...international sales virgin

November 25, 2008 8:06 AM

HoldmyhandFilter... I'm thinking of selling/shipping a rather expensive antique instrument to someone in Europe (I'm in Canada).

I've bought stuff from online websites but never sold anything, so I'm a bit nervous and was hoping to get a bit of background before dealing with the buyer any further.

It may take a month before the deal is done (he's asking for time to raise the money), so I'm guessing if we've settled on the price in Canadian funds now, he should agree to pay whatever his exchange rate is at the time the deal goes through. I'd be happy for any advice on the best method of shipping and insuring an old ukulele.

I only know this person through Youtube comments and from his Myspace page (he seems very much on the up and up), so I assume I just wait for his cheque to clear before shipping the item.

Is there anything I'm forgetting?

posted by bonobothegreat to shopping (4 comments total)

Insurance. The kind that pays off if the item is lost, stolen or damaged during shipping. Either bought through the shipper, or through you own homeowners or business insurance. Also simply shipping it with a "signature required" will not guarantee that it gets to the right person, nor that it will arrive intact.
posted by Gungho at 8:13 AM on November 25, 2008

Insurance, and if the buyer says he is happy to risk the item being sent without insurance I would walk away. It's a very easy thing to say but when it arrives snapped in two the complaints will land on your doorstep.
posted by fire&wings at 8:32 AM on November 25, 2008

And make sure the insurance covers the duration of the trip. I sold something on eBay once to a guy in Italy. He claimed it never arrived, and the answer I got from the insurance people was, "Sorry, once it's handed over to the Italian package carrier, it's not our problem"
posted by qxntpqbbbqxl at 9:04 AM on November 25, 2008

Once you have been paid for the item the new owner assumes responsibility for it.

Once you have received payment the item is delivered to the packer / shipping company. At the most you could insure the instrument yourself for the selling price for the short time between your receiving payment and delivering it to the buyers shipper.

The method of shipping and how and where it is shipped shoud be negotiated between both parties prior to payment . A professional packing shipping company should take a detailed inspection of the instrument you both sign and then the responsibility for the item is no longer yours.
posted by pianomover at 10:40 AM on November 25, 2008