Calif. Jeweler to Pay $500K to Settle Deceptive Lending Claims

By Rob Bates | July 09, 2025

San Diego–based Attractive Gems Jewelers has agreed to pay $500,000 to settle charges that it engaged in deceptive lending practices, according to a statement issued Tuesday by California attorney general Rob Bonta and San Diego County district attorney Summer Stephan.

The prosecutors’ statement says that from around 2020 to 2022, Attractive Gems marketed—with the help of paid influencers—a $10,000 line of in-store credit at a yearly fee of $149.99. The jeweler billed the credit line as a way for consumers to improve their credit scores, claiming it would be reported every month to credit bureaus, according to the statement. Attractive Gems continued to make this claim even after credit bureaus said they would no longer list the line on their reports, it notes.

The line was primarily sold as “a credit repair or credit building vehicle and not as a credit product for the purchase of jewelry,” says a complaint filed Monday in state Superior Court in San Diego. “In fact, of the more than 18,600 consumers who opened the line of credit with Attractive Gems, only 56 of them used the line of credit in order to purchase jewelry.”

Prosecutors also contend that the store failed to properly provide required disclosures, such as informing customers how much they were borrowing, at what interest rate, and what their monthly payments would be.

They further allege that Attractive Gems’ contracts included an “unlawful” clause that requires any disputes to be settled by binding arbitration. That provision violates the federal Military Lending Act, which states that creditors cannot ask covered members of the military or their dependents to waive their right to sue when obtaining a loan, according to the complaint.

The proposed settlement, which is subject to court approval, earmarks $400,000 for consumer restitution and $100,000 for civil penalties. It includes injunctions requiring the store to follow applicable business laws. The settlement does not constitute an admission of liability, according to court documents.

Attractive Gems’ lawyer was unavailable for comment.

(Photo: Getty Images)