St James's Auctions

Terms For Sellers

These conditions set out the terms on which St James’s Auctions Limited (10 Charles II Street, London SW1Y 4AA, company no. 7219137) contract with a seller.

1. General Conditions and Definitions

St James’s Auctions sells as agent for the seller (except where it is stated wholly or partly to own any lot as principal) and as such is not responsible for any default by seller or buyer.

These Terms and Conditions apply to the exclusion of any other terms that the seller seeks to impose or incorporate, or which are implied by trade, custom, practice or course of dealing. Any representation or statement by St James’s Auctions, in any catalogue as to authorship, attribution, genuineness, origin, date, age, provenance, condition or estimated selling price is a statement of opinion only. The estimate is not an undertaking by St James’s Auctions that the goods will be sold for this amount.

St James’s Auctions has absolute discretion without giving any reason to refuse any bid, to divide any lot, to combine any two or more lots, to withdraw any lot from the auction and in case of dispute to put up any lot for auction again. Any indemnity under these Terms and Conditions shall extend to all actions, proceedings costs, expenses, claims and demands whatever incurred or suffered by the person entitled to the benefit of the indemnity.

All notices given under these Terms and Conditions may be served personally, sent by 1st class post, or faxed to the address given to the sender by the other party. Any notice sent by post will be deemed to have been received on the second working day after posting, or if the addressee is overseas, on the fifth working day after posting. Any notice sent by fax or served personally will be deemed to be delivered on the first working day following dispatch. These Terms and Conditions and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with them or their subject matter or formation (including non-contractual disputes or claims) shall be governed by and construed in accordance with English law. Each party irrevocably agrees that the Courts of England and Wales shall have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with these Terms and Conditions or its subject matter or formation (including non-contractual disputes or claims).

2. Warranty of title and availability

The seller warrants to St James’s Auctions that he/she is the true owner of the property or is properly authorised to sell the property by the true owner, and is able to transfer goods and full title to the property free from any third party claims or encumbrances. The seller further warrants to St James’s Auctions that to the best of his knowledge and belief the goods are genuine, the description given of the goods is accurate and he/she has complied with all requirements legal or otherwise relating to any import or export of the goods and all duties and taxes in respect of the import or export of the goods have been paid.

The seller shall indemnify St James’s Auctions, its servants and agents against any loss, damage, costs and expenses (including legal and other professional fees and expenses) suffered in consequence of any breach of these Terms and Conditions on the part of the seller., any claim made against St James’s Auctions concerning the authenticity of the goods and/or any alleged or actual infringement of any third party’s Intellectual Property Right s or other rights arising out of the auction or sale of the goods.

3. Commission, VAT and expenses

The seller authorises St James’s Auctions to deduct from the hammer price commission at a rate agreed between them prior to the auction.

Commission rate: _____________________________

VAT at the appropriate rate will be charged on the commission to all UK residents, and to other EC residents who are not registered for VAT within the EC. Sellers resident outside the EC are not liable for payment of such VAT. EC resident Sellers who are registered for VAT in a country other than the United Kingdom will also be exempt from payment of such VAT provided that notification of their VAT registration is included on the St James’s Auctions’ receipt form prior to the auction. Where lots are sold using the Auctioneers’ Margin Scheme, Customs & Exercise regulations require that the seller’s commission must be charged inclusive of any VAT which may be due. Other service charges made to sellers, such as listed below, will be subject to VAT in accordance with EC VAT legislation.

Expenses: Unless otherwise agreed, the seller shall be responsible for all costs relating to: a) any fees for slabbing of lots. This would be agreed on with you in advance; b) and any Value Added Tax thereon and on commission.

The seller acknowledges St James’s Auctions’ right to retain the buyer’s premium.

4. Declining properties

St James’s Auctions may, at their discretion, decline to offer for sale any items submitted by the seller which St James’s Auctions considers not to be appropriate for their auctions, or where there is reasonable doubt as to the attribution of a lot as described in the catalogue.

5. Withdrawal

The withdrawal of any lot after it has been catalogued, equal to 15% of the estimate specified in the catalogue, or where a range has been given, 15% of the figure which is the midpoint of the range.

6. Reserves

The seller shall be entitled to place a reserve on any lot which has a minimum value of £100, being the minimum hammer price at which that lot may be treated as sold. A reserve once placed by the seller shall not be changed without the consent of St James’s Auctions. Where a reserve exceeds the published estimate St James’s Auctions may, at their discretion, withdraw the lot from sale. Where a reserve has been placed, St James’s Auctions may, on behalf of the seller, bid up to that reserve. A reserve must be received by the Auctioneers at least one week prior to the date of sale. Any unsold lots with reserves set in excess of that suggested by the management will be charged 6% of the reserve.

