A Seattle woman went viral after saying she put Costco’s liberal return policy to the test by taking back a couch she’s owned for two and a half years.
“I just didn’t like it anymore. We just don’t like the color anymore,” Jackie Nguyen said in a TikTok video that has been viewed nearly 3 million times since it was posted on Jan. 23.
Nguyen explained to viewers how nervous she was about bringing the couch back without a receipt, noting how intimidating it was to walk into the store with a “giant purchase.”
But he said the seller was accommodating and wasn’t concerned about his lack of paperwork, Nguyen said.
Because Nguyen knew the day he bought the couch, he said the Costco employee was able to track down the purchase and refund him the full amount, which at the time was $900, according to the Daily Dot. The sofa now sells for $1,500.
When the Costco employee asked Nguyen why he was returning the piece, Nguyen said he just didn’t like it anymore. “And they gave us our refund, full refund to (our) card.”
In a now-deleted post, Nguyen told viewers that Costco informed him that upon return, items like these will be donated, resold, returned to the manufacturer for a tax credit, or refurbished.
“Buy your furniture at Costco, girl. You can return it when you don’t like it anymore,” Nguyen says toward the end of the video.
USA TODAY has reached out to Costco for comment and will update the story if there is a response.
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Comments on Nguyen’s clip have been disabled because, Nguyen said in a later video, he was receiving threatening posts.
Several creators responded to Nguyen’s story in video, and one of them was viewed more than two million times.
“That’s just…wrong,” TikTok user @voiage_beauty said in her reaction video. “You used something and you loved it with your kids, your animals, and your whole family, and you used it for two and a half years, and just because there is (a) little loophole in this store’s policy, you think it’s morally do you have the right to take back that couch and get a full refund for it, for a used item that had nothing wrong with it?
The video attracted more than 15,000 comments, with reactions about the ethics of Nguyen’s return to the couch.
“You’re not wrong. People abuse Costco’s excellent return policy,” one user wrote.
Another defended the practice, saying Costco’s return policy is eight years and that she “returned pots and pans that ended up peeling and were taken away without a problem.”
Another said she is “not ashamed to return my items,” adding, “My husband works for Costco and says (the company) gets money from all returned items.”
Another reaction video says what many other people in the comments have: There may be people abusing Costco’s policy, but Costco won’t be changing it anytime soon.
“Other stores have changed their policies…” @socialbrit said in her video, but Costco won’t, because unlike those other companies, “Costco values its customers a lot because they spend money to shop there.”
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What is Costco’s return policy?
Nguyen is right that Costco’s return policy is generous. Here’s what you can expect, according to Costco.
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Memberships − Costco will cancel and refund memberships at any time.
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Goods − Costco will provide a full refund on items at the purchase price without expiration, but there are some exceptions:
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electronics − Costco will only accept returns on these items within 90 days.
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Diamonds of 1.00 ct or more − Members returning a diamond over 1.00 carats must present all original documentation to receive a jewelry credit note upon inspection of the gem.
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Cigarettes and alcohol − Costco does not accept returns on cigarettes or alcohol.
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Things like custom installed programs, airline tickets or live performance events, gold bars, gold cars, and silver coins are non-refundable.
Costco’s return policy doesn’t appear to be hurting its bottom line. In an earnings call in December, the company said it had seen a 6.1% increase in sales compared to the first quarter of 2023 and declared a special dividend of $15 per share.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Woman Goes Viral for Testing Costco’s Return Policy on Old Couch