debt. However, if she works with SoloSuit to create an Answer letter, there’s a good chance Acima will drop the case or settle the debt for less than she originally owed.

Start drafting your Answer letter in minutes with SoloSuit.

Let SoloSuit help you resolve your debt

Whether Acima has filed a lawsuit against you or not, facing a debt you can’t pay can be stressful. Your situation might feel hopeless, but with SoloSuit on your side, it’s far from it. Take control of your debt today for a brighter financial future!

Want to settle your debt lawsuit? Check out SoloSettle by SoloSuit.

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