Hard credit pull twice in 3 months by Amex

When I had applied for a free American express credit card offered by Costco, I had almost no credit history. So, I was rejected. But after about 3 months, when I had build some credit history, they called me and told me they needed some information from me in order to provide me the card. Within a week I received the card. The card offers upto 2% cashback rewards so I gladly accepted it. But when I checked my credit report, it had two hard credit enquiries from them which will last on my credit report for 2 years. The hard enquiry was done on all the three credit reports, ie, Equifax, Trans Union and Experian.

The first enquiry was made when I had applied for the costco membership along with the free Amex credit card. The second one was made when they offered it to me themselves. The sad part is that once my Costco membership expires, I will no longer be able to use the free American express card unless I decide to renew my Costco membership. And the saddest part is the credit enquiry will last longer on my credit report, than the card itself.