Buyers & Sellers

Buyers Premium

The buyer should pay the hammer price together with a premium of 18% plus VAT.

VAT Lots

† This symbol indicates that VAT is payable on the total hammer price in addition to the VAT already payable on our premium (this usually applies to Lots consigned to us from VAT registered businesses).

PAYMENT

Lots must be paid for and cleared within 7 working days of the auction. Payment of goods must have cleared before collection. Payment by cheque can take in excess of five days to clear our business account, so please allow sufficient time for this to clear.

Payment in person only can be made by cash, card or cheque. If you are NOT PRESENT payment can only be made via bank transfer, bankers draft or cheque. Account details are as follows:

Bank of Scotland, 3 Earl Grey Street, Edinburgh EH3 9BN

Account No: 00376477

Sort Code: 801194

IBAN: GB79BOFS80119400376477

BIC: BOFSGB21008

Please quote your paddle/bidder number as the reference when sending your payment

CREDIT/DEBIT CARD TRANSACTIONS

We make no surcharge for credit/debit card transactions, however please note we DO NOT accept card payments over the phone/email.

COLLECTION

Lots must be collected within 7 business days of the auction



Packing Goods

Shapes is unable to pack goods for transit. We suggest using Mailboxes Etc. tel: 0131 446 9777 or Constantine tel: 01236 750055. Packing and carriage costs must be settled by the buyer.

Storage Charge for Uncollected Lots

Goods left on our premises – whether paid for or not – for more than ten calendar days after the date of the sale will either: (i) be sent away to be stored on a commercial basis (ii) charged by us at £10 per Lot per day plus VAT. This applies to all types of object small or large.

Bidding

Bids must be left with the auction department before 5.00pm the day before the auction. Bidders must register at our office prior to the commencement of the sale to receive their individual paddle number. Please signal to the auctioneer that you are bidding by clearly raising your paddle. Visual Display – Lots are displayed on our T.V. monitors to provide a general visual guide to the sale, however, Buyers should not rely on the on-screen presentation when making bids. Buyers should always refer to the text of the catalogue when bidding. Payment is expected within 5 days of the sale and should be made by cash or credit card only if you wish to collect lots immediately. All payments by cheque must clear our bank prior to purchases being made available for collection. We expect lots to be collected within ten days of the sale, whereafter a charge of £10 + VAT per lot per day shall be payable to Shapes. The dagger symbol † after any lot indicates that VAT is payable by the purchaser in addition to the selling price.

Commission Bids

Commission Bids are accepted at the senders risk and without legal obligation. We prefer to accept bids by writing, fax or by telephone, if you cannot attend the sale in person. Email bids are acknowledged by return email, should you fail to receive an acknowledgement by 4pm on the day before the sale we suggest you contact us by telephone or fax. All commission bids should be received prior to the day of sale.

Telephone Bids

Telephone and email bids are made at the sender’s risk and should be confirmed in writing. Commission bids are carried out free of charge and lots will be bought for you as cheaply as is allowed by competing bids or reserves already on our books. Bids are subject to the Standard Conditions of Sale which are on display in the showroom and available upon request.

Online Bidding

Shapes Auctioneer offer an online bidding service via the-saleroom.com for bidders who cannot attend the sale. In completing the bidder registration on www.the-saleroom.com and providing your credit card details and unless alternative arrangements are agreed with Shapes Auctioneer you: 1. authorise Shapes Auctioneer, if they so wish, to charge the credit card given in part or full payment, including all fees, for items successfully purchased in the auction via the-saleroom.com, and 2. confirm that you are authorised to provide these credit card details to Shapes Auctioneer through www.the-saleroom.com and agree that Shapes Auctioneer are entitled to ship the goods to the card holder name and card holder address provided in fulfilment of the sale. Please note that any lots purchased via the-saleroom.com live auction service will be subject to an additional 3% commission charge + VAT at the rate imposed on the hammer price

Lots purchased online with the-saleroom.com will attract an additional charge for this service in the sum of 3% of the hammer price plus VAT at the rate imposed

Damage & Restoration

Buyers are responsible to ensure that the condition of Lots is to their satisfaction, nothwithstanding any mention of condition issues within our descriptions which is made entirely at our discretion for the benefit of buyers. We occasionally refer to damage/ restoration, however, where there is no mention of this in our descriptions this should not be taken to mean that there is none.

Condition Reports

These are made for guidance purposes only, entirely at our discretion, to provide helpful additional information for buyers unable to view the sale. All Lots are sold ‘as found’. It should not be assumed that these reports are definitive.

