Help please... is this an actual plausible option. I'm noticing mixed groups on other sites which I won't promote here and although it says UK it seems Americans are also in the group.
Do you think it's still safe buying as goods/services as I always do here anyway or will the marker end up in customs costing me an arm and a leg to get it released.
Any advice is welcome
This is difficult one and will always be personal judgement and how valuable that item is to you - the risk and reward of buying that special thing from far away
1) Goods and services on PayPal gives you payment protection, but only as long as everything fits the rules.
Paintball guns have been explicitly forbidden and then permitted again. The last time I read them it’s OK under PayPal UK with the rule becoming ‘where legal’
As long as this works it protects you as a buyer with a no quibble refund
2) Ensure the postage is suitable, an international postage with insurance and doesn’t breach its carriage rules of restricted and prohibited - this protects both you as buyer and them as seller, which means if it gets lost / damaged then the insurance pays back to the seller. If you had PayPal protection then the insurance gives them back their loss, but if not then it enables them to refund you with no loss
3) International customs give you 3 worries, delay, destruction and fees
Delay = You can see the tracking has got so far and spend your days worrying what’s going to happen
Destruction (or return) whether or not customs don’t like the idea of it coming here
(This is the worst case scenario as insurance compensation won’t be keen on paying out for this)
Fees - in theory for a second hand item there wouldn’t be import duty, and therefore no carrier handling fees. But if the item is deemed to be special or customs just decide it’s leading to a grey import then expect to pay the equivalent of VAT, but of the deemed value, then the carrier will have a handling fee which could be a fixed charge or a percentage rate
