Key Takeaways
- Costco Wholesale was sued on Wednesday in a class action suit over tariff refunds.
- Costco is among over 2,000 companies suing the Trump administration to regain duties paid.
- CEO Ron Vachris said Costco’s next steps depend on the government’s tariff reimbursement.
Costco members are saying they deserve a share of any windfall from unlawful tariffs — because shoppers, not the company, footed the bill.
Costco Wholesale was sued on Wednesday in a proposed nationwide class action targeting U.S. customer refunds for price hikes passed on to consumers before the U.S. Supreme Court rejected President Donald Trump’s tariffs, Reuters reported.
The lawsuit was filed by a Costco customer in federal court in Illinois. It requests a declaration that the company must repay to customers any refunds it sees for tariffs it paid under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).
“This lawsuit seeks to prevent Costco, the third-largest retailer in the world, from double recovery,” the complaint states. “Costco has made no commitment to return any portion of anticipated tariff refunds to the consumers who bore those costs.”
The Supreme Court decision on February 20 led to extensive legal battles in the U.S. Court of International Trade. Costco, along with more than 2,000 companies, are suing the administration to recoup duties paid.
Costco isn’t the only major company facing class action from consumers. FedEx was hit with a similar consumer class suit in February.
The Court of International Trade said the government must return the approximately $166 billion in tariff revenue it accrued, though it’s not evident when or how that will happen, The Wall Street Journal reported.
On an earnings call last week, Costco CEO Ron Vachris expressed a commitment “to find the best way to return this value to our members through lower prices and better values” if the company receives tariff reimbursement, per WSJ.
Key Takeaways
- Costco Wholesale was sued on Wednesday in a class action suit over tariff refunds.
- Costco is among over 2,000 companies suing the Trump administration to regain duties paid.
- CEO Ron Vachris said Costco’s next steps depend on the government’s tariff reimbursement.
Costco members are saying they deserve a share of any windfall from unlawful tariffs — because shoppers, not the company, footed the bill.
Costco Wholesale was sued on Wednesday in a proposed nationwide class action targeting U.S. customer refunds for price hikes passed on to consumers before the U.S. Supreme Court rejected President Donald Trump’s tariffs, Reuters reported.
