A Portsmouth couple contacted police after a dispute with a rent-to-own company over missed payments and what they said were unauthorized charges to a credit card.
The couple told officers they had leased property from Aaron’s for about five months and had provided one credit card for the initial payment and a different card for regular payments.
According to the police report, they later missed a payment and said company employees began repeatedly contacting them and demanding payment.
The woman then discovered that the card originally used for the initial transaction had allegedly been charged approximately $2,000.
She told police she had not given permission for that card to be used for those later charges.
Officers classified the matter as a civil dispute and advised the couple to consult an attorney about a possible small-claims action.
The report does not establish whether the charges were unauthorized or whether the rental agreement contained language permitting additional charges to the card.
Rent-to-Own Customers Have Rights
Ohio law requires rent-to-own companies to put lease-purchase agreements in writing and clearly disclose the payment schedule, additional charges, the cash price of the merchandise, the total amount required to obtain ownership, termination terms and other important information.
Customers also have protections when they fall behind.
Ohio law requires a grace period of at least two days for weekly payments and at least five days for monthly payments before a customer is considered in default, although the monthly grace-period protection is limited to three times per year.
And a rent-to-own contract cannot give a company permission to breach the peace while trying to recover property.
That means the agreement cannot authorize employees to force their way into a home or otherwise commit a breach of the peace during repossession. Ohio law also says simply failing to return rented property cannot, by itself, be treated as probable cause for a criminal case.
But Customers Have Responsibilities Too
Those protections do not mean a customer can simply stop paying and keep the merchandise indefinitely.
A rent-to-own agreement is still a contract.
If payments stop, the company can demand payment, seek the return of its property and use lawful civil remedies available under the agreement and Ohio law.
Ohio law even provides a way for some customers to reinstate an agreement after falling behind. In certain situations, a customer who returns the merchandise when requested can later catch up on missed payments, allowable delinquency charges and a limited reinstatement fee and resume the original agreement without losing previously earned rights.
Customers should also read the agreement closely before assuming a payment is unauthorized.
Some contracts include recurring-payment authorizations or permissions involving cards kept on file.
The police report in this case does not include the couple’s contract, so it does not establish what permission was — or was not — given.
What About a Card You Didn’t Authorize Them to Charge?
If a customer genuinely believes a credit or debit card was charged without authorization, that is a separate issue from owing money on the rental agreement.
The Ohio Attorney General recommends contacting the bank or credit-card issuer immediately when an unauthorized charge appears.
Consumer protections vary depending on whether the card is a credit card or debit card, and deadlines can affect how much money a consumer may be responsible for.
It is also a good idea to dispute the charge in writing and keep copies of the rental agreement, receipts, account statements, emails and text messages.
Ohio’s Attorney General advises consumers who cannot resolve a purchase dispute directly with a business to document the problem in writing and consider filing a consumer complaint.
Read Before You Sign
Rent-to-own arrangements can be convenient for people who cannot or do not want to pay the full purchase price upfront.
But they also require customers to keep track of exactly what they agreed to.
Know which payment method is authorized.
Know when the payments are due.
Know what happens if you miss one.
And know what the company is permitted to do if you default.
Companies have a right to collect money legitimately owed to them and recover their property through lawful means.
Customers have a right to be free from unauthorized charges, forced entry and collection practices that violate the law.
When either side believes the other has crossed that line, documentation matters.
In this case, Portsmouth Police determined the disagreement belonged in civil court rather than ending in an arrest.
