Recent content by jgombos

Probably true.. considering the US doesn't have an official language.

I didn't realize weight was a factor.. I thought it was simply anything opened by customs got the fee. What I had shipped was a usb stick and some wire, not much heavier than 6 or 7 sheets of paper. The product turned out to be DoA. Presumably, the 10€ is non-refundable. I got lucky on the...

I thought VAT was the only obstacle to getting a package. It was shocking to discover that the Belgian International Post charges a 10€ fee to "act as an agent on behalf of the recipient" when interfacing with customs. This fee comes on top of the VAT. The fee is flat, and applies even if the...

I recently discovered European consumers have more protection in one case: price mistakes. From what I've been hearing, if a European vendor accidentally underprices a product, they are legally obligated to fulfill orders - at a loss if necessary. In the states, vendors make price mistakes all...

Suppose you want to wire some money. Is there a way to definitively find out how much money will arrive at the destination, prior to sending it? Assume the currency is the same.. I know currency conversions make it impossible to find out in advance what will show up at the other end.

The fact that brewing temperature need not be the same as the serving temperature is not a detail in the slightest. That single fact makes the whole difference in the case - the difference between winning and losing. If coffee had to be served at the same temperature it brews at for some...

Perhaps, but conventional wisdom and appeal to common practice are not a valid arguments. That's both an excessive safety risk (spilling) and a health risk. 80 degree tea is a carcinogen for cancer of the esophagus. Although I wouldn't go as far as to prevent people from drinking it, I do...

Americans have decided that having ethical trustworthy vendors is worth something. It's an expense that more than pays for itself. The beneficiaries includes everyone not trying to run a scam.

Americans have many tools to use against unscrupulous companies, including the government. The attorney general keeps tabs on trends of scams, and directly goes after offenses that affect many people. There are a number of other government agencies, each regulating different markets. That...

Americans would agree, although I'm not sure that any American would take it as far as to conclude that careful handling guarantees no spills. The real difference here is that Americans believe suppliers have responsibilities too. It's careless to serve liquids meant for drinking at higher...

I responded to this, but was apparently logged out while I was writing, so my lengthy response was lost after the login screen interruption. I'm not sure I want to take the time to rewrite it. Is there any log of it? [edit] Nevermind. After the 2nd iteration of hitting 'back' several times...

The article you referenced that indicates a 60% failure rate on consumer tests actually puts a different spin on the story than the article I read. I think it was BBC that said the failures weren't technical, but rather failures in meeting European standards for consumer rights. That is, not...

Did anyone out there foolishly use a Belgian credit card to book a Skyeurope flight before they went bankrupt? Even though Skyeurope publicly advises consumers to dispute airfare charges with credit card issuers, Belgian banks are ignoring these requests. Is this legal? Do Belgian credit card...

Indeed, pure luck is what's needed to successfully complete a wire transfer. Read this thread where I've detailed scams and problems with wires: http://www.eupedia.com/forum/showthread.php?t=24241 Cheques have not died in France, so I'm expecting to find a French fx broker who accepts checks.

Belgian banks cannot protect you. If you wire money from a Belgian bank to CMC Markets in the UK, Natwest bank will grab an undisclosed amount of money, and there's nothing the Belgian bank can do about it. You can show the Belgian bank the (bogus) claim from CMC Markets stating that they...