TERMS & CONDITIONS OF AUCTION BUSINESS

General

1. Definition
In these terms of business:

Lucius Morris Fine Art and Antique Auctioneers is referred to as ‘Morris's’.

The Morris's representative conducting the auction is referred to as the ‘Auctioneer’.

2. Attribution and Condition of Lots
We make every effort to ensure the accuracy of any statement as to authorship, attribution, origin, date, age, provenance and condition of any lot, whether or not such a statement forms part of the description of any such lot.

Any statement made orally or in the catalogue is an opinion given after careful consideration and research.

It should be noted that pictures have not been removed from their frames unless this is specifically mentioned in the condition report.

When bidding, you acknowledge that you are fully satisfied as to the attribution and condition of the lot.

If any damage is done to any lot at the viewing or before, during or after the sale, it shall be made good by:


* the person who caused the damage; or
* the person for whom they are acting.

Morris's will assess the extent of the damage to be repaired.

3. Attribution of Pictures
(a) If the forename(s) (or asterisks where not known) and surname of the artist are given, this indicates that in the opinion of Morris's the picture is a work by the named artist.


(b) If the initials of the forename(s) and the surname of the artist are given, this indicates that in the opinion of Morris's the picture is a work of the period of the named artist and may be wholly or in part his work.


(c) If the surname of the artist is given, this indicates that in the opinion of Morris's the picture is a work of the same school of the named artist, or by one of his followers, or in his style and of uncertain date.


(d) The term ‘Bears signature’ indicates that in the opinion of Morris's this is not the signature of the artist.


(e) All other terms are self-explanatory.


4. Third Party Liability
Every person on Morris's premises before, during or after a sale shall be deemed to be there at their own risk and shall have no claim against Morris's in respect of any injury they may sustain or any accident which may occur.


5. Disputes
Any dispute not covered in these terms of business will be settled at the sole discretion of Morris's.

The Seller

6. Payment
Once your buyers funds have cleared in our account we aim to pay you no later than 21 working days after the auction.
We do not pay interest on the period between your buyers payment and your receipt of the payment.

Please remember that you will have to pay certain charges on your sale, usually 15% commision unless otherwise stated.

We act as agents and cannot be held responsible if your buyer does not pay. We cannot pay you until we have received cleared funds.

The Buyer

7. The Buyer
The highest bidder acknowledged as such by the auctioneer will be the buyer. If any dispute arises, the auctioneer has absolute discretion to settle the matter. The auctioneer rules the bidding and bids cannot be retracted. The auctioneer reserves the right to refuse any bid.

The successful bidder, whether bidding for himself or for a third party, is entirely responsible for paying for the lots they have bought in accordance with Morris's terms of business.

The auctioneer reserves the right to bid on behalf of the vendors for any lot and to withdraw, consolidate or divide any lot or lots.


8. Registration
To assist the progress of the sale, all prospective buyers must register their name and address at reception and collect a numbered bidding card before the sale starts.

Cards can be used to make bids to the auctioneer during the sale. If successful, the bidder must ensure their number can be seen by the auctioneer and that it is called out. Should there be any doubts as to price or buyer, please let the auctioneer know immediately.


9. Buyers Premium

Commission Charges
You will pay a commission premium of 15% per cent of the hammer price of your purchase on each lot costing up to and including £50,000, and 10 per cent plus VAT on the balance. All lots bought via thesaleroom.com are subject to commission at the rate of 18%.

10. Value Added Tax
Lots on which the buyer may have to pay VAT on the ‘hammer price’ are indicated in the catalogue with a symbol. The buyer must pay this VAT at the rates that apply on the day of the auction.


11. Auctioneers Margin Scheme
This scheme allows auctioneers to sell items without VAT on the hammer price. The buyer then pays an amount equivalent to VAT. This amount cannot be refunded and is not shown separately on the invoice.

12. Payment
Buyers must pay in full before their purchases can be released to them.

Buyers must pay their invoice on the evening of the sale unless by prior arrangement and let us know when they will be collecting their purchase.

If buyers are unknown to us, we cannot hand over purchases unless we have adequate references or payment is cleared.

Payment Methods
We accept payment by:


* Cash - up to £9,000 or €10,000
* Cheque ( for high value items only) - made payable to ‘Lucius Morris Auctionners’ ONLY by prior arrangement with the Auction house
* Debit card
* Credit card - Please note a charge of 1.3 per cent plus VAT is added to credit card payments.
* Bank transfer

13. Internet Bidding
Live online auctions are held from time to time in conjunction with www.the-saleroom.com

Full details are given at the time of the live sale. A charge of three per cent of the hammer price (plus VAT) is made for internet bidding.

