Attorney General Michelle Henry has announced a settlement with GPGL Holdings, a lead generator based in Florida. The company allegedly used fake addresses and customer reviews to promote high-interest loans from Community Loans of America (CLA) to Pennsylvania borrowers.
This settlement follows a previous $5.9 million agreement with CLA, which operated as Delaware Title Loans, for offering unlawful loans with interest rates over 300 percent. Under the new agreement, GPGL will return $34,844 received from CLA for customer restitution and pay a $10,000 civil penalty.
"Out-of-state car title lenders and their affiliates should be on notice that my office will not tolerate deceptive practices to dupe Pennsylvanians into loans with exorbitant rates," said Attorney General Henry. "We will fight for Pennsylvanians who are preyed upon because they are facing financial difficulties."
GPGL reportedly set up fake locations on Google Maps and fabricated reviews to attract customers for CLA. These leads were sold to Tradition Media Group, LLC, which then sold them to CLA.
CLA is accused of making thousands of unlawful loans in Pennsylvania. As part of the earlier settlement, CLA refunded affected consumers and agreed to cancel over $3.7 million in outstanding debt.
Title loans require borrowers to use their vehicle title as collateral and often come with high costs. They are typically sought by individuals facing financial hardships such as job loss or medical expenses. Pennsylvania laws effectively prohibit these loans due to their high-interest rates exceeding the state's 25 percent annual limit.
The Office of Attorney General has secured more than $4.4 million in restitution and over $8 million in debt cancellation for affected Pennsylvanians.
Consumers who suspect they have been exploited by similar lenders are encouraged to file complaints or contact the Office of Attorney General at scams@attorneygeneral.gov or 1-800-441-2555.
The settlement with CLA was filed in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas by Deputy Attorney General Jonathan Burns.