Costco Wholesale — Attraction in Arlington

I wanted to share an experience I had today at your Arlington location, where I shop frequently using my business membership.

During checkout, my cashier—Moriah W.—stated that my boyfriend should not have used his debit card to pay for our food items because the card did not match the photo on my Costco membership. She advised that if he pays in the future, he must use cash only, otherwise returns might not be accepted since the name on the card doesn’t match the membership.

This caught me completely off guard. I’ve never heard of this policy before. In fact, during that same visit, I completed a second transaction where I purchased work pants. I paid most of the balance, and my boyfriend covered the remainder—essentially a split payment between us. If what Moriah said is correct, would this also be against Costco policy?

I understand and respect Costco’s rules regarding membership use, but I was physically present during both transactions, and I am the cardholder. I always use my business membership for purchases and pay my monthly dues. Sometimes my boyfriend joins me simply to help lift or carry large items. On this visit, I happened to leave my wallet in the car and couldn’t access Apple Pay due to poor signal inside the warehouse, so he offered to pay.

Additionally, I noticed that sales tax was charged on both of my transactions, even though I’m a tax-exempt business member. I’m not sure if the cashier overlooked it or if something isn’t properly set up on my account, but I would appreciate some clarification on how tax-exempt status is typically applied. Do cashiers see that at checkout, or is there something I need to do beforehand to ensure it’s reflected?

If there is truly a rule that only the cardholder can use their debit/credit card for purchases—or that non-members must pay in cash only even if the member is present—I would really like to understand it clearly. It feels restrictive, especially when someone is helping me shop or cover a portion of the bill while I’m there with my membership.

I’m rating my visit 2 stars overall, but I want to acknowledge the great service from a young man at the entrance who helped us find the TV mounts. He was polite, helpful, and took the time to walk us directly to the aisle we needed. That kind of service is appreciated.

If this is the official policy, I may need to rethink where I do business. I value shopping at Costco, but it’s important that the policies are clearly communicated and consistently enforced.

Thank you for your time, and I appreciate any clarification you can provide.

Also, I would like to add that I’m giving my review 2 stars because there was a nice young man that helped us when we first walked in. I asked for help with looking for mounts and he took us right to the mounts and was really nice.

-Keara...

I recently visited this Costco located between my home and another branch in Southlake, and I have to say, my experience was a mixed bag. On one hand, it's a Costco, so the variety and value of products are as good as you'd find in any other store of this chain. However, there were several factors that dampened my experience significantly.

Firstly, the store is incredibly busy, noticeably more so than the other location in Southlake. This isn't necessarily a fault of the store itself, but it does impact the shopping experience. The high traffic, especially at the gas station which seemed twice as busy as an average Costco, adds a significant amount of time and stress to what should be a simple errand.

The most critical issue, however, was the customer service - particularly in terms of queue management. The store was chaotic, and there seemed to be a lack of effective systems to manage the crowd. This chaos was exacerbated by the behavior of some shoppers who, in the absence of clear instructions, resorted to being rude or selfish to get served first.

My encounter with one of the managers further soured my experience. When I brought up my concerns about the queue management, the conversation unfortunately escalated to an uncomfortable level, leading to security getting involved. This was not only distressing but also disappointing, as I expected better conflict resolution skills from store management.

While I don't want to accuse anyone of intentional bias, I did observe an instance that made me question the fairness in service. In my observation, it seemed like there was a preference shown towards certain customers, which might have been coincidental, but it did leave a lasting negative impression.

After this experience, I made the decision to cancel my membership. It's a significant step, considering the value Costco generally offers, but the overall experience left me feeling that my time and patronage weren't valued.

To sum up, while this Costco location offers the range of products and prices that the brand is known for, the issues with crowd management and customer service significantly impact the shopping experience. This might have been an isolated experience, but it was enough to make me reconsider my patronage. I hope this feedback reaches the management and that future customers have a more...

Arlington Store #668 Cashier Sam.C, Visited 1/15/17

I am writing to you today to express how unsatisfied I was this past weekend with the customer service at the above location. My mother is a Costco member and I decided to tag along with her so I could purchase some items myself. My plan was to pay for items as well when it came time to pay at the register, after all she is my mother which I like to spoil pretty often. When it came time to pay at the register I took out my card and was about to swipe when the cashier explained that payment could not be accepted from a non-member. We have never had an issue before when I have visited other Costco locations including this one. Both my mom and myself (card holder) were present during transaction so I didn’t quite understand what the problem was. My mom at that time didn’t have any funds on her debit card so I felt helpless trying to think how we could pay for these items that I eagerly wanted to purchase. Luckily I had spare cash in my wallet from a recent vacation I took a week prior. I asked to speak to a manager and store manager also explained that it was policy only to take payment from member only. He also said that I could give cash to my mother and have her pay with that instead. At that point I was so upset that neither of them was being helpful that I just handed cash to the cashier. In which he took without saying anything. I then asked him what was the difference???? Me handing him MY cash rather that MY card, both forms of payment came from MY bank account. This stupid rule did not make any sense to me if you ask me. I was treated like an individual that was stealing something from your store rather than a good paying customer. Not only that but the embarrassment of being told that with a long ass line behind us. To be honest another reason for my visit was to obtain a membership but after this experience I will never step foot inside your store. I manage several multi-family communities that this membership was going to be helpful during big event purchases but will go with another store instead like SAMS Club. Thank you for letting me vent on this awful experience I had at your store. If this rule does exist you might want to revise it and talk to your rude...