Before you bid
Buying at auction, honestly
Everything below is how it actually works, including the parts that are less convenient than we would like. The saleroom sells the lot; we list the catalogue and run the bidding. Where the answer is “it depends on the saleroom”, we say so.
What does a £100 bid actually cost me?
More than £100, always. On top of the hammer price the saleroom charges a buyer’s premium — a percentage, usually somewhere between 15% and 25%, and often with VAT on top of it. There may be a lot fee, and there may be storage or delivery.
Every sale publishes its full fee schedule before it opens, and every lot page shows what that sale charges. Read it before you bid, not after you win.
What you will not pay is a fee to us. We charge bidders nothing to register, nothing to bid and nothing to win. Some platforms add their own commission of 3% to 5% on top of everything above. We do not.
What if the item is not as described?
Tell the saleroom, quickly. They wrote the description and the contract of sale is with them, so they are who can put it right.
Auction lots are usually sold as seen, and a description is the saleroom’s honest opinion rather than a warranty — but “as seen” is not unlimited. If a lot is materially not what the catalogue said it was, most salerooms will take it back, and the reputable ones do so without an argument. Every saleroom’s own conditions of sale are published on the sale page and say what they will do.
If you cannot get anywhere with them, contact us at support@advancedauctiontechnology.com. We are not the seller and cannot overturn a sale, but we choose which auction houses list here, and how a house handles a complaint is something we want to know about.
I have won. How do I get it?
Collection is the default, and for a lot of what sells here — a car, a heavy lot — it is the only sensible option. The saleroom will tell you where and when, and there is usually a window of a few days before storage charges start.
Some houses arrange delivery, some will recommend a carrier, some do neither. The sale page says which, under the sale’s own information. Check it before you bid on something you cannot collect.
I bid by accident. Can I take it back?
Assume not. A bid is a binding offer to buy, and once it is placed the saleroom is entitled to hold you to it. That is not us being unhelpful — it is the whole basis on which an auction works, and a room where bids could be withdrawn would not function.
If you have made a genuine mistake — an extra zero, the wrong lot — contact the saleroom immediately, before the lot closes. It is their decision, and the earlier you ask the more likely it is to go your way. After the hammer it is very unlikely.
Two things that avoid it entirely: check the lot number before you confirm, and use a maximum bid rather than repeatedly bidding by hand.
What happens if I do not pay?
The saleroom can charge interest, resell the lot, and pursue you for any shortfall. They can also refuse your registration in future — and because your account works across every saleroom on The Bidding Floor, so can others.
If something has gone wrong, tell them. A saleroom that hears from you will nearly always work something out. One that does not hear from you has no reason to.
Who has my details, and who can see what I bought?
Registering creates an account with us. Registering for a sale shares your details with that saleroom, so they can vet you, invoice you and hand over the lot. Nobody else gets them.
We never publish who bought what. A lot that has sold shows the price. It does not show the buyer.
Our Privacy Policy sets out what we hold and the rights you have over it.
Something has gone wrong and I do not know who to ask
About a lot, a description, collection, payment or an invoice — the saleroom. They sold it. Their contact details are on the sale page and on their saleroom page.
About your account, signing in, registration, or the site itself — us, at support@advancedauctiontechnology.com. We answer within 2 working days.
During a live sale, when there is no time for email — [support phone].
If you want to complain about how we have handled something, we acknowledge it within 5 working days and aim to resolve it within 20 working days.
Still deciding?
How bidding works walks through registering and bidding step by step. Or go and look at what is coming up.