Terms & Conditions

Sellers Terms and Conditions

Interpretation:  In these Terms the words ‘you’, ‘yours’, etc. refer to the Seller, and if the consignment of goods to us is made by an agent, we assume that the Seller has authorised the consignment and that the consignor has the Seller’s authority to contract. Similarly, the words ‘we’, ‘us’, etc. refer to the Auctioneers.

Commission:  Commission is charged to sellers at the following rates: 20% + VAT of the hammer price.  Loss and damage warranty is charged at 1.5% + VAT of hammer price.

Removal Costs:  Items for sale must be consigned by any stated deadline and at your expense. We may be able to assist you with this process, but any liability incurred to a carrier for haulage charges is solely your responsibility.

Loss and Damage of Goods

(a) Loss and Damage Warranty - Tyne Valley Auctions is not authorised by the FSA to provide insurance to its clients and does not do so. However, Tyne Valley Auctions, for its own protection, assumes liability for property consigned to it at the lower pre-sale estimate until the hammer falls. This cost is included in clause.

(b) The liability assumed by Tyne Valley Auctions shall be limited to the lower pre-sale estimate or the hammer price if the lot is sold. These Conditions of Sale and Business constitute the contract between Tyne Valley Auctions (the “Auctioneer”) and the seller, on the one hand, and the buyer on the other. By bidding and/or selling at the auction, you agree to be bound by these terms. 

(c) If the owner of the goods consigned instructs us in writing not to take such action, the goods then remain entirely at the owners risk unless and until the property in them passes to the Buyer or they are collected by or on behalf of the owner, and clause (a) is inapplicable.

Illustrations:  The cost of any illustrations is included in the Commission clause. All lots are illustrated online but the presence of an illustration in any printed catalogue is at our discretion. The copyright in respect of such illustrations shall be the property of us, the auctioneers, as is the text of the catalogue.

Minimum bids and our Discretion:  Goods may be offered subject to a reserve agreed between us before the sale in accordance with Reserves Clause.  Reserves are discretionary, unless we are otherwise instructed by the Seller. We may sell Lots below the reserve, provided we account to you for the same sale proceeds as you would have received had the reserve been the hammer price.

Reserves:  All reserves are subject to 10% auctioneer’s discretion unless otherwise requested with the approval of the auctioneer. Reserves must be reasonable, and we may decline to offer goods, which in our opinion would be subject to an unreasonably high reserve.

Electrical Items:  These are subject to detailed statutory safety controls. Where such items are accepted for sale, you accept responsibility for the cost of testing, of £5+VAT per item. Goods not certified as safe by our electrician (unless antiques) will not be accepted for sale. 

Soft Furnishings:  The sale of soft furnishings is strictly regulated by statute law in the interests of fire safety. Goods found to infringe safety regulations will not be accepted for sale.  

Descriptions:  Please assist us with accurate information as to the provenance etc. of goods, where this is relevant. There is strict liability for the accuracy of descriptions under modern consumer legislation, and in some circumstances, responsibility lies with sellers if inaccuracies occur. We will assume that you have approved the catalogue description of your lots unless we are informed to the contrary. Where we are obliged to return the price to the buyer when the lot is a deliberate forgery and we have accounted to you for the proceeds of sale, you agree to reimburse us the sale proceeds.

Unsold Items:  We require immediate instruction regarding how to proceed with unsold lots. Where in our opinion an item is unsaleable, you must collect such items from our saleroom promptly on being so informed, otherwise, storage charges may be incurred. We reserve the right to charge for storage in these circumstances at a reasonable daily rate. Where an item fails to sell without reserve, permission will be asked to dispose of the lot; prompt agreement to dispose or collection arrangements must be made within five days of being notified.

Payment currently is only available by bank transfer, and should be sent to:  Cooperative Bank Account name: Partner-Ships (NE) Ltd, 

Sort code 08-92-99, Account number: 69742354. 

Withdrawn Items:  These are liable to incur a charge of 15% of the lower estimate plus VAT, on being withdrawn after being catalogued.

Conditions of Sale:  You agree that all goods will be sold on our Conditions of Sale. In particular you undertake that you have the right to sell the goods either as owner or agent for the owner. You undertake to compensate us and any buyer or third party for all losses liabilities and expenses incurred in respect of and as a result of any breach of this undertaking. We will also, at our discretion, and as far as practicable, confirm that an item consigned for sale does not appear on the Art Loss register, which is administered by an independent third party.

Authority to deduct commission and expenses and retain premium and interest: 

(a) You authorise us to deduct commission at the stated rate and all expenses incurred for your account from the hammer price, and consent to our right to retain beneficially the premium paid by the buyer in accordance with our Conditions of Sale and any interest earned on the sale proceeds until the date of settlement. 

(b) You authorise us in our discretion to negotiate a sale by private treaty not later than the close of business five working days after the day of sale, in the case of lots unsold at auction, in which case the same charges will be payable as if such lots had been sold at auction and so far as appropriate these Terms apply.

Warehousing:  We disclaim all liability for goods delivered to our saleroom without sufficient sale instructions and reserve the right to make minimum warehousing charge of £5 + VAT per lot, per day. Unsold lots are subject to the same charges if you do not remove them within a reasonable time of notification. If not removed within three weeks, we reserve the right to sell them and defray charges from any net proceeds of sale, or at your expense to consign them to the local authority for disposal.

Settlement:  After-sale settlement of the net sum due to you normally takes place within 10 working days of the sale, unless the buyer has not paid for the goods. In this case no settlement will then be made, but we will take your instructions in the light of our Conditions of Sale. You authorise any sums owed by you to us on other transactions to be deducted from the sale proceeds. You must note the liability to reimburse the proceeds of sale to us as under the circumstances provided for in the Descriptions clause above. You should therefore bear this potential liability in mind before parting with the proceeds of sale, until the expiry of 28 days from the date of sale.