On April 27th, I visited the Costco location in Boca Raton and returned a Shark Matrix robot vacuum. The staff was very helpful and professional during this process.
Later, I returned to the store approximately 30 minutes later to return a television I had previously purchased. The staff asked for my receipt, which I provided, and they called a specialist to inspect the TV. After opening the box, the specialist checked if the TV was functioning properly and asked about my complaint. I explained that the TV was lagging and operating slowly. They also mentioned that the remote control was missing, and asked me to bring it back in order to complete the return. I went home, retrieved the remote control, and returned to Costco.
At that point, the store manager, Yvonne, became involved in the situation. Unfortunately, she refused to listen to me and did not allow me to explain my situation. Her behavior was extremely rude and discriminatory. While I have always been very satisfied with Costco's customer service, product quality, and helpful staff, my experience with Manager Yvonne was entirely the opposite.
She claimed that I had purchased the TV using another person's membership and said she could only offer me a gift card or shopping card. Although I insisted multiple times that I wanted a refund, she continued to push the shopping card option. I explained that although my friend's membership card was used at checkout, the payment was made with my own credit card. I requested that the refund be made back to the original payment method.
Because I refused the shopping card, she became visibly angry, rudely threw a paper toward me, and said, "You bought this last year; you cannot return it." I explained that the TV was purchased only five months ago, not a year. She responded that items purchased more than 90 days ago cannot be returned.
I asked why I was sent home to get the remote control if a return was not even possible. However, she continued to raise her voice in front of other customers, waved the receipt at my face in a mocking and unprofessional manner, and repeatedly interrupted me. She sarcastically pointed to the receipt and said, "Look, it says 90 days right here," without letting me finish any of my sentences.
I mentioned that just 30 minutes earlier I had successfully returned another item -- a robot vacuum -- without any problems, even though the purchase was made using a different membership card. She simply said, "They made a mistake. That is not allowed," and refused to honor the return of the television.
Due to Manager Yvonne's extremely rude, discriminatory, and unprofessional behavior, I was unable to complete my return, even though a technician had confirmed that the TV was functioning and approved it for return.
I found her attitude to be deeply disrespectful and humiliating. As a result, I have decided that I will no longer shop at Costco and I will be canceling my membership.
Additionally, she never allowed me to speak. When I asked, "Why did you send me home to get the remote if you were not going to process the return?", she rudely held the receipt up to my face and said, "We tell you when you buy the product -- look, it says 90 days right here."
This was extremely inappropriate and disrespectful behavior. read more