Antiques & Fine Art

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 salerooms and the Terms of

Sale are printed in the back of our auction catalogues and on our web-site. 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 of Sale set out in this catalogue or on

our website carefully before bidding in the auction. If your bid is successful, you

will be obliged to comply with our Terms of Sale.

2. 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.

3. Estimates. 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.

4. Buyer's Premium. The Terms of Sale oblige you to pay a buyer's premium at 22.5% on the hammer price of each lot purchased. In addition, VAT will be added to this premium (see below).

5. VAT. Items in our catalogue may be marked in the following ways:

a. (†) indicates that VAT is payable by the buyer on the hammer price as well as being

an element in the buyer's premium. VAT will be chargeable at the standard rate

(presently 20%). This imposition of VAT is likely to be because the seller is registered

for VAT within the European Union and is not operating the Dealers Margin Scheme

or because VAT is due at 20% on importation into the UK.

b. (**) indicates that the lot has been imported from outside the European Union.

[These lots are liable to a reduced rate of VAT (5%) on the hammer price and buyer's

premium)].

c. 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.

6. 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 the exclusion of

liability for the condition of lots set out in the Terms of Sale at clause 12.4.

7. Electrical goods. These are sold as “antiques” 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.

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

a. whether an export licence is needed; and

b. if there is a prohibition on importing goods of that character e.g. because the goods

contain prohibited materials such as ivory.

9. 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. Phone bidders must be prepared to guarantee a starting bid of at least £500 if they wish to bid by telephone.

10. Commission bidding. You may leave commission bids (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 commission bids as cheaply as possible having regard to the

reserve (if any) and competing bids. If two buyers submit identical commission bids we

may prefer the first bid received (where this can be reasonably ascertained). Please

enquire in advance about our arrangements for the leaving of commission bids by

telephone or email or via our website or online bidding platform.

11. Methods of Payment. Usually any cheques will need to be cleared before you can take

the goods away. Please discuss with our office in advance of the sale if you plan to use

other methods of payment (except cash, for which there is an upper limit of 15,000 euros

equivalent). There is an additional charge of 2.5% plus VAT on credit card payments with no additional charge on debit card payments (either made securely online or in person via a chip and pin machine).

12. Collection and storage. Please note what the Terms of Sale say about collection and

storage. It is important that you pay for and collect goods promptly and within 7 days of the end of a sale. Any delay may involve you having to pay storage charges which are currently set at £5 plus VAT per lot per day.

 

 

EXPLANATION OF PICTURE CATALOGUING TERMS

Any statement as to authorship, attribution, origin, date, age, provenance and condition is a statement of opinion and is not to be taken as a statement of representation of fact. The Auctioneers reserve the right, in forming their opinion, to consult and rely upon any expert or authority considered by them to be reliable.

The forename(s) and surname of the artist: In our opinion a work by the artist. 
The initials of the forename(s) and the surname of the artist: In our opinion a work of the period of the artist which may be wholly, or in part his work. 
The surname only of the artist: In our opinion a work of the school or by one of the followers of the artist or in his style and of uncertain date. 
'English School' , 'Italian School ': etc: In our opinion a work executed at a later date that the style may suggest. 
'Signed ': Has a signature which in our opinion is a recognised signature. 
'Dated' : Is so dated and in our opinion was executed at that date. 
The term 'bears' a signature and/or date and/or an inscription: Means that in our opinion the artist's name and/or date and/or inscription have been added by another hand. 
Measurements: Height precedes width.

 

AUTOGRAPHS

Autographs – We check all autographs when they are valued and believe to the best of our knowledge they are authentic. Many autographs come from private sellers and are sold without any history or COA. We urge buyers to satisfy themselves BEFORE bidding. If you strongly feel an item has been mis-described please contact us within one calendar month after the auction.  If you are an overseas buyer it is your prerogative to arrange shipping in good time to avoid the one month cut off period.  If a concern is raised before the end of the timescale we will place the item on hold for another calendar month. During this time a letter of rejection must be obtained from PSA/DNA and NO ONE else. Details can be found here http://www.psacard.com/Services/AutographAuthentication

 

If a letter of rejection is provided by PSA/DNA we will offer a full refund, not inclusive of shipping or authentication. This is why we urge buyers to satisfy themselves BEFORE bidding.

