Buying

Notes For Buyers

Condition Reports

We will be pleased to give condition reports on any of the lots in the sale. All weights and measures given in the catalogue are deemed to be approximate and colours printed in the catalogue are correct to the best of our ability.

Clients are advised that where possible all items in the sale should be viewed in situ.

Buyer's Premium

A buyer's premium of 25% plus VAT will be added to all lots that that are sold on the first £50,000 of the hammer price and at 10% plus VAT thereafter.

Different methods of bidding at our auctions:

Registering to bid with us

Persons wishing to participate and bid in the auction who are not previously known to us will need to register. Bidding is by number, to help preserve anonymity and on registering with us you will be given a personal bidding number for use in the sale.

To register with us we will ask you for the following:
A current passport or photographic driving license.
Or
A reference from an auction house that you have purchased items from recently.

You can register:

• In person at the main office
• By telephoning the office +44 (0) 1308 420100
• By emailing mailto:[email protected]

You will either be asked to show your documents or to email or fax copies to us.
Once registered with us you will be able to bid with us using one of the four following methods.

Bidding in person in the room
Simply execute your bid(s) using the number that you obtained on registering.

Commission Bidding
Once registered, if you are unable to attend the sale in person you can leave a commission bid with us using your registered number. We will do our best to purchase the lot(s) for you as cheaply as possible bearing in mind other bids and reserve prices.

Telephone Bidding
Once registered, it is possible, by prior arrangement with the office, to bid on the telephone on lots with a low estimate of more than £200.

Droit de Suite/ (the) Artists Resale Right

This is a royalty payable to a qualifying (living) artist or his/her heir's every time a work is sold or resold during the artist's lifetime and for up to a period of 70 years following the artist's death.
The royalties payable are calculated on a sliding percentage scale based on the hammer price of the lot(s) sold. The royalty only applies to lots which sell for in excess of 1,000 euros and the maximum royalty payable on any single lot is 12,500 euros.
This royalty, which will be calculated on the exchange rate of the day of sale, is not subject to VAT.
Below is a table of the sliding scale of percentage charges (in euros):

• 4% up to €50,000
• 3% €50,000.01 - €200,000
• 1% €200,000.01 - €350,000
• 0.5% €350,000.01 - €500,000
• 0.25% In excess of €500,000

VAT

Lots marked with an omega (Ω) are subject to VAT on the hammer price.

Payment and Clearance

Payment is due in pounds sterling immediately after the auction. Where practical and upon clearance of payment purchased lots may be collected by the buyer during the auction. Payments for purchases from The Saleroom will be taken 3 days following the sale day unless an alternatve method of payment is agreed in advance of the sale.

We accept payment by:

• Cash - up to £5,000
• Cheque made payable to “Busby”. Cheques must be cleared before any goods can be removed.
• Debit card payments up to £5,000
• Credit card. Payments by credit card are no longer accepted.
• Note; card payments made where the card holder is not present will not normally be accepted for amounts in excess of £500.
• Bank transfer to:
  Sort Code: 30-92-69
  Account Number: 34156168
  IBAN Number: GB36 LOYD 3092 6934 1561 68
  BIC Number: LOYDGB21525

Sale Result

A list of sale results will be posted on our website shortly after the sale.

Collection of Purchased Items

Please be aware that purchased items such as furniture, clocks and other large, unwieldy objects will remain in the saleroom and be available for collection up to 3 working days after the sale. Unless prior arrangements are made with the auctioneer goods not collected will be subject to storage charges of £5 (plus VAT) per week, or part thereof. Items will not be released until such accruing charges have been paid.

If any Lot is not paid for in full and taken away in accordance with these conditions we shall at our absolute discretion, and without prejudice to any other rights we may have been entitled to, exercise one or more of the following rights and remedies:

1. To proceed against you for damages for breach of contract;
2. To rescind the sale of that Lot and/or any other Lots sold by us to you;
3. To resell the Lots (by auction or private treaty) if the Lots are not collected within seven days of the date of the sale at our discretion and any surplus so arising shall belong to the vendor after any costs of sale, handling and storage costs upto the next suitable sale;
4. To remove, store and insure the Lot at your expense and, in the case of storage, either at our premises or elsewhere;
5. To charge interest at a rate not exceeding 1.5% per month on the total amount due to the extent it remains unpaid for more than 3 working days after the sale;
6. To retain that or any other Lot sold to you until you pay the total amount due;
7. To apply any proceeds of sale of other Lots due or in future becoming due to you towards the settlement of the total amount due and to exercise a lien (that is a right to retain possession of) any of your property in our possession for any purpose until the debt due its satisfied.

Packing and Shipping

Busby provide an in house packing service where possible for items that will fit in a jiffy bag or a small box, with a charge of £12.50 + VAT, plus the cost of postage (usually Royal Mail Special Delivery 1pm or Parcelforce). We do not post very large or fragile shipments but have recommendations below. We do not post items outside of the UK. Please note that although every effort is taken to ensure items are safe, we cannot accept liability for goods damaged in transit.