14. Ownership of Purchases
Ownership of lot(s) purchased will not pass to the buyer until they have paid Morris's in full and Morris's has applied the payment to the lot.

15. Transfer of Risk
Each lot is the buyers sole responsibility from the fall of the hammer and is sold with all faults and imperfections.

Morris's is not responsible for the correct description, genuineness or authenticity of any lot and makes no warranty whatsoever. The buyer is deemed to have inspected each lot and satisfied himself as to its condition.


16. Commission Bids
If instructed, Morris's will execute bids and advise prospective buyers. This service is free.

Buyers who cannot come to a sale may leave their bid with our reception staff after viewing, or make their bid in advance by telephone, email or fax. Such bids are placed at the buyers own risk.

Bids must be made at least one hour before the sale starts.

When making bids, buyers must provide:


* Their full name
* Address
* Email address
* Contact telephone numbers
* The number of the lot they wish to buy
* Their maximum bid amount - excluding commission which will be added to the invoice afterwards.

Buyers must state what their maximum bid would be. We cannot accept an instruction to ‘buy’ or unlimited bids.

We will ensure that lots are bought as cheaply as possible depending on the bids made and other reserves. If identical bids are placed, the person who bid first will take precedence.

17. Telephone Bids
Buyers must book a telephone line at least 24 hours before the sale begins and within one hour of the close of the view day. This applies to Antique and Fine Art Sales only. General sales do not have telephone bidding facilities.

If buyers are unknown to us, we must receive written confirmation of their booking before the sale starts.

Please contact our office to book a telephone line. Once the line is booked, we will call the buyer from the saleroom shortly before the item they wish to buy comes up for sale. The buyer can then bid live over the telephone.

We advise buyers to leave a covering commission bid in case we cannot contact them during the sale for any reason.

Telephone lines should be booked in advance, as we may not be able to accept telephone bidding requests on the day of sale.

Telephone bidding arrangements are made entirely at the buyers own risk, and we cannot be held responsible for any default or neglect in connection with the service.

18. Absentee Bidding
Whilst every effort is made to execute absentee bidding, Morris's cannot be held responsible for any default or neglect in connection with this service. All such arrangements are made entirely at the prospective buyers risk.

19. Storage and Collection
Furniture, carpets or larger works of art which have not been collected within:

* seven days of a general sale


will be stored at our premises where they will be automatically insured.

Storage charges are £5 plus VAT per item per day. Storage charges must be paid before we can release goods, and buyers must then collect on the same day to avoid further storage charges.

20. Droit de Suite Royalty Charges
A work of art by a living artist which costs more than the UK sterling equivalent of €1,000 will incur a royalty charge. We pass this payment onto the Design and Artists Copyright Society (DACS), and do not charge a handling fee. Buyers can calculate royalty charges on the DACS website.
Items marked with the v symbol in the catalogue will potentially incur royalty payments.

We use the euro to UK sterling exchange rate which applies on the day of the sale. It is the buyers responsibility to check the relevant exchange rate.

The actual qualifying threshold is calculated by the Artists Resale Right Service Hub based on the European Central Bank reference rate published at 2.15pm on the day of the sale, and can be found on the DACS website.

The royalty charge for pictures which achieve a hammer price of more than the UK sterling equivalent of €1,000, but less that the UK sterling equivalent of €50,000 is four per cent. On works of art that achieve a hammer price of more than the UK sterling equivalent of €50,000 a sliding scale of royalty charges applies. For a complete list of the royalty charges and threshold levels please download more information from the DACS website.

The royalty charge is added to invoices, and must be paid before purchases are removed. VAT is not paid on royalty charges.

21.Cites License

Important Notice Relating to Sporting and Natural History

Clients intending to import/export any item derived from natural history specimens into / from a non-European country should first check for any Import/Export and possession restrictions prior to bidding/selling.

Certain species * are also subject to CITES regulations when exporting/importing these items out the EU. CITES regulations are given on www.ukcites.gov.uk or maybe obtained from Animal Health, Wildlife Licensing and Registration Service, Zone 1/17, Temple Quay House, 2 The Square, Bristol BS1 6EB. Those species that are covered by the US Endangered Species Act (USESA) or The Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA): potential US bidders should check with USF&W (US Fish and Wildlife Services) for trade/possession restrictions in the US prior to bidding.

While every effort has been made to attribute the correct Latin name for each specimen, the auctioneers will not be held responsible for any errors that may occur concerning Latin nomenclature.

For Health and Safety reasons, large heads, full mounts, and any particularly heavy or awkward lots cannot be removed whilst the auction is in progress.