 

 

TERMS OF SALE

Both the sale of goods at our auctions and your relationship with us are

governed by the Terms of Consignment (primarily applicable to sellers) the

Terms of Sale (primarily applicable to bidders and buyers) and any notices

displayed in the saleroom or announced by us at the auction (collectively, the

“Conditions of Business”). The Terms of Consignment and Terms of Sale are

available at our saleroom on request.

Please read these Terms of Sale carefully. Please note that if you register to

bid and/or bid at auction this signifies that you agree to and will comply with

these Terms of Sale.

Please note that these Terms of Sale relate to auctions held at our premises

only.

1 Definitions and interpretation

1.1 To make these Terms of Sale easier to read, we have given the following words a

specific meaning:

“Auctioneer” means Ewbank’s, a partnership registered in England and Wales whose registered office is located at Burnt Common Auction Rooms, London Road, Send, Woking, Surrey GU23 7LN

 or its authorised auctioneer, as appropriate;

“Bidder” means a person participating in bidding at the auction;

“Buyer” means the person who makes the highest bid for a Lot

accepted by the Auctioneer;

“Deliberate Forgery” means: (a) an imitation made with the intention of deceiving

as to authorship, origin, date, age, period, culture or source;

(b) which is described in the catalogue as being the work of

a particular creator without qualification; and (c) which at the

date of the auction had a value materially less than it would

have had if it had been as described;

“Hammer Price” means the level of the highest bid for a Lot accepted by the

Auctioneer by the fall of the hammer;

“Lot(s)” means the goods that we offer for sale at our auctions;

“Premium” means the premium that we will charge you on your

purchase of a Lot to be calculated as set out in Clause 4;

“Reserve” means the minimum hammer price at which a Lot may be

sold;

“Sale Proceeds” means the net amount due to the Seller;

“Seller” means the persons who consign Lots for sale at our

auctions;

“Terms of Consignment”

means the terms on which we agree to offer Lots for sale in

our auctions as agent on behalf of Sellers;

“Terms of Sale” means these terms of sale, as amended or updated from

time to time;

“Total Amount Due” means the Hammer Price for a Lot, the Premium, any

applicable artist’s resale right royalty, any VAT due and any

additional charges payable by a defaulting buyer under

these Terms of Sale;

“Trader” means a Seller who is acting for purposes relating to that

Seller’s trade, business, craft or profession, whether acting

personally or through another person acting in the trader’s

name or on the trader’s behalf;

“VAT” means Value Added Tax or any equivalent sales tax; and

“Website” means our website available at www.ewbankauctions.co.uk .

In these Terms of Sale the words 'you', 'yours', etc. refer to you as the Buyer. The

words “we”, “us”, etc. refer to the Auctioneer. Any reference to a ‘Clause’ is to a

clause of these Terms of Sale unless stated otherwise.

2 Information that we are required to give to Consumers

2.1 A description of the main characteristics of each Lot as contained in the auction

catalogue.

2.2 Our name, address and contact details as set out herein, in our auction catalogues

and/or on our Website.

2.3 The price of the Goods and arrangements for payment as described in Clauses 4, 5,

7 and 8.

2.4 The arrangements for collection of the Goods as set out in Clauses 8 and 9.

2.5 Your right to return a Lot and receive a refund if the Lot is a Deliberate Forgery as set

out in Clause 13.

2.6 We and Trader Sellers have a legal duty to supply any Lots to you in accordance with

these Terms of Sale.

2.7 If you have any complaints, please send them to us directly at the address set out on

our Website.

3 Bidding procedures and the Buyer

3.1 You must register your details with us before bidding and provide us with any

requested proof of identity and billing information, in a form acceptable to us. You

must also satisfy any security arrangements we have in place before entering the

auction room to view or bid.

3.2 We strongly recommend that you attend the auction in person. You are responsible

for your decision to bid for a particular Lot. If you bid on a Lot, including by telephone

and online bidding, or by placing a commission bid, we assume that you have

carefully inspected the Lot and satisfied yourself regarding its condition.

3.3 If you instruct us in writing, we may execute commission bids on your behalf. Neither

we nor our employees or agents will be responsible for any failure to execute your

commission bid, unless our failure to do so is unreasonable. Where two or more

commission bids at the same level are recorded we have the right to prefer the first

bid made (where this can be reasonably ascertained).

3.4 The Bidder placing the highest bid for a Lot accepted by the Auctioneer will be the

Buyer at the Hammer Price. Any dispute about a bid will be settled at our discretion.