7. Sale Arrangements

The auction will be conducted in accordance with the terms and conditions printed at the back of the auction catalogue. The seller must comply with those procedures in addition to these Terms and Conditions. St James’s Auctions reserves the right to postpone an auction at any time. St James’s Auctions shall endeavour to reschedule the auction within a reasonable period. St James’s Auctions shall have complete discretion as to the way the goods are described and illustrated in the catalogue or any condition report; the place and manner of sale; the decision as to which persons should be admitted to the auction, and as to which bids should be accepted, and whether expert advice should be sought.

Any estimate given, orally or in writing, is a matter of opinion only and is not an assurance in relation to the price the goods will eventually achieve.

The seller may not withdraw the goods from the auction without the consent of St James’s Auctions. However, St James’s Auctions reserves the right to withdraw the goods at any time if there is any doubt as to their attribution or authenticity, or if there is any doubt as to the seller’s ownership of the goods, or if there is any doubt concerning the seller’s compliance with import or export requirements for the goods, or if the seller has not notified St James’s Auctions of any material alterations to the goods and of any concerns expressed by third parties in relation to ownership, condition or attribution of the goods, or if St James’s Auctions deems it improper to include the goods in the auction, or if there is any breach of these Terms and Conditions. If either St James’s Auctions or the seller withdraws the goods, St James’s Auctions will charge the seller a fee equal to 20% of the reserve or, if no reserve has been agreed at that time, 20% of the estimated value, together with any applicable VAT and storage, handling and administrative charges and other expenses as set out in Section 3.

8. Unsolds

The seller authorises St James’s Auctions to sell any unsold lots by private treaty following the auction, for a price equal to the agreed reserve (subject to the usual St James’s Auctions deductions such as commission and VAT). Where any lot fails to sell, St James’s Auctions shall notify the seller accordingly. The seller shall make arrangement either to re-offer the lot for sale or collect the lot and shall be responsible for the costs of the same, including costs of storage of the goods.

9. Forgeries

If within one month from the date of sale the buyer satisfies St James’s Auctions that the lot is not genuine or authentic or to have been wrongly described in any material respect then St James’s Auctions may rescind the sale and/or repay to the buyer the price paid by him for the lot. The seller agrees to reimburse St James’s Auctions for such amount paid to the buyer within 7 days of being notified under this clause 1. St James’s Auctions shall exercise a lien over any of your property under its control as security for the amount due. St James’s Auctions shall not in any circumstances whatsoever be liable for any costs, expenses or damages (whether direct, indirect, special or consequential) incurred or suffered by you in respect of any lot, whether or not as a result of any fault, imperfection, error or description or lack of genuineness or authenticity, including but not limited to loss of any kind of profit whatsoever.

10. VAT status (Business sellers)

The seller shall give us all relevant information about his/her VAT status and that of the Lot to ensure that the correct information is printed in the catalogues. This should be given to St James’s Auctions on or before the delivery of the goods.

11. Photographs and illustrations

The cost of illustration is included with the commission. However, St James’s Auctions reserves the right to photograph and illustrate any lot placed in its hands for sale and to use such photographs and illustrations and any photographs and illustrations provided by the seller at any time at its discretion (whether or not in connection with the auction).

12. Title, Risk and Insurance

Title to the goods is retained by the seller until the purchase price and all other sums payable by the buyer in relation to the goods have been paid in full cleared funds to St James’s Auctions. At this point title will transfer from the seller to the buyer. All items delivered to St James’s Auctions for auction shall be covered by St James’s Auctions’ insurance. The value of such goods shall be the amount realised at the auction net of St James’s Auctions usual charges, or if loss or damage should occur prior to auction, the value of which specialised staff of St James’s Auctions estimate to be the value of such goods net of all charges had a sale occurred.

St James’s Auctions’ liability commences from the time of handing over the lots to St James’s Auctions or from the time of despatch by the seller or the seller’s agents to St James’s Auctions, subject to packing and despatch being performed by professional fine art carriers acting under the instruction of St James’s Auctions, and shall cease on collection of the lots by the buyer or at the end of the seventh day after the auction, whichever is sooner. If the lots have not been sold, the lots will be at the seller’s risk on your collection of the lots or at the end of the seventh day after the auction, whichever is sooner.

Claims are limited to the amount of any reserve price or to the hammer price if sold less any selling commission (sold or unsold as applicable) and other costs deductible.

