Terms and Conditions

Conditions for Buyers

1. The following information is intended to assist buyers, particularly those who have not had any experience buying at auction and those who are new to our sales. Our staff will be happy to help if there is anything you do not fully understand, for more information please contact the office.
2. As auctioneers we sell on behalf of the vendor whose identity, for reasons of confidentiality, is not disclosed without consent.
3. Estimates are a guide to the buyer only and are designed solely to assist buyers by indicating what sort of purchase price may be reached for a particular lot. The lower estimate may represent the reserve price on some occasions. Estimates do not include the Buyers Premium or VAT (where chargeable). Estimates can be subject to change and any alterations will be announced by the auctioneer before the sale.
4. Wilkinson’s Auctioneers charge a buyer’s premium of 15%.Unless indicated, no VAT will be payable on the hammer price and the premium will be shown inclusive of VAT. (The VAT inclusive with the premium is not normally recoverable by the buyer.)However, occasionally VAT is charged on the hammer price at the appropriate rate. In these cases the lots will be indicated in the catalogue and announced by the auctioneer.
5. Buyers intending to export goods should ascertain (a) whether an export licence is required and (b) whether there is any specific prohibition on importing goods of that character because, e.g. they may contain prohibited materials such as ivory. Imported goods of this nature will require a Cites Certificate in order to sell. For more information on any lots of this nature please contact us.
6. Bidders are required to register before the sale commences and lots will be invoiced to the name and address on the registration form. Some form of identification may be required if you are unknown to us. The highest bidder is the buyer. In the event of a dispute, the auctioneer will determine the buyer, or at his discretion re-offer the lot. All lots become the responsibility of the buyer at the fall of the hammer. All lots should be paid for within seven days of the sale.
7. Commission & Telephone Bids: if you are unable to attend the sale the auctioneers will be happy to execute commission bids. Buyers can complete a commission bid form online, or download a form and post it to us. Forms are also available from the office and may be sent by post or fax. This service is FREE and confidential. To leave a commission bid, the ‘top limit’ should be given. This is the hammer price to which you would bid up to if you were present at the auction. Any buyer wishing to bid by telephone during the sale must make arrangements in advance as telephone lines are limited. The auctioneers do not accept any responsibility for any errors or omissions arising from commission or telephone bids.
8. Live Bidding with the-saleroom.com. You can now bid online during the auction with live audio from the saleroom rostrum. There is a 5% commission payable over our normal buyer’s premium when buying via live bidding. Please note that the card details provided during registration via the-saleroom.com will be used to take payment for any lots purchased two days after a sale unless alternative payment methods have been arranged with us directly. If you have any queries regarding live bidding and payments please contact us
9. Methods of Payment: any cheques tendered will need to be cleared before removal of the goods is permitted.
   1. Paying by cash: cash payments can be made at the office, either during or after a sale.
   2. Paying by Debit or Credit Cards: payments can be made by Switch, MasterCard and Visa Cards. (There is no surcharge, however some cards are not accepted, please check within the office).
   3. Paying by Cheque all cheques should be payable to "Wilkinson’s Auctioneers Ltd" for the total amount due. Cheques for large amounts will be cleared before goods are released unless prior arrangements have been made with the auctioneer.
10. Collection and storage; it is important that goods are paid for and collected promptly. Any delay may involve the buyer in paying storage charges.
11. Electrical Goods. It is essential that lots which were originally operated by mains electricity be checked by a qualified electrician before use. They may not comply with the current statutory requirements and as such are offered solely for display of historical purpose.

Terms of Consignment of Sellers

1. Commission is charged to the sellers at a maximum of 15%
2. Consignments must be made to the sale room by any stated deadline and at your expense. We may be able to assist you with this process but any liability incurred to a carrier for haulage charges is solely your responsibility. Please contact us for more information.
3. Loss and damage warranty. We charge 1.5% insurance plus VAT on the sold items.
4. We do not charge for the photography of items. The copyright in respect of all photographs shall be the property of us, the auctioneer, as is the text of the catalogue.
5. Reserves: you are entitled to place a reserve prior to the auction a reserve on any lot consigned, being the minimum hammer price at which that lot may be sold. Reserves must be reasonable and we may decline to offer goods which in our opinion would be subject to an unreasonably high reserve. A reserve once set cannot be changed except with our consent. Goods offered subject to a reserve will be agreed between us before the sale. We may sell lots below the reserve provided we account to you for the same sale proceeds as you would have received had the reserve been the hammer price. If you specifically give us "discretion" we may accept a bid of up to 10% below the formal reserve.
6. Electrical items. Goods not certified as safe by an electrician (unless antiques) will not be accepted for sale. They must be removed at you expense on your being notified. We reserve the right to dispose of unsafe goods as refuse, at your expense.
7. Soft furnishings. The sale of soft furnishings is strictly regulated by statute law in the interests of fire safety. Goods found to infringe safety regulations will not be offered and must be removed at your expense.
8. Descriptions: where the seller chooses to provide information as to the provenance or any other details regarding items entered into a sale it is essential that this information is accurate. There is strict liability for the accuracy of descriptions under modern consumer legislation and in some circumstances responsibility lies with sellers if inaccuracies occur. We will assume that you have approved the catalogue description of your lots unless informed to the contrary. Where we are obliged to return the price to the buyer when the lot is a deliberate forgery and we have accounted to you for the proceeds of sale you agree to reimburse us the sale proceeds. The liability to reimburse the sale proceeds shall not arise where you are acting reasonably and honestly and are unaware of the forgery but we are or ought to have been aware of it.
9. Unsold and withdrawn items may with your consent be re-offered at a future sale. Where we deem an item unsaleable you must collect such items form the saleroom promptly on being so informed. Otherwise, storage charges may be incurred. We reserve the right to charge for storage in these circumstances at a reasonable daily rate.
10. You authorise us to deduct any agreed commission and any expenses incurred. You authorise us in our discretion to negotiate a sale by private treaty not later than the close of business the day of the sale in the case of lots unsold at auction.
11. After sale settlement of the net sum due to you normally takes place within 14 days cheque to the seller with the contact details provided to us, unless the buyer has not paid for the goods.

