Illinois Costco shopper sues over tariff refunds the store may keep

Costco customer files suit over price hikes

An Illinois man named Matthew Stockov filed a proposed class action lawsuit against Costco on March 11, 2026, in federal court in Chicago.

He says Costco raised prices on electronics, food, household items, small appliances, and hygiene products to pass along tariff costs to shoppers.

Now that those tariffs have been struck down, he argues Costco stands to collect government refunds while keeping the higher prices customers already paid.

Lawsuit says Costco got a windfall

The suit claims Costco would get a double recovery if it collects tariff refunds from the government without returning anything to the shoppers who paid inflated prices.

Stockov says Costco used the tariffs to expand its profit margins by selectively raising prices on affected goods.

The lawsuit brings three legal claims: violation of state consumer fraud laws, unjust enrichment, and money had and received. The proposed class covers more than 100 customers seeking more than $5 million in refunds.

Supreme Court threw out the tariffs

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 on Feb. 20, 2026, that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act does not give the president authority to impose tariffs.

Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the majority opinion in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump.

The ruling wiped out two major groups of tariffs: those tied to immigration and trafficking claims on China, Canada, and Mexico, and the broader reciprocal tariffs imposed on most trading partners starting in April 2025.

Penn Wharton Budget Model economists estimate the government collected about $175 billion under those tariffs.

Trump replaced the tariffs the same day

Within hours of the ruling, President Trump issued a new 10% global tariff under a separate trade law, effective Feb. 24, 2026.

The following day, he announced plans to raise it to 15%, the legal maximum under that authority. The new tariffs expire after 150 days unless Congress extends them.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said combining several tariff authorities would keep total tariff revenue roughly the same in 2026.

The replacement rates are generally lower than what IEEPA tariffs had imposed, especially for Canada, Mexico, China, and most European Union countries.

Costco already sued the government for refunds

Costco filed its own lawsuit in the U.S. Court of International Trade in late November 2025 seeking a full refund of all IEEPA tariffs it paid on imported goods.

The company filed before the Supreme Court ruling to protect its refund rights ahead of a Dec. 15 liquidation deadline, after which certain entries could become final and uncontestable.

Costco is one of more than 2,000 companies that have filed suits in the CIT to recover those payments.

CEO promised value but not direct refunds

During Costco’s quarterly earnings call on March 5, 2026, CEO Ron Vachris addressed the refund question directly. He said the company was not yet sure what refunds it would receive or when.

He promised to return value to members through lower prices and better deals. Stockov’s lawsuit argues that is not restitution.

It says Costco’s approach would benefit some future shoppers rather than compensating the people who already paid higher prices. Costco has not commented publicly on the lawsuit.

Federal law leaves consumers with no direct claim

Under current federal trade law, only the importer of record can ask the government for a tariff refund.

Consumers who paid more at the register because of tariffs have no direct legal path to recover those costs from Customs and Border Protection.

The Stockov lawsuit tries to fill that gap by arguing Costco has a legal obligation to pass its refunds along to customers. No court has ruled on that theory yet.

Without a court order, the lawsuit says, Costco would have no obligation under federal law to return that money.

Research shows consumers paid most of the costs

Research from the Harvard Business School Pricing Lab found consumers absorbed about 25% of tariff costs through higher prices.

A Goldman Sachs projection from August 2025 estimated consumers would bear 67% of total tariff costs by October 2025.

The Tax Foundation estimated tariffs added about $1,000 a year to the average American household’s tax burden.

A Federal Reserve Bank of New York analysis found U.S. businesses and consumers bore 86% of the tariff burden as of November 2025. Stockov’s attorneys cited these figures in the lawsuit.

Costco is not the only company facing a suit

The Stockov case is one of at least five proposed class action lawsuits in which customers sued companies to recover tariff costs.

A consumer sued EssilorLuxottica, the maker of Ray-Ban sunglasses, after the price of one model climbed from $287 in March 2025 to $304 in May 2025.

A Miami man named Matthew Resier filed a proposed class action alleging FedEx collected $36 in import taxes and fees on a pair of German shoes shipped to him.

FedEx has said it will return tariff refunds directly to the shippers and consumers who originally paid them, a commitment Costco has not made.

Refunds could take years to reach anyone

A federal trade court ordered Customs and Border Protection on March 4 to begin processing refunds for all importers who paid IEEPA tariffs.

Two days later, the court paused that order after CBP said it needed about 45 days to update its systems to handle the volume.

CBP reported it faces an unprecedented workload covering about 53 million entries, roughly $166 billion in collected tariffs, and about 330,000 importers.

The government has signaled it will appeal the refund order, which could push the timeline out further. Legal experts say the full process could take years.

Senators push for a consumer refund plan

Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Cory Booker, and Peter Welch sent a letter to President Trump on Feb. 24, 2026, demanding a plan to refund tariff costs directly to consumers and small businesses.

Senate Democrats also introduced the Tariff Refund Act of 2026, which would require CBP to process refunds quickly and cover even finalized entries.

Treasury Secretary Bessent said in a Feb. 20 appearance that he had a feeling American consumers would not see refunds. The White House has not backed any plan to ensure refunds reach consumers rather than importers.

Judge decides what comes next for shoppers

The judge in the Stockov case will decide whether to certify the class and whether Costco is legally required to refund customers.

If certified, the class could grow to include millions of Costco members nationwide who bought tariffed goods during the covered period.

The outcome may depend in part on whether Costco actually receives government refunds, a process that remains unresolved.

The case could set a precedent for how tariff refund disputes between consumers and retailers play out across the country.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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