Influencer Brittany Dawn Davis is facing legal trouble after allegedly misleading thousands of followers, some of whom reported suffering from eating disorders, with her “personalized” fitness plans.
On Feb. 1, the Texas Attorney General’s (AG) office filed a case against the Fort Worth-based influencer over her alleged scam.
Davis has been selling online fitness packages, which reportedly cost from $300 to thousands of dollars, through her LLC since 2014. Some of her customers claimed they were also charged shipping fees despite the programs being online.
The AG’s lawsuit accuses Davis of advertising “individualized” plans and then not following through with other promises made, like regular check-ins and coaching. BuzzFeed News reported that, in a private Facebook group where Davis’ clients updated each other on their progress, multiple customers discovered that Davis had given them “the exact same” plans and routines, despite the promise that routines would be tailored to each individual’s needs.
Despite no evidence that Davis has professional nutritional or fitness training, the lawsuit is not focused on her lack of experience. Instead, the lawsuit claims Davis violated consumer protection laws by misleading followers with eating disorders who bought into her program.
The office seeks between $250,000 and $1 million in penalties and court fees.
As of reporting, Davis has over 460,000 followers on her main Instagram account and 135,000 followers on her Christian-focused Instagram page. BuzzFeed News pointed out that Davis started pivoting to religious content in 2019 — the same year a petition with thousands of signatures went viral calling for Davis to shut down her Instagram and LLC.
According to a 2019 interview with Good Morning America, one of Davis’ clients, a woman named Kayla Lippens, felt “upset” she had confided so much in Davis.
“I was upset that I trusted her. I’m upset that I told her about, like, my depression, and I opened up to her, you know, expecting her to help me,” Lippens said. “She basically blew me off.”
At the time, Davis posted a since-deleted YouTube video titled “Calling Out the Hate,” where she said, “I’m sorry … I realized I messed up, and I’m moving forward.”
An Insider report from 2019 also revealed that Lippens shared her disappointment in a series of Instagram Stories since deleted from Lippens’ account.
“Can you imagine spending money on somebody who’s supposed to coach and guide you through losing weight — and it’s an emotional journey — and for them to quit replying and not give a s*** — and then to say it was an accident?” Lippens said in her Story, according to Insider. “There are thousands of thousands of women that she’s done this to.”
Lippens herself teaches self-help courses that range from a $12 mini-course to a $397 nonrefundable six-week course.
Davis has not yet responded to the new wave of allegations and the AG’s lawsuit. Comments are limited on her most recent Instagram post — a photo of her and her husband — but she did reply to one commenter who brought up the lawsuit.
“Bad publicity is publicity nonetheless. People are going to come to your page to see who Brittany Dawn is. And God will turn it around, and they will see [who] Brittany Dawn is,” the person wrote. “Don’t give up! As you go through this battle, remember the Kingdom is standing with you!”
“We wrestle not against flesh and blood,” Davis replied.
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