Costco employees reveal the wildest returns they've ever seen under retail giant's 'unlimited grace period' - from a woman who brought back a book because she 'didn't like the ENDING' to a couch riddled with BED BUGS

A parody video poking fun at Costco's easygoing attitude toward customer returns prompted dozens of people to share the most egregious abuses of the the mega-retailer's return policy they have ever encountered.

Brian Herzog, a comedian from Toronto, shared a 37-second skit to his TikTok account, play-acting as different Costco customers looking to take advantage of the store's notoriously flexible return policy.

'I saw a video about someone who returned a couch without a receipt after having it for years. The comment section said that Costco will return anything,' Brian captioned the video, referring to a woman's viral TikTok video in which she revealed she had returned a seven-year-old sofa to the retail giant. 

His first character demanded to 'return this nonstick pan.'

Brian Herzog, a comedian from Toronto, shared a satirical sketch poking fun at Costco's return policy

Costco boasts nearly 900 locations globally. Pictured is a stock image

'Reason for the return?' Brian's Costco employee asked.

'It's sticky now,' the customer responded, showing off visible food residue on the item. 

The return is approved. 

Next up, Brian dressed up as a woman wanting to return a couch she'd claimed to have bought at Costco 'maybe like seven years ago,' with no receipt for the purchase.

Her reason: 'I just don't like it anymore.'

Again, the Costco employee agreed to the return. Moments later, she asked to be directed to the couch section.

Most concerning of Brian's parody customers was a man who'd brought back whatever remained of a 'rotisserie chicken' he'd purchased 24 hours prior in a brown paper bag.

Still, the return was approved, in Brian's enactment.

Brian's parody prompted many to shared stories of people taking egregious advantage of Costco's lax return policy

Judging by the comments on the video, it turned out that Brian's satirical take on Costco's return policy may not have been so far-fetched. 

'I worked there. A lady returned a book because she didn't like the ending,' one claimed. 

'Costco employee here, the worst is when someone returns a bunch of unopened food like meat, "we bought too much," and we have to throw it away,' a second lamented.

'As a Costco employee I've seen someone return a used toilet,' a third chimed in. 

'I worked at Costco - someone brought back a plant they killed months later,' a fourth volunteered.

'My dad used to buy old lawnmowers at yard sales and "return it" at Costco. Bro was a menace,' a fifth shared, with their example sounding quite like a scam outright.

'Seen someone return a mattress after 7 years and get a refund, they really do take anything back lol,' a sixth chuckled.

'Former employee here: we took back a sectional sofa with bed bugs. And a pile of scrap wood claimed to be a playground set,' a seventh described.

'We have Canadians that come down to Montana for the summer buy kayaks for the summer then return them before they head back,' someone else offered of yet another creative method of gaming the returns system at Costco.

'People have no shame. At my Costco people return Halloween costumes and Christmas decorations after end of celebration,' another chastised.

Costco, which boasts nearly 900 locations globally, advertises a 'Risk-Free 100% Satisfaction Guarantee' return promise on its website - with a few specific exceptions, including a 90-day limit for electronics; and stricter rules around the return of diamonds larger than 1.00 ct.

Still, a few claimed to have legitimate reasons for their Costco returns.

'I returned a Nespresso machine that wasn't working properly and I still feel guilty. Where do people store the audacity?' one wondered. 

And as another protested: 'I actually returned a rotisserie chicken because it was all raw inside.'

Still, a few swore they had legitimate reasons for returning their Costco purchases

In January, a Seattle-based mother-of-one documented her successful attempt to return a seven-year-old couch to the store without a receipt 

Jackie Nguyen filmed herself loading the grey L-shaped couch and chaise on to a trailer, admitting she was a little nervous about the sizeable return 

In January, a Seattle-based mother-of-one documented her successful attempt to return a seven-year-old couch to the store without a receipt - admitting that she'd chosen to test out the loose return policy because she no longer liked the piece of furniture. 

Jackie Nguyen filmed herself loading the grey L-shaped couch and chaise on to a trailer, admitting she was a little nervous about the sizeable return.

Once she was at the store, Jackie explained she roughly knew the date that she purchased the couch because she had some photos of it being delivered on her phone, and a sales assistant could look it up for her.

'I told her around the date that I bought it, she looked it up in the computer, told me exactly which one it was,' she said.

'I do wanna premise it is very intimidating going in there with a big giant purchase and you're returning it,' Jackie admitted, as she showed the couch on the trailer.

She added: 'There's a lot of people staring at you.'

However, Jackie urged Costco customers to push through their embarrassment and make the return if they no longer want the item.

'Return it. They have an awesome return policy,' she encouraged, although advised customers to look online at their policy first.

And she's not the only customer to take advantage of the lax rules. 

This week an image of a customer returning an old TV from the 2000s also went viral on social media. 

The image shows a vintage Samsung television sitting on an iconic orange Costco flat cart in a store in Pennsylvania.