We may reoffer the Lot during the auction or may settle the dispute in another way.

We will act reasonably when deciding how to settle the dispute.

3.5 Bidders will be deemed to act as principals, even if the Bidder is acting as an agent

for a third party.

3.6 We may bid on Lots on behalf of the Seller up to one bid below the Reserve.

3.7 We may refuse to accept any bid if it is reasonable for us to do so.

3.8 Bidding increments will be at our sole discretion (but will be in line with standard

auction practice).

4 The purchase price

As Buyer, you will pay:

a. the Hammer Price;

b. a premium of 22.5% plus VAT of the Hammer Price;

c. any artist’s resale right royalty payable on the sale of the Lot; and

d. any VAT due.

e. plus either 3% plus VAT for some online bidding platforms (3% for Bidquare, 5% for Live Auctioneers and Invaluable).

5 VAT

5.1 You shall be liable for the payment of any VAT applicable on the Hammer Price and

premium due for a Lot. Please see the symbols used in the auction catalogue for that

Lot and the “Information for Buyers” in our auction catalogue for further information.

5.2 We will charge VAT at the current rate at the date of the auction.

6 The contract between you and the Seller

6.1 The contract for the purchase of the Lot between you and the Seller will be formed

when the hammer falls accepting the highest bid for the Lot at the auction.

6.2 You may directly enforce any terms in the Terms of Consignment against a Seller to

the extent that you suffer damages and/or loss as a result of the Seller’s breach of the

Terms of Consignment.

6.3 If you breach these Terms of Sale, you may be responsible for damages and/or

losses suffered by a Seller or us. If we are contacted by a Seller who wishes to bring

a claim against you, we may in our discretion provide the Seller with information or

assistance in relation to that claim.

6.4 We normally act as an agent only and will not have any responsibility for default by

you or the Seller (unless we are the Seller of the Lot).

7 Payment

7.1 Immediately following your successful bid on a Lot you will:

7.1.1 give to us, if not already provided to our satisfaction, proof of identity in a

form acceptable to us (and any other information that we require in order

to comply with our anti-money laundering obligations); and

7.1.2 pay to us the Total Amount Due in cash (for which there is an upper limit

of 15,000 euros equivalent) or in any other way that we agree to accept

payment.

7.2 If you owe us any money, we may use any payment made by you to repay these

debts.

8 Title and collection of purchases

8.1 Once you have paid us in full the Total Amount Due for any Lot, ownership of that Lot

will transfer to you. You may not claim or collect a Lot until you have paid for it.

8.2 You will (at your own expense) collect any Lots that you have purchased and paid for

either:

8.2.1 not later than five business days following the day of the auction; or

8.2.2 not later than five business days following the date that we have

received payment of the Total Amount Due in cleared funds, if later.

8.3 If you do not collect the Lot within this time period, you will be responsible for any

reasonable removal, storage and insurance charges in relation to that Lot.

8.4 Risk of loss or damage to the Lot will pass to you when you (or your agents) take

physical possession of the Lot.

8.5 If you do not collect the Lot that you have paid for within ninety days after the

auction, we may sell the Lot. We will pay the proceeds of any such sale to you, but

will deduct any storage charges or other sums that we have incurred in the storage

and sale of the Lot. We reserve the right to charge you a selling commission at our

standard rates on any such resale of the Lot.

9 Remedies for non-payment or failure to collect purchases

9.1 Please do not bid on a Lot if you do not intend to buy it. If your bid is successful,

these Terms of Sale will apply to you. This means that you will have to carry out your

obligations set out in these Terms of Sale. If you do not comply with these Terms of

Sale we may (acting on behalf of the Seller and ourselves) pursue one or more of the

following measures:

9.1.1 take action against you for damages for breach of contract;

9.1.2 reverse the sale of the Lot to you and/or any other Lots sold by us to you;

9.1.3 resell the Lot by auction or private treaty (in which case you will have to

pay any difference between the price you should have paid for the Lot and

the price we sell it for as well as the charges outlined in Clause 8.5).

