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.

  • Bitflip
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    9 months ago
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    They started this here months ago. My wife kept her maiden name when we got married. I’m sure you can figure out why our 2 hour customer service call ended in cancellation. FUCK Costco

    • DavidGA
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      9 months ago
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      In a decade you’re the first person I’ve ever met who had a problem with Costco.

      • Socsa
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        9 months ago
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        Meh, I cancelled for similar reasons. They have tilted over to being way too aggressive about the card shit and it’s gotten annoying. Plus, I don’t think a lot of the deals are actually very good these days.

    • bufordt
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      9 months ago
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      Did you not bother to get your wife her own card?

      My wife never changed her name, but she’s got her own card under her name, on my membership.

      • Bitflip
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        9 months ago
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        We tried to get me one, but we had issues getting the marriage certificate promptly, and customer service really wanted me to pay for my own account.

        • bufordt
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          9 months ago
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          That makes zero sense. You don’t have to be married to get the household card, just have to live in the same house.

          • Bitflip
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            9 months ago
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            Exactly! They did a great job ignoring that and talking us out of the membership. All I really miss are the muffins.