Attributions & Descriptions

These are given as a guide only, and in good faith to assist buyers, however, it is not possible for us to conduct exhaustive scrutiny or research on all Lots. Buyers are given ample opportunity to view and inspect Lots and must therefore satisfy themselves as to the accuracy of any description we apply to a Lot. Inevitably, our descriptions are statements of opinion, in regard to, inter alia, matters of authorship, genuineness, signatures, style, origin, date, age, provenance, condition, value and estimated selling price. Buyers are strongly recommended to consult a second opinion prior to making significant purchases for their collections particularly, in the case of paintings and the applied arts where the scope for subjective judgements is greater.

Catalogue Conventions

We recommend that Buyers ask our specialists for further and better particulars of any Lot if required. Furniture - example: “George III” - in our opinion of the period, “of George III design” (or “manner”, or “style”) - In our opinion not of the period, i.e. possibly later or reproduction. Pictures - example “George Leslie Hunter” - in our opinion a genuine work by the artist. “G.L.Hunter - Possibly in the manner or style of the artist. Catalogue attributions are not absolute guarantees of authenticity.

Artists’ Resale Rights (Driot De Suite)

A new EEC directive was established in mid February, requiring auctioneers to collect royalties on behalf of living artists each time their work is sold by auctioneers and art market professionals. This means that if you purchase a work by a living artist which sells for over 1,000 Euros or more, you are required to pay a surcharge of 4% of the hammer price to the collecting body, The Design and Artists Copyright Society (DACS). Shapes will detail this DACS payment on your invoice, ARR and pay this across to DACS. If your purchase exceeds 50,000 Euros the levy is reduced to 3%, 1% etc – tapering down as shown below. The maximum amount due shall not exceed 12,500 Euros, however high the hammer price attained, ie. this is maximum royalty an artist can earn. If you have any further queries please refer to our department or contact the DACS Helpline on 0845 410 3410. Information on the new legislation and helpful fact sheets are available on the DACS website: Web – www.dacs.org.uk Email – arr@dacs.org.uk

Condition & Validity

Buyers should inspect purchases immediately after the auction, with regard to their validity as described within our catalogue. Buyers must report to us any intention to return purchases within 21 days of the auction.

Electrical Goods

Lots which were once operated by mains electricity are offered for sale for display or historical purposes and are bought entirely at the purchaser’s risk. Any Lot with an electrical fitting must be checked by a qualified electrician before connection to the mains electrical supply. Shapes cannot accept responsibility for any contravention of this condition.

Sellers

Auctions

We offer regular Fine Antiques and Interiors sales the first Saturday of every month from 10am, with online and saleroom viewing.

Sold Lots

Commission: 18% of the hammer price plus VAT. Subject to a minimum of £2.00 per Lot. Insurance: 1.18% of the hammer price, subject to a minimum of £2.00 per Lot.

Pre-Sale Statements & Settlement Cheques

You will be sent a pre-sale statement before each sale along with your settlement cheque around 25-30 days after the sale, subject to the purchase price of your Lots being paid in full by the buyer.

Private Collections & Country House Sales

We are pleased to offer preferential terms for single owner collections in which case an individual advertising & marketing plan and commission rate structure may be devised and agreed with the client.

Our Secure In-house Carriage Service

We operate our own vehichles and removals staff. Carriage of Lots to the saleroom is charged on an “at-cost” basis.

Internet Photography

All lots are photographed for our online catalogue free of charge.

Catalogue Illustrations

A charge is made to cover photographics and production costs (which is refundable should an item fail to sell). A black and white illustration for example usually costs between £40.00 and £60.00, a colour illustration between £80.00 and £200.00.

Unsold Lots

A charge of £5.00 per Lot plus VAT is payable from sale proceeds on each unsold Lot. In the event that sale proceeds are insufficient, unsold Lot charges shall be borne by Shapes, ie. sellers are never charged a “negative amount”. Unsold Lots will be automatically re-offered in the next auction at reduced estimates/reserves, at our discretion, therefore sellers are generally not charged storage. Sellers who do not wish their Lots to be re-offered at our discretion in the next sale, should confirm their instructions to Shapes in writing indicating collection arrangements, preferably within 10 days of the auction. Unsold Lots may be sold by private treaty after the auction, usually at 10%-20% below the lower estimated figure, subject to the discretion of the auctioneer or at the level of the reserve, if one has been set.

Withdrawal Fees

To a maximum of 15% of the reserved price or lower estimate at the valuers discretion.

Portion of the sale price Royalty Rate From 0 to 50,000 Euro 4% From 50,000.01 to 200,000 Euro 3% From 200,000.01 to 350,000 Euro 1% From 350,000.01 to 500,000 Euro 0.5% Exceeding 500,000 Euro 0.25%