Please note that if we sell the Lot for a higher amount than your winning

bid, the extra money will belong to the Seller;

9.1.4 remove, store and insure the Lot at your expense;

9.1.5 if you do not pay us within five business days of your successful bid, we

may charge interest at a rate not exceeding 1.5% per month on the total

amount due;

9.1.6 keep that Lot or any other Lot sold to you until you pay the Total Amount

Due;

9.1.7 reject or ignore bids from you or your agent at future auctions or impose

conditions before we accept bids from you; and/or

9.1.8 if we sell any Lots for you, use the money made on these Lots to repay

any amount you owe us.

9.2 We will act reasonably when exercising our rights under Clause 9.1. We will contact

you before exercising these rights and try to work with you to correct any noncompliance

by you with these Terms of Sale.

10 Health and safety

Although we take reasonable precautions regarding health and safety, you are on our

premises at your own risk. Please note the lay-out of the premises and security

arrangements. Neither we nor our employees or agents are responsible for the safety

of you or your property when you visit our premises, unless you suffer any injury to

your person or damage to your property as a result of our, our employees’ or our

agents’ negligence.

11 Warranties

11.1 The Seller warrants to us and to you that:

11.1.1 the Seller is the true owner of the Lot for sale or is authorised by the true

owner to offer and sell the lot at auction;

11.1.2 the Seller is able to transfer good and marketable title to the Lot to you

free from any third party rights or claims; and

11.1.3 as far as the Seller is aware, the main characteristics of the Lot set out in

the auction catalogue (as amended by any notice displayed in the

saleroom or announced by the Auctioneer at the auction) are correct.

11.2 If, after you have placed a successful bid and paid for a Lot, any of the warranties

above are found not to be true, please notify us in writing. Neither we nor the Seller

will be liable to pay you any sums over and above the Total Amount Due and we will

not be responsible for any inaccuracies in the information provided by the Seller

except as set out below.

11.3 Please note that many of the Lots that you may bid on at our auction are secondhand.

11.4 If a Lot is not second-hand and you purchase the Lot as a Consumer from a Seller

that is a Trader, a number of additional terms may be implied by law in addition to the

Seller’s warranties set out at Clause 11.1 (in particular under the Consumer Rights

Act 2015). These Terms of Sale do not seek to exclude your rights under law as they

relate to the sale of these Lots.

11.5 Save as expressly set out above, all other warranties, conditions or other terms which

might have effect between the Seller and you, or us and you, or be implied or

incorporated by statue, common law or otherwise are excluded.

12 Descriptions and condition

12.1 Our descriptions of the Lot will be based on: (a) information provided to us by the

Seller of the Lot (for which we are not liable); and (ii) our opinion (although it is likely

that we will not be able to carry out a detailed inspection of each Lot).

12.2 We will give you a number of opportunities to view and inspect the Lots before the

auction. You (and any independent consultants acting on your behalf) must satisfy

yourself about the accuracy of any description of a Lot. We shall not be responsible

for any failure by you or your consultants to properly inspect a Lot.

12.3 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 will be honestly and reasonably held and accept

liability for opinions given negligently or fraudulently.

12.4 Please note that Lots (in particular second-hand Lots) are unlikely to be in perfect

condition. Lots are sold “as is” (i.e. as you see them at the time of the auction).

Neither we nor the Seller accept any liability for the condition of second-hand Lots or

for any condition issues affecting a Lot if such issues are included in the description

of a Lot in the auction catalogue (or in any saleroom notice) and/ or which the

inspection of a Lot by the Buyer ought to have revealed.

13 Deliberate Forgeries

13.1 You may return any Lot which is found to be a Deliberate Forgery to us within one month of the auction provided that you return the Lot to us in the same condition as

when it was released to you, accompanied by a written statement identifying the Lot

from the relevant catalogue description and a written statement of defects.

13.2 If we are reasonably satisfied that the Lot is a Deliberate Forgery we will refund the

money paid by you for the Lot (including any Premium and applicable VAT) provided

that if:

13.2.1 the catalogue description reflected the accepted view of experts as at the

date of the auction; or

13.2.2 you personally are not able to transfer good and marketable title in the Lot

to us, you will have no right to a refund under this Clause 13.2.

13.3 If you have sold the Lot to another person, we will only be liable to refund the price

that you paid for the Lot. We will not be responsible for repaying any additional

money you may have made from selling the Lot.

13.4 Your right to return a Lot that is a Deliberate Forgery does not affect your legal rights

and is in addition to any other right or remedy provided by law or by these Terms of

Sale.

