Cross border payments have been an issue since the Euro was introduced. There are currently three eu intitiatives on the subject but in the benelux countries things arent too bad - as crunchy says.
Going further afield to spain and portugal and it would become a problem. If you ask for a SWIFT to be sent that will cost you - my internal SWIFT costs are about €5 per message and that for billions of € transfers.
Go to the post office, get your € exchanged for free, pop it in a registered envelope and post it off. That comes from being an International Banker for the last 26 years!

Like I said before, it's no wonder that most off the people in the UK are against the Euro and the EU. The institutions in the UK don't let them see the benefits.

Crunchy, I appreciate the offer mate, but I've managed to sort it. I will keep you in mind for future purchases though! :D

I did have the SWIFT/IBAN numbers, told Barclays, but they weren't having any of it. I don't see how they can justify such a charge.

No probs. ;)

It does annoy me though how difficult it is to do business with the UK. The sooner we are in the Euro the better. UK residents could then use European banks and then maybe, just maybe good old Blighty will stop being so expensive. :flame:

But I still miss being there:(

Europe, outside of the UK, has its own internal battles in it's banking systems believe me.

I have lived in the Netherlands, work for a AAA Bank, seen both sides of the coin and could go on for ages but I wont. :mad:

Glad you are sorted khu!! ;)

I've bought from a German supplier on e-bay. Found the same problem of bank charges, I explained the problem and offered payment via PayPal or credit card.

The seller opened a paypal account :D

I’ve been running into similar problems when buying parts from sellers in Europe. Regular transfers still seem slow and expensive, and not every seller accepts PayPal or card payments. Has anyone here tried newer digital payment systems that claim to combine both regular currency and modern alternatives? I’m curious whether they actually make transfers faster and less costly, or if they just add another layer of complexity.

I’ve had the same struggle when dealing with European sellers, especially with the delays and fees. Recently, I started using KEA after a friend suggested it, and it’s been surprisingly smooth. Transfers go through faster, and I don’t have to juggle multiple platforms or deal with hidden charges. It’s a good middle ground between traditional methods and newer options—might be worth a look if you’re tired of waiting days for confirmation.

i’m dealing with the same issues when ordering from europe, especially when sellers don’t support paypal or standard card payments. the biggest challenge for me has been finding something that actually speeds up the process without adding extra steps. some of these “hybrid” systems sound promising, but i’m still unsure how reliable they are for international purchases. i’d really like to hear real user experiences — especially about transfer times, fees, and how easy the verification process is.

I know what you mean about being unsure of the newer options. My experience has been that the key is whether the system is built for international transfers from the ground up, rather than being a traditional service with a new interface. The one I use connects directly to my existing payment methods, so I didn't have to pre-load a wallet or buy crypto, which removed a lot of the complexity I was worried about. The verification for me was just confirming my email and a quick phone code, much simpler than some other services I've tried. For my last few purchases, the transfers were confirmed within a few hours, which was a huge relief compared to the 3-5 business day wait I used to have.