Pyro, I've ended up buying some stuff from people on here (the two times I can remember it's been Australians) & had no problems. The first time was pretty horrible, as it took over 2 months to turn up (plane trip is about 4 hours, I think) - but that was the post office's fault. I have since started getting anything delivered to my work.
Both those people were honest about the condition of the goods. They either sent me or offered photos so I could judge for myself.
I would rather buy from folks from here than from the auction place we're not allowed to mention - you can ask what a person is like to deal with & interact with them & as a lot of the folk go riding together, any problems you can call for help from other DRN members.
I guess I'm just trying to say, sometimes you have to take a chance & not let cynicism/mistrust rule your life. As Patman says, if they're a regular it's usually a pretty safe bet. I couldn't think of a "safe" way of doing things, so I just decided it's a case of trust - either mutual or one-sided, till proven otherwise.
Hope that helps some