A national jewelry store chain with the motto “Serving those who serve” will pay $34.2 million in refunds to service members, including soldiers serving Joint Base Lewis-McChord.
Harris Jewelry closed all of its stores last year amid the pandemic.
Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson said Wednesday that Harris Jewelry, which had a store in Tacoma Mall, agreed to the payment after it was accused of using deceptive sales tactics on service members. The deal was announced by the Federal Trade Commission and multiple other state attorneys general.
Ferguson told KIRO 7 that the jewelry chain marked up the prices of diamonds and gold, charged outrageous interest rates and hidden fees, and sold expensive warranties that weren’t legal in Washington state.
According to a The New York Times report, when customers fell behind on their payments, the jeweler would report the lapse to credit bureaus, which harmed consumers’ credit scores.
A multi-state investigation shows the company was doing the same thing near military bases across the country, promising to service military members.
“They were doing exactly the opposite. They were doing a disservice and that’s putting it mildly, doing a disservice to those who serve and it makes this especially egregious, right. They hold themselves out as a company that wants to help service members, give them a good deal, a fair shake and in fact, it’s exactly the opposite. They lured them in — holding themselves out as friendly to veterans and service members and in fact, it was exactly the opposite,” Ferguson said.
In addition to the settlement, the jeweler agreed to direct credit agencies to remove any adverse entries from their records.
Now that the service members’ debt has been wiped off the books, some are expected to receive checks in the mail for full refunds.
About 1,000 Washington-based service members will qualify for restitution of $1.5 million.
The AG’s office has their contact information and will be reaching out to them.
While the company is no longer in business, it also has agreed to pay the state $50,000, which will go to the financial emergency relief funds for Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine, and Coast Guard members in the state.
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