It Pays to Check This Area of Costco's Website Regularly

Many people shop at Costco to save money on things like groceries and household essentials. And one benefit of shopping at Costco, aside from the lower credit card tab you might rack up in the course of feeding your family and maintaining your household, is that the warehouse club giant is known to stand behind the products it sells. This means that if you wind up dissatisfied with a Costco product, you can generally take it back for a full refund. You can even return partially-eaten food if you have an issue with quality or taste and Costco will give you your money back.

Now Costco does its best to only sell items that meet the highest standards of quality. But sometimes, things can happen that are beyond Costco's control. And there may come a point when an item you buy at Costco is subject to a recall.

Rest assured that Costco will do everything it can to make things right in that situation. But if you don't check the recall section on Costco's website, you may not learn about recalls that could apply to you.

It pays to follow up on your purchases

Checking the recall section of Costco's website probably isn't something you need to do on a daily basis. But if you're a regular Costco shopper, you may want to take a look once a week, or every couple of weeks, to make sure your Costco purchases aren't impacted.

The good news is that Costco tends to do a good job of updating this section of its website as necessary. So checking in every so often might spare you from consuming or using a product that isn't safe.

What if your Costco purchase is recalled?

Costco has a generous return policy for items that aren't recalled, as evidenced by the fact that you can bring back food you simply don't like. So it would stand to reason that if you buy something there that's recalled, you'll either get your money back or you'll be eligible for a replacement item if applicable.

For example, right now, there's a recall on the Novaform ComfortGrande 14" and DreamAway 8" Mattresses sold by Costco. Some of these mattresses may have been exposed to water during the manufacturing process and, as a result, could have developed mold after being packaged for shipment.

Sleeping on a moldy mattress could have health implications. And frankly, it's icky. But Costco is offering impacted customers one of two options -- get a refund, or get a replacement item delivered at no cost. Both options include the free removal of the mattresses that were recalled.

There's also a recall on the Rader Farms Organic Fresh Start Smoothie Blend sold by Costco, due to possible hepatitis A contamination. In this case, the only option is to get a refund, not a replacement. But still, that's perfectly reasonable.

All told, Costco is a firm believer in customer satisfaction. You can rest assured that if you buy something there that ends up getting recalled, you won't be out any money. So do yourself a favor and check the recall section every so often, just in case.