If the seller instructs St James’s Auctions not to include the goods under St James’s Auctions’ insurance cover, it will remain at the seller’s risk at all times until the buyer has made payment in full. The seller will indemnify St James’s Auctions and its employees and agents, where demand for any expenses St James’s Auctions or they are found to have been negligent even where such reimbursement is required of a payment made without any legal liability being proved. The seller should notify their insurers of these terms.

13. Liability

Nothing in these Terms and Conditions limits or excludes St James’s Auctions’ liability for death and personal injury resulting from negligence; or any damage or liability incurred by the seller as a result of fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation.

14. Settlement

Settlement will be made by means of a payee cheque drawn in Sterling on an account at Allied Irish Bank, unless agreed otherwise.

Settlement will be made one calendar month from the date of sale, however if by that date St James’s Auctions has not received the full amount from the buyer then St James’s Auctions will remit the sale proceeds within five working days after the date on which the full amount is received from the buyer. If the buyer fails to pay the full amount within 35 days after the date of auction, St James’s Auctions shall be entitled to agree special terms on your behalf for payment, storage and insurance, and to take any steps considered necessary to collect the amount due from the buyer. However, St James’s Auctions shall not be obliged to remit the price due to the seller, nor to take any legal proceedings on his/her behalf.

Terms For Buyers

St. James’s Auctions Limited [the Company] is a division of Knightsbridge Coins. The Company acts as agent for the seller. Sales made by the Company at public auction are sales made on behalf of the seller.
The buyer of any lot will be the highest bidder. In the event of any dispute, the auctioneer shall have absolute discretion to settle the dispute as he thinks best; this may mean re-offering the lot for sale.
The auctioneer shall have absolute discretion to divide any lot, combine two or more lots or withdraw any lot or lots without giving any reason. In the case of a dispute, he may re-offer a lot for sale. The auctioneer also has the right to refuse any bid or bids without giving a reason.
The Company and auctioneer shall have absolute discretion to refuse admission to their premises or attendance at their auction of any person they deem unsuitable, without giving any reason for, or prior notice of, their action.
The minimum increment between bids will normally be 5%. The auctioneer has the right to refuse any bid which is not in line with this increase. He also has absolute discretion to vary this increment as he sees fit
All lots sold in auctions held in the UK (*except Argentum Auctions, please see note below*) are subject to a Buyer’s Premium of 20.00%, (plus VAT if the buyer is resident in the UK or the lots are collected in the UK (Total 24.00%)). All lots sold in auctions held in Hong Kong are subject to a buyers premium of 24%. Argentum Auctions have a Buyers premium charged at 24% plus VAT. The symbol ‘G’ appearing next to a lot in this catalogue indicates the item is ‘Investment Gold’ and therefore a VAT-registered trader can submit a claim to HM Revenue and Customs to recover the VAT element of the Buyer’s Premium. In the case of a lot marked with a dagger (†), import VAT at 5% will be added to the hammer price and will be payable by the buyer if resident in the EU.
Each bidder shall be deemed to act as principal unless the Company acknowledges in writing prior to the auction that he acts as agent for a named third-party principal. For bidders unable to attend the auction in person, commissions will be executed free-of-charge. Such bids must be written and must be received at least 24 hours before the sale begins. The Company cannot guarantee to execute bids received less than 24 hours before the sale. ‘Buy’ bids will not be accepted. The Company shall not be liable for any errors or omissions in executing such commissions.
All buyers must, if requested, notify their name and address to the auctioneer and, if required, provide additional proof of identification, bank references or other credit references. All buyers must pay the full purchase price, at the point of collection of purchases, or a fractional deposit as may be determined at the auctioneer’s discretion, unless the Company has previously arranged credit terms. Seven working days must be allowed for clearance of personal cheques before delivery can be made unless a prior agreement has been reached.
Ownership of lots does not pass to the buyer until the Company has received payment in full.
All lots, however, are held to be at the buyer’s risk from the fall of the hammer. All lots shall be removed by the buyer within seven working days after the date of the sale. Any lots not so removed may become liable to removal, insurance and storage charges. Such lots may, at the auctioneer’s discretion, be re-offered for sale at auction or by private treaty without further notice to the buyer.
All lots are offered for sale subject to any reserve price that may be imposed by the seller. The seller may not subsequently change the reserve without the agreement of the Company. Where a reserve has been set, only the auctioneer may bid on behalf of the seller. Lots are normally reserved at 80% of lower estimate, with auctioneer’s discretion. Unless re-offered for sale, the collection of unsold lots shall be the responsibility of the seller.
