Costco Customer Says His Mom Was Banned From Store Location After Using His Dad’s Card

A TikToker who posts a lot of Costco-related content claimed in a viral clip that his mother was banned from shopping at a specific location after she was "caught" using his dad's membership card.

Angelo (@profitplug) says that the ban was more than likely a result of the chain's decision to "crackdown" on membership sharing. In fact, the chain raked in a purported $4.2 billion in membership fees in 2022 alone, which was up from the $3.87 billion it generated from sales of its cards in 2021.

And if reports about the business putting the kibosh on membership sharing are true, then it's not difficult to imagine Costco will earn even more money from memberships in 2023.

So how did his mom get banned? Well, Angelo said that he partially takes responsibility, because, even though his father's Gold Star membership allows for two members to have access to shopping at Costco, Angelo is officially one of the members on that card, leaving his mom out in the cold.

He says that for years she's been able to make purchases without too much of a hassle, however, after attempting to make a purchase in the self-checkout line, she was raided by Costco employees who "rushed" over to the area to check her ID and make sure that she was an officially recognized member.

Although it seems like she was able to make her purchase in the store, Angelo says that she was told she was banned from that particular Costco store.

Angelo says in the video: "My mom got banned from Costco for using my dad's membership card to buy groceries. A couple of weeks ago I made a video that went viral about how Costco is now enforcing their nonmembership sharing policy."

He continued, "So if you didn't know, now you know. So here's what happened: my mom likes to go to Costco sometimes to just look around. And one day she tried buying some groceries at the self-checkout area and as soon as she scanned the card, employees rushed her and started asking for her ID and membership."

Angelo went on: "After confirming that it wasn't her card they later told her that she can never go back to that location again. And it was kind of my fault. If you have the Gold Star membership you can have two users on the card. And so when I went to college my dad made me a user instead of my mom."

The TikToker said that even though his mother hasn't technically had her own Costco membership for quite some time, it was never a problem until recently: "She was able to get away with it for a while, but since they're becoming more strict in checking at the entrance and at the self-checkout area, the jig is up."

"If you didn't know you can still shop at Costco without having a membership just by using a gift card or if you're buying alcohol. Only some states will allow it, so pause now [he's referring to his video] and double-check."

The states that he lists in his video are as follows:

• Arizona
• California
• Colorado some locations are beer/wine only (no liquor)
• Connecticut
• Delaware
• Hawaii
• Indiana
• Kentucky
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• New York
• Texas beer/wine only (no liquor)
• Vermont

If there are some things you'd like to purchase at Costco without having a membership with the popular bulk retailer, there are a number of things you can purchase. Angelo already divulged that liquor is something you can get deals on without having to fork over the annual fee for a special Costco membership card, however, there are also other things, according to Kiplinger you'll be able to buy.

The outlet states that food court meals are still a go, but this is only for some locations that let it slide: officially, you've got to be a member to take advantage of the brand's low food court prices.

You could purportedly still purchase gas at the pump, but only if you have a Costco gift card to do so. So you could buy the gift cards and re-load them yourself if you want to take advantage of the chain's low gas prices.

There are also some locations that will allow you to buy prescription drugs at Costco without a membership, and, like many of the deals offered to customers of the chain, they're almost always significantly cheaper than their costs at other pharmacies. These pharmacies often also offer free health screenings which you, again, don't need a membership to benefit from.