phillyboy

My wife went to the emergency room in a hospital in Taormina, Sicily in October 2018. I just received a statement in the mail, which I can't read in its entirety, but I can figure out that there is a bill for 45 Euro. I have no problem paying this, but I am in the US - can I just convert the amount to dollars and send a check, or is there another method that would be better?

Thanks for any help.

thursdaysd

Your credit card should work. Better if you have one with no foreign transaction fees.

phillyboy

Thank you, thursdaysd. I had thought of that, but was a little leery of writing my cc card information on a piece of paper and sending it 4,000 miles away. But they did provide a couple of email addresses - maybe I could put the cc info onto an attachment, along with a copy of the bill, scan an send it. Yes?

thursdaysd

I think it would be safer in the mail! When I have had to send CC info by email, I have split it between two emails. Is there a phone or fax option?

MmePerdu

Email isn't considered secure for credit card information in full. A way make it more secure, I'm told, is to send part in 1 email, the rest in another. For instance cc number in 1, expiry date in another. Or some variation on that theme. Maybe someone else here can confirm the ins & outs.

AJPeabody

Get a one time use CC number from your credit card company and limit it to the amount you are paying.

Michael

Try Transferwise: https://transferwise.com/us

I used them with no problem a few years back when I had to transfer a considerable amount of cash. Short of using a credit card that does not charge a foreign exchange fee, this is probably the cheapest way to do it.

thursdaysd

@MmePerdu - I put half of the CC number in each of two emails, adding the expiration date in one and the code off the back in the second. Haven't needed to do that for a while.

rialtogrl

Is there bank information on the invoice? Swift code and BIC number? If so send a wire transfer. You can try transferwise or use your own bank though the fee will probably be as much as the hospital bill. Or email them, they probably have someone speaking English in a Taormina hospital, ask them if you can call and give them a credit card number over the phone.

thursdaysd

If you are American, wire transfers are ridiculously expensive.

phillyboy

Thanks very much for all of our suggestions. There were two email addresses shown on the document that I received, so I have emailed them asking for some direction on how to handle this. Hopefully I will get a response ... in less than the 2 years it took to receive the bill!

nonconformist2

Is there a phone number? You should be able to give card details over the phone.

phillyboy

Yes, there is a phone number. I will wait a few days to see if I receive a response to my email, and if not will try calling. I have been reluctant to do that because, at the time of our visit, we could find no one in the ER, or any adjacent area of the hospital, who spoke English. If it weren't for the landlady at the B&B where we stayed, in nearby Savoca, I don't know how we would have communicated with anyone. She drove us to the hospital and acted as translator between us and the staff. She was an angel!

Christina

If you can pay by CC, I don't know why you are objecting to writing your CC number on a piece of paper. Don't you do this in the US all the time? I know I do, there are many many charities and bills I get that ask you to do that, I've done it numerous times. Some of my bills are not people who have fancy online setups, they are local small companies.

All my CCs get hacked sooner or later, anyway, and in fact, every single time it has been hacked, it was online, not from a piece of mail. But my point is, you can just keep an eye on that acct and if something unusual happens, request a new card number, that's all.

rialtogrl

maybe you can email your landlady and ask her to call on your behalf...if the email does not work out.

Falcio

I hope for you I am wrong, but I'd be very surprised if a Sicilian NHS branch wasted money to accept credit cards. Bank-to-bank money transfers are free for both sides in the EU.
Can't you scan and somehow publish the letter you received? There must be an IBAN / BIC code you can use on transferwise.com. The IBAN code should begin with an IT.

phillyboy

rialtogrl - I have written to the landlady, haven't heard back yet.

Falcio - I can find no such code on the document.

AJPeabody

I suspect this late bill is a last gasp old items cleanup from the billing department with no great hope of getting anything. Don't fret or waste time if there is no easy way to pay. They won't care either way.

MyriamC

That's what I was thinking.
If they want your money, there should be an account number and a BIC (Bank Identifier Code) code on the statement.

whitehall

The average emergency room visit in the US costs almost $1400. Just out of curiosity, was that $45 a total bill or just a balance on your account?