Why do people steer clear of posting to Italy?

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I've noticed that a lot of auctions say they won't ship to Italy. Why is this? Is there something inherently unreliable about Italian postal delivery or what? I've just been asked if I'll send a t-shirt to Italy and wondered if there's any reason why not to.

yes apparently the Italian postal system is notoriously rubbish

We lost a very expensive item when we sent it to Italy.

When i first started selling on ebay i had two quite expensive items go missing when i sent them to Italy - had to refund and claim via Royal Mail but it was such a hassle =(

Oh, ok. Maybe I'd better tell her I can't post to Italy, then.

or you could send international signed for it's an extra £4.99 that said i have personally not had any problems with italy

I'm in Italy and buy a lot from uk and French ebay and have never lost a parcel. I do insist on International Signed For though, anyone sending anywhere abroad is mad not to. I send signed for even when I post locally, otherwise how are you going to protect yourself if someone claims not to have received your parcel? At least that way you can trace delivery.

Many people live in flats in Italy. The postmen often just chuck the parcel in the communal hallway and... within minutes it's been nicked.

My family lives in Italy and I never send anything there unless signed for - bitter experience of having lost many Christmas/birthday parcels.

Just use International signed for or a courier. And don't expect the package to get there quickly. Sometimes it happens, but often it doesn't