Costco customers may be owed more than $500 following huge class action lawsuit

Costco customers don't have long to make a claim regarding to wholesaler's recent $14,000,000 class action lawsuit settlement.

The lawsuit was filed after customers alleged that Costco had sent marketing emails with 'false or misleading subject lines' to Washington residents which 'violated Washington law'.

The law in question is Washington's Commercial Electronic Mail Act (CEMA), which originally came into force in 1998.

Last year the Washington Supreme Court ruled that misleading subject lines were to be added to the legislation, which sparked a flurry of new lawsuits. This amendment then came into force on June 11, 2026.

The Costco suit, 'Michael Aaland v. Costco Wholesale Corporation', was filed last year.

The suit alleges that Costco sent commercial emails that created a 'false sense of urgency by advertising limited-time offers' – but the retailer apparently always intended to extend the offers beyond the advertised promotional period, Fox Business reports.

Costco has agreed to pay out $14,000,000 as part of a class action lawsuit settlement (Getty Stock)

Examples given of misleading email subjects included 'Today is the last day to access Member-Only Savings' and 'Hot Buys available for 5 Days Only'.

The retailer has denied the claims but agreed to reach a settlement, which is still awaiting court approval. The final approval hearing in scheduled to take place on October 2.

Under the CEMA, people can claim up to $500 per qualifying email sent which, in this instance, will have been sent between June 2021 and July 2026.

Who is eligible?

Allegedly Costco were advertising 'limited time deals' that it always intended to extend (Getty Stock)

While you don't need to have been a Costco member to make a claim, you do need to have been a Washington state resident at the time these alleged emails were sent, which was between June 2, 2021 to July 7, 2026.

You also need to have been in Costco's records of email addresses.

The settlement states (per the Washington Commercial Email Settlement website): "All persons who received a commercial electronic mail message, and who were Washington residents at the time of the receipt of such commercial electronic mail message, that was transmitted by Costco Wholesale Corporation or someone acting on behalf of Costco Wholesale Corporation at any time from June 2, 2021, through July 7, 2026."

Once the settlement is finalized, the $14,000,000 will be equally distributed to all Settlement Class Members who filed a claim by the deadline.

How to make a claim

A settlement hearing will take place on October 2, 2026 (Getty Stock)

If you who think you are eligible, you have until August 24, 2026, to make a claim.

You can fill out a claim form (which you can only do once) via the Washington Commercial Email Settlement website.

"If your Claim Form is approved and the Settlement is approved by the Court and becomes final, you give up your right to bring your own lawsuit about the issues in this Lawsuit," the website states.

You can also exclude yourself from the payout by choosing to 'opt out' should you wish to pursue your own legal action, or you can object to the terms of the settlement.

For questions about the lawsuit or filing a claim, you can call the Settlement Administrator at 888-808-6247 or the Class Counsel at 206-746-2337.