General Conditions

1. Definitions:
   1. "auctioneer" means the firm of Wilkinson’s Auctioneers Ltd.
   2. "deliberate forgery" means an imitation made with the intention of deceiving as to authorship, origin, date, age, period, culture or source but which us unequivocally described in the catalogue as being the work of a particular creator and which at the date of the sale had a value materially less than it would have had if it had been in accordance with the description;
   3. "hammer price" means the level of bidding reached (at or above any reserve) when the auctioneer beings down the hammer.
2. Bidding increments shall be at the auctioneer’s sole discretion.
3. Remedies for non-payment or failure to collect purchases: If any Lot is not paid for in full and taken away in accordance with these conditions or if there is any other breach of these Conditions, we, as agent for the seller and on our own behalf, shall at out absolute discretion and without prejudice to any other rights we may have be entitled to exercise one or more of the following rights and remedies:
   1. To proceed against you for damages for breach of contract;
   2. To rescind the sale of that Lot and/or any other Lots sold by us to you;
   3. To resell the Lots (by auction or private treaty) in which case you shall be responsible for any resulting deficiency in the total amount due (after crediting any part payment and adding any resale costs). Any surplus so arising shall belong to the seller;
   4. To remove, store and insure the Lot at your expense and, in the case of storage, either at our premises or elsewhere;
   5. To charge interest at a rate not exceeding 1.5% per month on the total amount due to the extent it remains unpaid for more than 3 working days after the sale;
   6. To retain that or any other Lot sold to you until you pay the total amount due
   7. To reject or ignore bids from you or your agent at future auctions or to impose conditions before any such bids shall be accepted.
   8. To apply any proceeds of sale of other Lots due or in future becoming due to you towards the settlement of the total amount due and to exercise a lien (that is a right to retain possession of) any of your property in our possession for any purpose until the debt due its satisfied.
   We shall, as agent for the seller and on our own behalf pursue these rights and remedies only so far as is reasonable to make appropriate recovery in respect of breach of these conditions
4. Third Party Liability: all members of the public on our premises are there at their own risk and must note the lay-out of the accommodation and security arrangements. Accordingly neither the auctioneer nor our employees or agents shall incur liability for death or personal injury (except as required by law by reason of our negligence) or similarly for the safety of the property of persons visiting prior to or at a sale.
5. Warranty of Title & Availability: the seller warranty to the auctioneer and you that the seller is the true owner of the property consigned or is properly authorised by the true owner to consign it for sale and is able to transfer good and marketable title to the property free from nay third party claims.
6. Agency: the auctioneer normally acts as agent only and disclaims any responsibility for default by sellers or buyers.
7. Terms of Sale: the seller acknowledges that Lots are sold subject to the stipulations of these Conditions in their entirety and on the Terms of Consignment as notified to the consignor at the time of the entry of the Lot.
8. Descriptions & Condition Reports: whilst we seek to describe lots accurately, it may be impractical for us to carry out exhaustive due diligence on each lot. Prospective buyers are given ample opportunities to view and inspect before any sale and they (and any independent experts on their behalf) must satisfy as to the accuracy of any description applied to a lot. Prospective buyers also bid on the understanding that, inevitably, representations or statements by us as to authorship, genuineness, origin, date, age, provenance, condition or estimated selling price involve matters of opinion. We undertake that any such opinion shall be honestly and reasonably held and accept liability for opinions given negligently or fraudulently. Subject to the foregoing neither we the auctioneer nor our employees or agents nor the seller accept liability for the correctness of such opinions and all conditions and warranties, whether relating to description, condition or quality of lots, express, implies or statutory, are hereby excluded. Any Lot which proves to be a deliberate forgery (as defined) may be returned to us by you within 21 days of the auction provided it is in the same condition as when bought, and is accompanied by particulars identifying it from the relevant catalogue description and a written statement of defects. If we are satisfied from the evidence presented that the Lot is a deliberate forgery we shall refund the money paid by you for the Lot including any buyer’s premium.