1. Lots are sold as shown with all faults, imperfections and errors of description and lack of authenticity. The Sale of Goods Act 1979 does not apply to the sale of any lot. Neither the Company nor the seller shall give any warranty to any buyer in respect of any lot or be liable for any fault or error of description or lack of genuineness or authenticity of any lot. All statements as to items sold, whether made in catalogues, during the course of the auction or otherwise, are statements of opinion only and are not and shall not be taken to be statements or representations of fact. The Company reserves the right in forming their opinion to consult and rely upon any expert or authority considered by them to be reliable. Coins are graded to accepted UK standards to the best ability of our specialists. You acknowledge that the grading of coins is subjective and may vary from specialist to specialist, as the process is by nature an art and not a science. For this reason, we do not automatically accept and are not bound by the opinions of third party coin grading services for any purposes including before and after the sale of a lot.
2. Refund policy – notwithstanding the foregoing, if any lot should be proved by the buyer to be not genuine or authentic, or to have been wrongly described in any material respect, the buyer may reject the same provided that he has given notice in writing of his intention so to do and shall have returned the same to the Company within one month from, and in the same condition as at, the date of sale. If the coin was in a plastic holder at the time of sale, we cannot accept its return if it has been removed from that holder. The onus of proving a lot to be not genuine or authentic or to have been wrongly described shall lie with the buyer. Proof of the inability of any recognised expert or authority to express a definite opinion shall not discharge such onus. If the buyer shall discharge such onus, the auctioneers shall rescind the sale and repay to the buyer the price paid by him. Save as provided herein, the Company shall not under any circumstances whatsoever be liable for any costs, expenses or damages (whether direct, indirect, special or consequential) incurred or suffered by the buyer in respect of any lot, whether or not as a result of any fault, imperfection, error or description or lack of genuineness or authenticity, including but not limited to loss of any kind of profit whatsoever. The buyer will not be entitled to claim interest on the amount due to him. The buyer shall not be entitled to a refund for any lot for any reason save as set out in this clause 12(b).
Save as provided in the preceding paragraph of these conditions buyers must satisfy themselves as to the accuracy of their purchases at the time of delivery. The Company cannot be held responsible for any discrepancy which might be discovered after the lots have been removed from either the auction room or the auctioneers’ premises.
As stated in paragraph (1), the Company acts solely as agent between buyer and seller and shall not be held responsible for any default by either party or for any action or claim that may arise in connection with any lot.
Any part of the purchase price still outstanding after the auction, in line with the terms of paragraph (8), shall be paid in full within thirty days of the date of the auction. Without prejudice to any other rights, the Company reserves the right to charge interest on any overdue payment at a rate of three per cent per month. In the event that the company shall have paid the seller (normally 35 days after the sale) and part of the purchase price is still outstanding, title to the lot will pass to the Company. The Company shall then have the right to sell any other goods belonging to the buyer and held by the Company for whatever reason at such a price that the company, in its absolute discretion, thinks fit. The buyer shall also reimburse the Company for any additional costs incurred in this process.
Buyers accepting commissions from third parties do so at their own risk. They remain responsible to the Company for full settlement according to these conditions.
Privacy Policy – We may collect and process information you give to us such as your name, address and references. We will use this information to carry out our obligations arising from any contracts entered into between you and us and to provide you with the information, products and services that you request from us or that we offer. We may share your personal information with any member of our group, which means our subsidiaries, our ultimate holding company and its subsidiaries, as defined in section 1159 of the UK Companies Act 2006. We may share your information with selected third parties including: business partners, advertisers and analytics. We may disclose your personal information to third parties in the event we sell or buy any business or assets in which case we may disclose your personal data to the prospective seller or buyer or such business or assets or if we are under a duty to disclosure or share your personal data in order to comply with any legal obligation or in order to enforce or apply our terms of use. You have the right to ask us not to process your personal data for marketing purposes.
By making a bid, the buyer acknowledges his acceptance of these conditions and agrees to be bound by them.
If any buyer fails to comply with any of these Conditions, the lot or lots in respect of which the failure is made may at the discretion of the Company be put up again and resold. The damages recoverable from the defaulting buyer shall include, but not be limited to, the auctioneers’ expenses and commission in respect of the resale and the amount (if any) by which the price obtained on the resale is exceeded by that obtained on the first sale.
A variation of these Conditions shall only be binding on the Company and the seller if it is made in writing and signed by a duly authorised representative of the Company.
These Conditions shall take effect and be construed in accordance with the provisions of English law.