Buying
1. The highest bidder of any lot will not become the legal owner of the lot until all associated fees have been paid to the Auction House, this includes any fees charged by the auction house.
2. All successful bids are subject to buyers premium, this is charged at a minimum rate of £5.00 + VAT or 22% + VAT (26.4% inclusive), whichever is greater. Some auctions held by C&T Auctioneers and Valuers may have different premium rates, this will be clearly noted in printed catalogues or auction terms posted online, please make sure you check this before taking part in the auction.
Live auctions: all winning bidders agree to pay the winning bid plus the buyers premium. For buyers bidding live on the C&T Auctioneers website or bids left with the auctioneer pre-sale there will be no additional charges. If buying from the-saleroom.com or Easy Live Auction, buyers will be charged the auction house buyers premium plus an additional platform charge of 4.95% + VAT on the hammer price.
Timed auctions: all winning bidders agree to pay the winning bid plus the buyers premium. Buyers purchasing via online bidding platforms the-saleroom.com will be charged an additional 3% + VAT on the hammer price.*
* If you REGISTER to bid in a timed auction on the C&T website, then we take on the extra Saleroom charge for you (Please note, if you have registered to bid on the Saleroom website in a timed auction but then subsequently bid in the same auction on the C&T website, you will be charged the extra Saleroom charges).
3. When registering for our auctions you will be required to leave valid card details, and may be required to provide proof of identity and address. If registering for absentee or telephone bids, you will also be required to leave valid card details with the auctioneers.
4. It is the responsibility of the bidder to ensure that all absentee bids are left with the auction house no later than 24 hours before an auction takes place. No absentee bids will be accepted on the day of the auction.
5. Telephone bids will only be accepted for lots with a bottom pre-sale estimate of £100 or more. Exceptions can be made if you are bidding on multiple lots totalling over £100 or you are known to the auction house and have an agreement in place. For International bidders we will only accept telephone bids on lots with a pre-sale estimate of £250 or more. Telephone bids can only be accepted up to 24 hours before the sale. No telephone bids will be accepted on the day of the auction.
6. Bids are accepted solely at the auctioneers discretion. Any bids left via a third party, including an online bidding platform, are not classed as absentee bids and are taken as if a room bid during the auction. If two identical bids are placed on the same lot but on separate platforms, the auctioneer will take the bid they see first on their screen during the live auction. C&T Auctioneers and Valuers are not liable or responsible for any failure for your bid to be executed. C&T Auctioneers and Valuers are also not responsible for any error or problem with any bidding platform software used in the room or at the bidders location.
7. The auctioneer has the legal right to re-open any lot in the auction, even if the hammer has come down.
8. If bidders are not experts in the lots they are interested in, we would recommend they seek independent advice on the lots and the value before bidding.
9. The Condition and Originality stated of items offered for sale in C&T Auctioneers and Valuers are the opinion of the specialist for the auction house. All bidders should make sure that they are happy with the condition / originality of any item they intend to bid on. It is advised that interested bidders should view items in person or ask for condition reports of any defects. Live room auctions are not covered by The Sales of Goods Act.
10. Any statement made in the description of a lot is the opinion of the specialist cataloguer will be from evidence they have in possession at the time of writing the description, or from information provided by the vendor of the lot. We advise all bidders to check this information before the auction takes place/leaving a bid.
11. Some items may be referred to as “gold grade”, this does not mean that the item is made of gold, please make sure you check with us before bidding should you have a query.
12. All items sold are sold as collectors items, recommended for display use only; we do not advise or take any responsibility if used for the purpose in which they were originally intended.
Paying
13. If successful in an auction with an absentee, telephone or online bid, you will be invoiced, normally within 72 hours of the auction taking place. These invoices are sent via email and have an attachment. If you require shipping, please request this via the link emailed.
14. Payment must be made within 5 days of receiving your invoice, unless another arrangement has been made with the auction house. Failure to make payment will result in being barred from bidding on the C&T Auctioneers website and, in some instances, may also result in being barred from bidding on The Saleroom.com.
