CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS:

These conditions of business for auctions held at our premises consist of:

(1) Information for Buyers;

(2) Terms of Consignment (for Sellers);

(3) Terms of Sale (for bidders and buyers).

(1)  INFORMATION FOR BUYERS AT AUCTIONS

  1. Introduction. The following notes are intended to assist bidders and buyers, particularly those that are inexperienced or new to our salerooms. All of our auctions are governed by our Conditions of Business incorporating the Terms of Consignment (primarily applicable to sellers), the Terms of Sale (primarily applicable to bidders and buyers) and any notices that are displayed in our salerooms or announced by the auctioneer at the auction. Our Conditions of Business are available for inspection at our saleroom and the Terms of Sale. Our staff will be happy to help you if there is anything in our Conditions of Business that you do not fully understand.

Please make sure that you read our Terms & Conditions on carefully before bidding in the auction. If your bid is successful, you will be obliged to comply with our Terms & Conditions.

  1. Methods of Payment. Lots must be paid for before they are collected.  For those attending the auction we ask that lots are paid for on the day of the sale.  Methods by which we accept payment are bank transfer, including online payment upon receipt of your invoice, and these should be paid within the week following the sale.  We accept cash to an upper limit of 10,000 GBP equivalent.  We accept debit card payments to an upper limit of £500. We are unable to accept card payments above £500 when the card holder is not present.

  2. Collection and storage. All lots should be paid for and collected within a week following the sale.  Absentee bidders should check the success of their bids and arrange payment and collection within this time. Please note concerning collection and storage, items not removed within a week of the sale may be removed at the purchaser’s expense and storage charges of £10 as an administration fee and £5 per lot per day may be charged (plus VAT).

  3. Dispatch, we do offer a safe packing and dispatch service. Our staff have extensive knowledge and handling care when it comes to packing and posting fragile items nationally or internationally. We will only safely pack at an additional charge with a written and signed disclaimer not holding us responsible for any damage or loss once the item(s) has left the showroom. Each item posted will be accompanied with a tracking number and a required signature to ensure there are no losses.

  4. Agency, as auctioneers we usually act on behalf of the seller whose identity, for reasons of confidentiality, is not normally disclosed.  If you buy at auction your contract for the goods is with the seller, not with us as auctioneer.

  5. Estimates, are designed to help you gauge what sort of sum might be involved for the purchase of a particular lot.  Estimates may change and should not be thought of as the sale price. The lower estimate may represent the reserve price (the minimum price for which a lot may be sold) and will not be below the reserve price. Estimates do not include the buyer’s premium or VAT (where chargeable). Estimates are prepared some time before the auction and may be altered by a saleroom notice or announcement by the auctioneer before the auction of the lot.  They are not definitive.

  6. Buyer’s Premium. The Terms & Conditions oblige you to pay a buyer’s premium at 25% on the hammer price of each lot purchased. In addition, VAT is charged on the premium (see below).

  7. VAT. Items in our catalogue may be marked with a asterisk * or double asterisk **, which indicates that VAT is payable by the buyer on the hammer price and the buyer’s premium at either the standard rate (currently 20%) or a reduced rate (currently 5%), depending upon the legal requirements relating to that lot.

Lots which do not have either of the above symbols have no VAT payable on the hammer price. This is because such lots are sold using the Auctioneers’ Margin Scheme. The VAT included within the premium is not recoverable as input tax.

  1. Artist’s Resale Right/Droit De Suite. Lots marked with a (●) symbol are potentially subject to a levy Droit de Suite is a royalty payable to a qualifying artist or the artist’s heirs each time a work is resold during the artist’s lifetime and up to a period of 70 years after the artist’s death.  Royalties are calculated on a sliding percentage scale based on the hammer price excluding the buyer’s premium. The royalty does not apply to lots selling below the sterling equivalent of €1,000 and the maximum royalty payable on any single lot is the sterling equivalent of €10,000. Droit de Suite, which is not subject to VAT, will be added to the buyer’s purchase price and then passed on to the relevant collecting agency.

  2. Please enquire for the accepted exchange rate on the day of the sale.
    Royalties for Droit de Suite are as follows:
    4% Up to €50,000
    3% €50,000.01 – 200,000
    1% €200,000.01 – 350,000
    0.5% €350,000.01 – 500,000
    0.25% In excess of €500,000
    Up to a maximum levy of €10,000

  1. Inspection of goods by the buyer. As we act on behalf of the seller, we are dependent on information provided by the seller about their goods. We may inspect lots and will act reasonably in taking a general view about them. However, we are normally unable to carry out detailed examinations of lots to check their condition in the way a buyer would do.  You will have ample opportunity to inspect the goods.  You must inspect and investigate lots that you might wish to bid for. Please note carefully all lots are sold AS IS

  2. Condition Reports. We may be able to assist buyers unable to view by emailing a condition report, but these are based solely on our own opinion and are for guidance only and no responsibility is accepted for their accuracy.  Intending buyers are strongly encouraged to view. Condition reports cannot be prepared on the day of the sale.

  3. Electrical goods. These are sold as “objects” only. If you buy electrical goods for use you must ask a qualified electrician to check them for compliance with safety regulations before you use them.

  4. Export of goods. If you intend to export goods you must find out:

    1. whether an export licence is needed; and

    2. if there is a prohibition on importing goods of that character e.g. because the goods contain prohibited materials such as ivory.

  5. Bidding. Bidders will be required to register with us before the auction starts.  We reserve the right to impose a deadline prior to the auction by which you must register or by which we must receive a commission bid. If you wish to bid on high value lots this deadline may be several days before the auction in order to allow us sufficient time to carry out the necessary checks. Lots will be invoiced to the name and address on the registration form. You will need to provide us with proof of your identity in a form acceptable to us and such other information as we may require. Please enquire in advance about our arrangements for telephone or online bidding. Please note that we may refuse to register you if you do not provide us with all the information and documentation that we ask for or at our discretion.

  6. Absentee bidding. You may leave absentee bids with us indicating the maximum amount to be bid against a lot (excluding the buyers’ premium and/or any applicable VAT). We will execute absentee bids as economically as possible having regard to the reserve (if any) and competing bids. If two buyers submit identical absentee bids we may prefer the first bid received (where this can be reasonably ascertained). We recommend leaving absentee bids online via our website, though please contact us about leaving bids by telephone or email.  All absentee bids should be received at least 30 minutes before the auction commences; we cannot guarantee to execute absentee bids received after this time.

  7. Telephone Bidding. If you are unable to come to the auction it may be possible to bid on the telephone for higher value lots. Please note that this service is for lots with a lower estimate of £300 or more. The number of lines is limited so we would urge serious telephone bidding only and ask that you be prepared to bid over the top estimate. It is advisable to leave a maximum covering bid in case we are not able to contact you by telephone. All lines must be booked and confirmed in writing before the day of the auction and preferably some time in advance. Telephone bidding involves many variables and whilst we take every care to ensure the smooth operation of this service, we cannot be held liable if your bids are missed for any reason.

  8. Online Bidding. Any lots purchased via a live online bidding service could be subject to an additional commission charge on the hammer price payable by the bidder, we offer live bidding through our website under BIDDING LIVE. The charges using a 3rd party bidding platform will be payable to us on top of the hammer price and the buyer’s premium