Bad news if you’re mooching off of someone else’s Costco membership: The retail giant is cracking down.

When you enter Costco, you need to show your membership card to an employee to shop. Costco membership cards are non-transferable, but the company allows members to give a second household card to one other person in their home. Anyone with a card can bring up to two guests to the club during each visit, the company stipulates.

But Costco has noticed that non-members have been sneaking in with membership cards that don’t belong to them — particularly since Costco expanded self-checkout.

Costco recently started asking for shoppers’ membership cards along with a photo ID at the self-checkout registers, the same policy as regular checkout lanes, to crack down. “We don’t feel it’s right that non-members receive the same benefits and pricing as our members,” Costco said in announcing the change.

And now, Costco is testing out a system that requires members to scan their membership cards at the store entrance — instead of just flashing the card to employees. Shoppers have spotted the new scanners at a store in Washington State and posted photos on Reddit.

    • Zoolander@lemmy.world
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      10 months ago

      Why would it need to be both? The cards have the member’s picture on them. A single confirmation is enough.

      • Microplasticbrain
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        10 months ago

        Hahahhahahaha

        Edit: have any of you ever been to Costco? Front Door: hi can i see your Costco card? Checkout line: hi can i see your Costco card? Cashier: hi can i see your Costco card?

        Haha they will just ask once right? RIGHT? RIGHT?!

      • dtc@lemmy.world
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        10 months ago

        Costco could save a lot of money by just issuing a QR code to each paying member that they then have tattooed on their right wrist for easy scanning.