One Costco manager shocked two sisters when they tried to check out at the register.
Listen up so this doesn’t happen to you.
Costco is a membership-based establishment, meaning customers must hold a valid membership card to enter the retailer and check out. Multiple stores have the same member model, including BJ’s and Sam’s Club, which, like Costco, sell items in bulk.
Some people are starting to sour on Costco as the company has been cracking down on people sharing membership cards. (Kinda like how Netflix made it so you can’t share a login with people who don’t physically live in your house.)
As part of the crackdown, Costco is experimenting with requiring members to scan their cards upon entering the store. Generally, cardholders just flash their card to the employee at the entrance without much fuss.
But people are unclear how this really changes things. It doesn’t seem like there’s an extra verification step at the entrance to ensure the person holding it pays for the items.
Instead, this is happening at checkout in some locations where they’re requiring people to give their photo ID alongside their card, CBS reported.
“We don’t feel it’s right that non-members receive the same benefits and pricing as our members,” Costco said when it announced the change.
Without that card holding up, customers are forced to leave their items behind or enroll in a membership on the spot.
That’s what happened to this duo.
@huseina.basrai this is why bj’s stays on top #costco #bjs ♬ What Was I Made For? [From The Motion Picture “Barbie”] – Billie Eilish
A grocery run gone wrong
In a video with over five million views, Huseina Basrai (@huseina.basrai) and her sister said they spent two hours shopping at Costco. They were using their family’s membership card but were declined from buying anything at checkout.
“The manager denied us access to buy anything after THYE LET US IN since it wasn’t specifically our card,” Basrai said.
Some cashiers may look the other way, even if they know you’re not the cardholder. That’s definitely a better scenario if you don’t want to leave empty-handed.
This happened to one woman, and she was offended that the cashier thought she could pass for her dad. Another tried to pass as his mom, whose photo is on the card, but the worker didn’t even check the card.
The basic tier for a Costco card is the Gold Star membership. It comes with a $60 annual membership fee, according to the retailer’s website. It includes a free card for household members to use and is valid at all locations worldwide. The $120 membership tier includes 2% rewards on Costco purchases and extra benefits on select Costco Travel products.
Viewers had mixed reactions
“Love Costco but they are doing way too much lol why am I getting carded in the store, in the lines, and asked for my ID. I’ll stick to Sam’s club,” the top comment read.
“Like my son always tells them, you don’t get paid enough to care who the hell uses a card,” a person said.
“Costco is very clear with their membership rules. You buy a membership you get two cards. The person purchasing has to be the member on the card. Why is that so hard to follow?” another added.
The Daily Dot reached out to Basrai via TikTok comment and to Costco via email.
Internet culture is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here. You’ll get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.
