Former fitness influencer turned Christian influencer Brittany Dawn Davis is facing a lawsuit from the Texas attorney general for allegedly scamming past clients of hers. Some of Davis’ former followers believe that she pivoted to Christianity in order to avoid scrutiny for the scamming allegations, which came to public attention in 2019.
“Fitness and health are no longer my identity. My identity is in Christ,” said Davis in a November 2019 announcement that her channel’s content was shifting from fitness to faith. Davis, who has nearly 1 million followers on TikTok, used to focus on nutrition, workout routines, and tips for getting drinks at Starbucks. Now her social feeds are full of videos on topics such as Christian dating, the power of prayer, and her marriage.
On Feb. 1, 2022, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit against Davis, a Texas resident, and her business, Brittany Dawn Fitness LLC, alleging that Davis violated the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Consumer Protection Act. The state is seeking between $250,000 and $1 million in penalties and court fees. According to the lawsuit, Davis misled fitness clients who had eating disorders, failed to deliver on promises of personalized fitness plans, and charged shipping fees for “goods delivered by email.”
Several of Brittany Dawn Davis’ former followers who are Christians told BuzzFeed News they believe that her shift to Christianity is merely a rebrand. “If she were truly repentant, she would be facing the things that she has done, and this would be her witness,” said Shanna Samul. “She is not immune because she belongs to Jesus. If anything, she should be held more accountable.”
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Brittany Dawn Davis Sued by the State of Texas
The lawsuit alleges that beginning in 2014, Brittany Dawn Davis “profited from the sale of online fitness packages to thousands of consumers with the promise of personalized nutritional guidance and individual fitness coaching.” These packages ranged from $92 to $300 in price.
“However,” says the suit, “the online nutrition and fitness plans delivered to consumers were not individualized. Defendants also failed to provide the promised coaching and check-ins. Defendants largely ignored consumer complaints or, if they did respond, offered only partial refunds. In 2019, consumers’ complaints on social media garnered media attention prompting defendant Davis to make a video apology posted to YouTube.”
At the beginning of 2019, media outlets reported that thousands of people claimed that they had paid for supposedly customized fitness plans only to discover that other clients were being sent the same generic plan. When clients tried to contact Davis on social media, their comments were deleted.
“I apologize to anyone who feels like they got scammed from me,” said Davis in her apology video, which has since been deleted from YouTube. “I now realize that I should have had more help and that this is a lesson that I am having to learn the hard way, and for that, I am sorry.”
