I should not be part of this conversation... However, i'd like to throw my 2 cents.

I think i lost one item due to post in the last 20 years or so... I have more that 1k of rating on ebay and have constant deals even outside ebay.

This is to point out that i have never seen the italian post like you describe it. It is absolutely true that it is not the fastest service in the world, but there are cases worst than italy (in my experience canada is definitely worst).

Maybe the problems are related to the buyers in italy... Maybe you ran into the wrong ppl... If everyone then turns the problems into the postal system, i have nothing agaist that.

Ciaooo

I’ve never shipped to Italy so I’ve not said it’s dodgy myself

I’m just asking the question and basing my thoughts on previous experience of people on these boards

In my experience getting nay form of signature (sending recorded) to France or Italy can result in refusal to sign at the other end, or packages just disappearing for ever never to be found after tracking shows them leaving the UK. In France there is no obligation for someone to sign for recorded items, and in Italy it just telegraphs to the sorting office that its a package worth 'disappearing'.

I'm sure it was worse in the days when you hade to declare values on your packages, because that let the mafioso know which were the rich pickings, and I did notice a sharp drop off in missing main to Italy after the little customs labels stopped being required. But has the recent Brexit added a need for customs labels again in EU shipping.

Better safe than sorry until the country can sort out the corruption in it's institutions. The problem is, when you have corruption in public life at all levels of public service, and the economy is struggling, those with the means will find a way of filling their pockets by whatever means are at their disposal.

Of course the people who suffer are the general public.

You could have told the buyers you would ship by registered courier - like USPS - and that they would have to pay for insurance. If they refuse, well then you know they don't want it, or at the very least want it less than assuring you that you will be paid for it and they will not claim their money back.

I think private sales within the UK, and internationally to people you trust is the best course of action. I've sold thousands of figures over the years, individually and in large batches, mostly through eBay in batches (fantasy), and individually on battletech forums.

ashmire13 wrote in Posting to Italy nowadays:Actually, I’ll now update my post
I’m sure the name Stefano is popular in Italy. However, I’ve now had 2 people direct message me on eBay (neither messaged via an item for sale) about shipping to Italy, both named Stefano and from one account with over 1000 feedback and another with under 90. Makes me hugely suspicious and glad I didn’t take the risk of agreeing to a sale

If the value of the sale is below the level of RM insurance, and you ship International Signed For, you should be covered for everything except the guy plain out lying to eBay and doing a chargeback.

Thanks for the comments

I didn’t sell to the chap who direct messaged me, the items sold well anyway.
I just felt uncomfortable that someone with the same name messaged me the same way twice.

I understand I may well be covered if I use royal mails international signed for postage, but frankly I don’t need the hassle.

I generally don’t post outside the UK anyway, so it’s not a direct no to Italy as a whole. But having read a lot of negative things a long time ago, I just wanted to see if things were better now