15. C&T Auctioneers and Valuers accept the following methods of payment: Cash in UK £’s sterling (up to the equivalent of €9,000 owing to money laundering regulations), Bank Transfer (Please note that if paying by this method the amount received after the deduction of any bank fees or currency conversion of payment to UK pound sterling must not be less than the sterling amount payable as set out on the invoice), Debit Cards and Visa / Mastercard Credit Cards, AMEX not accepted. (We cannot accept remote card payments for invoices totalling £500 or more). Please note that for payments of above £2000 we can only accept bank transfer.
16. Should you fail to make a payment within 5 days, the card provided when registering to bid in the auction may be automatically charged.
Shipping / Collections
17. C&T Auctioneers and Valuers Ltd offer an in-house post and packing service for most auctions, unless stated. Please note, we do not offer in-house shipping on:
Item(s) that are very fragile, large or heavy, Toy Soldier Auctions / Toy Soldier Lots, Air Pistols, Air Rifles or Antique Guns, and certain invoices totalling over £3,000 due to insurance purposes.
Grenades, mortars, and bombs although deactivated cannot be sent in the post. They are a collection only item.
Gun magazines and shells cannot be sent internationally.
Should we be unable to ship certain items, this will be clearly stated in the auction catalogue lot listing. Shipping options may vary by auction; this will be stated in the individual auction Shipping Information. Please note, C&T Auctioneers and Valuers are not a shipping company, and do ask all buyers to be patient as items are dealt with on a first come first serve basis.
18. C&T Auctioneers and Valuers Ltd are not responsible for loss or damage to any item in transit, irrespective of the carrier.
19. C&T Auctioneers and Valuers declare the full value of any lot sent to international buyers. We are not responsible for any customs import charges of the country of destination. It is the buyers responsibility to make sure they can legally import the item into their country. We advise international buyers if they are not sure of any import issue, to obtain independent advice.
20. Any lots with the following symbol ^, will indicate that a CITES license will be required before the lot can be shipped outside of the UK.
21. All purchasers of any edged weapon / firearm will need to provide us with proof of age (Over 18) before the item can be removed from the premises either by the buyer or by a courier.
22. Items not being shipped must be collected from C&T Auctioneers and Valuers within 7 days of payment being made, unless agreement is in place with C&T Auctioneers and Valuers.
23. Items not collected/removed from our premises later than two weeks upon receipt of payment will then incur a daily storage charge of £2 per lot + VAT at prevailing rate. Continued failure to collect or arrange shipping will result in the goods being sold without further notice and without reserve to recover the costs for storage unless agreement has been made in writing with us.
24. Buyers collecting in person will sign to agree to have inspected items and that they are happy with the condition of the item(s) - collected as seen. Buyers can nominate a third party to collect on their behalf by notifying our office in writing. If you are collecting on behalf of someone you are liable for inspecting the item.
Refunds / Returns
25. If you purchase an item and are not happy with the originality / feel the item is not as described you must contact the auction house immediately on receipt of the lot(s), it is then solely up to the auctioneers discretion to issue a refund. Proof of error in description may be required, this is the responsibility of the purchaser to obtain this information, and any fees associated with this are not refundable by C&T Auctioneers and Valuers. We will only accept information by a professional in the chosen field regarding disputes of item originality, we will not accept any information from a private individual or internet collectors forum. Any information which was available at the time of bidding is not grounds for a refund.
26. Should a refund be agreed to by the auctioneer, the lot(s) must then be returned to the auction house within 3 days of this agreement having been made, and no later than 21 days after the auction date (when the auction is closed and C&T begin the process of paying out vendors - Refunds cannot be issued after this time).
27. Any collections outside of the 21 days detailed in section 26 will not be suitable for refunds or returns. Auctions are closed at 21 days after the auction. Any collections outside of this time frame will not be covered by our return policy.
28. Any payment fees or postage fees associated with a purchase cannot be refunded.
