Here's What Happened When I Returned a Half-Eaten Package of Cheese to Costco

My Costco membership is something that easily pays for itself. I spend $120 a year on an executive membership, which gives me 2% back on all Costco purchases, the same way your credit card might give you 2% cash back in select categories (or, if you have a great rewards program, most or all purchases).

Not only do I more than make up the cost of an upgraded membership via the money I get back on Costco purchases, but I save more than $120 a year on groceries alone by virtue of shopping at Costco. So all told, paying for a membership is an easy call for me.

One of the reasons I love Costco -- aside from the savings opportunities -- is that its customer service is really outstanding. Any time I've had an issue with something I've bought, I've been able to return it without a hassle. And that includes half-eaten food.

A really flexible policy

Costco says on its website that it will "guarantee your satisfaction" on every product it sells. And so if there's a quality issue with a food product you've purchased, you shouldn't hesitate to bring it back -- even if it's already opened and partially consumed. I learned this a few years back when I went to return a half-eaten supply of feta cheese.

I'd purchased a two-pack of feta because it's a cheese I use often in things like salads and omelets. My family enjoyed the first pack of cheese just fine, but by the time we got ready to open the second pack, we saw mold in it. That was surprising, because the second package was completely sealed, and it was a good two or three weeks before its printed expiration date.

When I took the moldy package of feta back to Costco, I explained that I was looking for a 50% refund on that item -- the logic being that I'd gotten to enjoy 50% of the product without an issue, but the other 50% was clearly not safe to consume. But what happened next surprised me.

Instead of issuing me a 50% refund, the customer service representative at Costco gave me all of my money back -- despite me insisting that that wasn't necessary. As that representative then explained, Costco insists that all customers be totally satisfied with their purchases. So they don't do partial refunds in situations like this -- they do 100% refunds.

A return policy you shouldn't abuse

Clearly, you can return partially eaten food to Costco without an issue -- but only within reason. The general rule of thumb is that if you're returning food, you have to bring back roughly half of the item to get your money back. So in my case, I did just that -- I brought back one of two packages of cheese that were sold together.

Meanwhile, let's say you buy a giant package of salad greens at Costco, eat about 40% of them, and see that they're wilted the next day when they're supposed to last three days more. At that point, you can bring the item back for a refund. But if that salad is 90% gone, you can't bring it back and expect a refund.

All told, Costco's return policy is more than generous and reasonable. And that's just one of the many reasons I enjoy shopping there.