Rent-to-own math has a way of sounding friendly right up until it starts charging interest without using the word interest. According to the FTC, Progressive Leasing marketed payment plans as "no interest" and "same as cash", even though many shoppers ended up paying far more than the sticker price for furniture, appliances, jewelry, phones, and other big-ticket items.

Now the FTC says a second round of Progressive Leasing refund checks is going out. If one showed up in your mailbox, it is not random. It is tied to an earlier FTC case over how Progressive Leasing presented those plans and what people actually paid in the end.

Why are Progressive Leasing refunds going out again?

The FTC first sent payments in June 2021. This new round is for people who cashed that first check and who paid Progressive Leasing $616.62 or more. According to the FTC, the agency is now sending 1,221,146 checks totaling more than $27 million.

What to do now: If you got one of these checks, cash it within 90 days. This FTC page does not describe a new claim form for this round. It describes payments already being sent.

Who may have gotten a Progressive Leasing refund check?

The FTC says the second payment is going to people who meet both of these conditions:

  • You cashed your first FTC refund check in June 2021
  • You paid Progressive Leasing $616.62 or more

If you never got the first payment, or you did not cash it, that may explain why you did not get this one. Refund logic is not always emotionally satisfying, but it does love paperwork.

What stores were tied to Progressive Leasing plans?

The FTC says Progressive Leasing offered these rent-to-own plans in more than 24,000 retail stores, including names many people actually remember:

  • Best Buy
  • Big Lots
  • Mattress Firm
  • Kay Jewelers
  • Zales
  • Conn's
  • Cricket Wireless

That matters because a lot of people will remember the store, the couch, or the phone before they remember the financing company attached to it.

How to tell if the Progressive Leasing refund check is real

A check tied to an old payment plan can look suspicious, especially if you forgot the original deal existed. That part is fair. Here is how to sanity-check it.

✓The refund appears on the FTC's official site. The Progressive Leasing refund page is live at ftc.gov and explains that this is a second payment round.
✓The FTC names Rust Consulting as the administrator. The listed phone number for questions is 1-888-516-0774.
✓The payment method is a paper check. This FTC page says people are getting checks, and those checks must be cashed within 90 days.
✓No fee should be required to get your refund. If anyone asks you to pay money to release the check, that is not customer service. That is a side quest.

What if you think you should have gotten a payment?

The FTC page does not offer a new claim form for this second round. If you think you should have received a check but did not, the best next step is to contact Rust Consulting at 1-888-516-0774 and review the FTC refund page.

  • Look for records showing you used a Progressive Leasing plan
  • Check whether you cashed the first FTC refund check in 2021
  • Confirm whether your total payments were at least $616.62

Why this case matters

According to the FTC, many shoppers were told they were getting a no-interest or same-as-cash deal, then paid far more than the item's sticker price. That is not a small wording issue. That is the whole deal.

If a payment plan sounds like cash but ends like a sequel, read every line twice.

Source: This article is based on the FTC's official refund page. Primary source: ftc.gov/enforcement/refunds/legion-media-refunds. Administrator: Rust Consulting, 1-888-516-0774.