It's not a matter of Global Priority going there. Global Priority has no insurance and is not trackable once it leaves the US. The same will hold true for Priority Mail International that takes effect today.

We have lost so many packages to Italy (and a few other countries) that I will not ship using a method that cannot be insured or tracked in that country.

If an overseas customer writes that their package has not arrived (and we've waited long enough to make sure that Customs has had time to send it on if they've held it), my policy is to send them a replacement package.

The customer has paid for the molds, so I'm going to make sure they get them. It's not the customer's fault if their country has an awful postal service. However, I can't just keep sending replacement molds and continue to stay in business.

There have been several cases where packages have been sent to Italy and the package has just disappeared. I finally started sending them using a trackable and insurable method such as Global Express mail and my customers were able to get them. Of course I paid the extra cost myself in these cases which started to add up considerably.

Now I will only ship using Global Express (which is trackable and insurable) to Italy and other countries that have these problems, and those customers have to pay more to get them delivered.

Also, since the package is insured, I have to declare the full amount on the package which results in the customer having to pay VAT or customs duty taxes on the package. I hate doing this because it's very expensive to my Italian customers, but I really don't see any way around it.

So sum it up, just because Priority Mail International will be offered to more countries, that does not mean that we will use that method to high risk countries.

Thanks,
Bruce Hirst