Vanessa who runs the FACT shelter sent this warning along: --------------- "For shelters that sell benefit items: Be wise! Do NOT accept personal checks from foreign countries, even from Canada, even for the exact amount of the bill (unless, of course, you've dealt with these folks before!). Checks from outside the US can take MONTHS to clear. You wait a few weeks, assume the check was OK, innocently send off the merchandise and then, two months down the road, receive a happy little notice from your bank that the checking account's been closed or there are insufficient funds. I had it happen and boy, was I ticked off! How low do you have to be to rip off an animal shelter? If someone gives you a personal, reasonably sized check for a donation, you're not out anything if it bounces and you don't draw against those funds (at least our bank won't charge extra), but once the merchandise is gone, it's gone. A legitimate buyer from outside the US will know enough to use paypal or a credit card. I know many shelters can't afford to take cards but paypal is free to purchasers and costs the seller no more than a cc fee to accept. As an aside, for any shelters that are interested in using credit cards: Most companies charge a flat monthly fee of about $25 plus the card percentage (2-3%.) However, FACT works with a company out of Rhode Island that only charges us $10 per month. I'm not sure if they'd extend the same deal to anyone, but I'm happy to provide their contact data to anyone who e-mails me at [log in to unmask] They will also give FACT a $25 referral fee, in the interest of full disclosure. L. Vanessa Gruden Shelter Director Ferret Assn of Connecticut" --------------- I can add that as an eBay seller, I have learned to be very cautious with foreign money orders (always, of course, drawn on US funds and, of course, you always have feedback to check on eBay). Some banks will charge you extra for processing them (ask your bank first) as it takes so long to clear. They are also rather costly to the sender depending upon the country. So paypal or your own credit card processor is the safest option. For expensive foreign orders, look into getting the parcel either sent registered mail or get a signature on delivery to protect against a charge-back for "non-delivered" merchandise. If you are sending anything domestically, use delivery confirmation to ensure it arrived. 99.9% run smoothly - but with a shelter even .1% can hurt when it happens to you. Ann Gruden [Posted in FML 5866]