Victims of Pearl Bridal closure to receive up to $90,000 in restitution

PHOENIX (FOX 10) -- It's a victory for brides who shopped at Pearl Bridal prior to its shutdown in 2018. On Monday, the Attorney General announced that victims will receive restitution.

The shop made nearly 300 orders before its closures last May, without having delivered the promised wedding gowns and other apparel. A lot of brides were left with nothing after saying yes to the dress. Now, however, there's justice.

Victims of Pearl Bridal will receive up to $90,000 in restitution, after a lawsuit was filed in September 2018. The state alleged that the owners, identified as Erica and Tyson Miltenberger, used "False advertising and deceptive practices to collect hundreds of thousands of dollars in prepayments for wedding dresses."

The two promised dresses would be custom-made and designed in-house in about six to nine months. The investigation revealed that the owners received more than $275,000 in orders of dresses that some never got to wear. Some customers were able to receive refunds from their banks or credit cards, but others didn't receive any money back.

In a statement, Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich said:

"Wedding celebrations should be filled with love and joy, not with shock and disappointment of finding out that you will not be wearing the custom dress you paid for. A business cannot mislead a consumer, collect their money, and then abandon them on one of the most important days of their life."

The Arizona Attorney General's office will begin contacting consumers who are owed money shortly.