14 Our liability to you

14.1 We will not be liable for any loss of opportunity or disappointment suffered as a result

of participating in our auction.

14.2 In addition to the above, neither we nor the Seller shall be responsible to you and you

shall not be responsible to the Seller or us for any other loss or damage that any of us

suffer that is not a foreseeable result of any of us not complying with the Conditions of

Business. Loss or damage is foreseeable if it is obvious that it will happen or if at the

time of the sale of the Lot, we, you and the Seller knew it might happen.

14.3 Subject to Clause 14.4, if we are found to be liable to you for any reason (including,

amongst others, if we are found to be negligent, in breach of contract or to have

made a misrepresentation), our liability will be limited to the total purchase price paid

by you to us for any Lot.

14.4 Notwithstanding the above, nothing in these Terms of Sale shall limit our liability (or

that of our employees or agents) for:

14.4.1 death or personal injury resulting from negligence (as defined in the Unfair

Contract Terms Act 1977);

14.4.2 fraudulent misrepresentation; or

14.4.3 any liability which cannot be excluded by law.

15 Notices

15.1 All notices between you and us regarding these Terms of Sale must be in writing and

signed by or on behalf of the party giving it.

15.2 Any notice referred in Clause 15.1 may be given:

15.2.1 by delivering it by hand;

15.2.2 by first class pre-paid post or Recorded Delivery; or

15.2.3 by email, provided that a copy is also sent by pre-paid post or Recorded

Delivery.

15.3 Notices must be sent:

15.3.1 by hand or registered post:

a. to us, at our address set out in these Terms of Sale or at our registered

office address appearing on our Website; and

b. to you, at the last postal address that you have given to us as your contact

address in writing; or

15.3.2 by email:

a. to us, by sending the notice to both the following email addresses:

antiques@ewbankauctions.co.uk and chris@ewbankauctions.co.uk

b. to you, by sending the notice to any email address that you have given to

us as your contact email address in writing.

15.4 Notices will be deemed to have been received:

15.4.1 if delivered by hand, on the day of delivery;

15.4.2 if sent by first class pre-paid post or Recorded Delivery, two business days

after posting, exclusive of the day of posting; or

15.4.3 if sent by email, at the time of transmission unless sent after 17.00 in the

place of receipt in which case they will be deemed to have been received

on the next business day in the place of receipt (provided that a copy has

also been sent by pre-paid post or Recorded Delivery as set out in Clause

15.2.3.

15.5 Any notice or communication given under these Terms of Sale will not be validly given

if sent by fax, email, any form of messaging via social media or text message.

16 Data Protection

We will hold and process any personal data in relation to you in accordance with our

current privacy policy, a copy of which is available on our website

17 General

17.1 We may, acting reasonably, refuse admission to our premises or attendance at our

auctions by any person.

17.2 We act as an agent for our Sellers. The rights we have to claim against you for

breach of these Terms of Sale may be used by either us, our employees or agents, or

the Seller, its employees or agents, as appropriate. Other than as set out in this

Clause, these Terms of Sale are between you and us and no other person will have

any rights to enforce any of these Terms of Sale.

17.3 We may use special terms in the catalogue descriptions of particular Lots. You must

read these terms carefully along with any glossary provided in our auction catalogues.

17.4 Each of the clauses of these Terms of Sale operates separately. If any court or

relevant authority decides that any of them are unlawful, the remaining clauses will

remain in full force and effect.

17.5 We may change these Terms of Sale from time to time, without notice to you. Please

read these Terms of Sale carefully, as they may be different from the last time you

read them.

17.6 Except as otherwise stated in these Terms of Sale, each of our rights and remedies

are: (a) are in addition to and not exclusive of any other rights or remedies under

these Terms of Sale or general law; and (b) may be waived only in writing and

specifically. Delay in exercising or non-exercise of any right under these Terms of

Sale is not a waiver of that or any other right. Partial exercise of any right under these

Terms of Sale will not preclude any further or other exercise of that right or any other

right under these Terms of Sale. Waiver of a breach of any term of these Terms of

Sale will not operate as a waiver of breach of any other term or any subsequent

breach of that term.

17.7 These Terms of Sale and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with

them (including any non-contractual claims or disputes) shall be governed by and

construed in accordance with the laws of England and the parties irrevocably submit

to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts.

 

These conditions of business are based upon recommended terms of sale by SOFAA (http://www.sofaa.org/)