Safe to buy from Europe?

RSW Posted 2003-06-17 5:32 AM (#207897) Subject: Safe to buy from Europe? Joined: April 2003 Posts: 39 Location: California Anyone bought Ovation from Italy? Is it safe to wire money using Western Union? What is the best way to protect ourself? It seems to be difficult to go after sellers outside of the US. Thanks in advance! Paul Templeman Posted 2003-06-17 7:44 AM (#207898 - in reply to #207897) Subject: Re: Safe to buy from Europe? Joined: February 2002 Posts: 5750 Location: Scotland I sell to the USA regularly. The only real bugbear is the cost of shipping. It's much cheaper to ship from the USA than to. The Thunderhead I bought recently cost about £60 to get here. A similar shipment in the other direction costs around £100. Also watch for local sales tax & import duty which will add around 20% or more to your total. Anything over $30 is subject to import duty. Western Union is safe & reliable but their fees are quite high to both buyer & seller. Cashiers checks or international money orders in the sellers currency usualy works. American guitars are usually significantly more expensive in Europe than in the US