Ways To Bid
Buying at Burstow and Hewett
If you are interested in buying an item you have seen for sale, there are a number of ways for you to bid, depending on whether you wish to attend the sale or not.
Attending the sale
If you would like to attend the sale, you need to register at the accounts desk, where you will have to provide your contact details, and you will be issued with a bidding number. When the auction is in progress and you would like to bid on an item, clearly raise your bidding number so that the auctioneer can see you. If your bid is successful and there are no further bids the auctioneer will make a note of your bidding number, and you can then either pay for your lot and collect, or continue bidding on other lots and pay when you have finished.
Bidding over the telephone
If you cannot attend the sale in person, a facility is provided for you to bid by telephone on lots you are interested in. Telephone bids must be booked at least 1 hour before the sale commences and are subject to availability of telephone lines. On the sale day, a member of staff will telephone you a few minutes before your lot is due to be offered for sale. They will convey the bidding to you, and will give you the option to bid, which if you decide to proceed, they will convey to the auctioneer. If you decide the price is higher than you are prepared to bid, just let the representative know. If you are successful in your bidding, you will be contacted after the sale to arrange for payment and collection of your items.
Leaving an absentee bid by telephone or fax
Another way of bidding at our auctions if you are unable to attend in person is to leave an absentee bid with the auctioneers, who will then bid on your behalf, as if you were in the room, up to your maximum stated price. The auctioneer treats your bid confidentially and honestly, and will endeavour to buy the lot as cheaply as possible for you. Absentee bidding forms are avaliable on our website or at our auction rooms and should be received by the auctioneers at least 1 hour before the sale commences. Bids left after this time may not be executed. You can also phone your absentee bid through to our office. If the auctioneer receives 2 or more absentee bids for identical amounts, then the one received earliest will take preference. To check whether your absentee bid has been successful, you can phone the offices after the sale has finished. If your bid was successful you will be contacted by phone after the sale to arrange for payment and collection, and you will also receive an invoice by post. You will not be contacted if your bid was unsuccessful.
Leaving an absentee online bid
You can leave absentee bids on our website by clicking on the "add to bid list" tab beside the lot description. You will then be able to review your bid/bids before adding your contact details and submitting the form to us. As with the absentee bidding procedure described above, the auctioneer will bid on your behalf as if you were in the room, and endeavour to buy the lot for you as cheaply as possible, up to your maximum bid stated. You will receive a confirmation e-mail once we have received your bidding form. To check whether your absentee bid has been successful, you can phone or e-mail the offices after the sale has finished. If your bid was successful you will be contacted by phone after the sale to arrange for payment and collection, and you will also receive an invoice by post. You will not be contacted if your bid was unsuccessful.
Live online internet bidding
Some of our auction sales are conducted with a facility for online bidding, where you can listen in to a live audio feed from the saleroom, and if you have registered you can bid from the comfort of your home/office/beach. Online sales are conducted via www.the-saleroom.com Customers interested in bidding over the internet need to register first with the-saleroom.com, and an additional charge of 3% is made for successful bids made online.
Auction Charges
Buyer's Premium. The Conditions of Sale oblige buyers to pay a buyer's premium of 15% plus VAT on the hammer price of each Lot purchased. VAT is only charged on the buyers premium, not on the whole bid price.
Methods of Payment
-Cash
-Credit card (an additional charge of 2% will be made for payments with credit card)
-Debit card (no additional charge)
-Cheque (cheques will only be accepted by prior arrangement with the auctioneer. You may have to allow 5 days for the cheque to clear before collecting your purchases)
-Bank Transfer