HOW TO SELL WITH H&H
Naturally whether you are contemplating selling a single item or a lifetime's collection you want to achieve the best possible price within the shortest reasonable timeframe. As agents working on commission it behoves us to maximise your return in as efficient a manner as possible. H&H is not a general auction house but specialises in the sale of motor cars, motorcycles, bicycles, automobilia and registration numbers (though, we have sold the occasional aeroplane and boat too).
Click here to download an entry form
Here are some of the more common questions that we have been asked with regard to the sales process:
What Do You Want to Know About My Entry and its History?
Is There Anything I Can Do to Help the Final Sale Price?
Can I Set a Reserve Price?
Can I Set a Reserve Price on my Automobilia?
What Are Your Charges and How Does What the Auction House Charge Affect Me?
When Will I Get Paid?
Will I Get a Top Price For My Entry Though?
When Can I Deliver My Entry?
Will You Still Accept My Entry if it Has Been Accidently Damaged or if I Owe Money to a Finance Company?
What Else Do I Need to Know?
How Can I Get Further Information?
Prospective vendors are also respectfully advised to read the Terms and Conditions of Sale printed on the entry form carefully before consigning any lot as they form the terms of your contract with us.
What do you want to know about my entry and its history?
Ownership History: How long have you owned the item and what do you know about its prior history? Is there an interesting and verifiable provenance associated with the potential lot?
Condition: What are the item’s ‘plus’ and ‘minus’ points? Looking at the potential lot with fresh eyes as if you were about to purchase it for the first time – what do you see?
Balance: Try and be as objective as possible. An overly generous assessment of an item’s condition might draw potential purchasers to the sale but it is also likely to act as an instant ‘turn off’ once they get there.
Maintenance / Restoration: Has the item ever been restored and if so when and by whom? What sort of maintenance / usage has it received during your ownership?
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Is there anything I can do to help the final sale price?
Cleaning & Preparation: Of course it is as much in our interest as it is in yours that the lots we offer for sale are presented to best advantage. To this end, we have a team of valeters in place on the sale set-up and view days that are tasked with removing excess road dirt and giving vehicles a final coat of polish where applicable. However, they have a strict schedule to work to so any preparation work carried out beforehand is advantageous (e.g. a wash and polish, vacuuming the interior, tidying the engine bay, cleaning the wheels etc).
Levels Check: A quick check to ensure that oil and coolant levels are within limits and tyres properly inflated is always worthwhile.
Paperwork: If your vehicle has a lot of paperwork then try and put it in some kind of order and perhaps present it in a folder or ring binder. It is imperative that any paperwork mentioned on the entry form accompanies the vehicle to the sale (the same applies to spare parts). Even if your vehicle has very little paperwork it is well worth submitting a handwritten or typed account of any work that you or others have done to it.
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The short answer is yes. However, we ask that the reserve price takes into account the absolute bare minimum you are prepared to accept for your vehicle. Thus, the reserve price should not be a figure at which you are happy to sell but rather one at which you are resigned to sell. It is perhaps worth bearing in mind that because we work on commission we want your item to make as much money as possible.
The reserve price is kept confidential between client and auction house but has a bearing on the estimated price listed in the catalogue and on our website. From our experience, a very sensible reserve price allows a tempting estimated price to be placed on a lot which in turn attracts a good number of bidders.
If you require advice on values please do not hesitate to contact us and please remember that we do operate a system of provisional bids, which means that we shall submit any offer made for your acceptance or rejection.
Can I set a Reserve Price on my Automobilia?
Reserves are only accepted on Automobilia lots which are deemed likely to exceed a certain value threshold. Please contact the department for further details.
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Full details of our fees are outlined on the Charges page but briefly put every lot consigned to our auctions is subject to an entry fee, while a vendor’s commission is charged on the hammer price achieved on a successful sale. The entry fee is payable whether or not a lot sells but ensures that it is included in our printed and online catalogues (though, those lots entered once a catalogue’s print deadline has passed will be featured on our website only). All charges levied by H&H are subject to VAT unless otherwise stated.
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For Motor Cars, Motorcycles and Bicycles we normally despatch successful sale proceeds on the eighth working day after an auction, while Automobilia sale proceeds are usually sent out on the ninth working day after an auction.
Understandably, we only despatch successful sale proceeds once we have received cleared funds from the purchaser. If there is a delay in payment which upsets the timetable outlined above then you will be kept informed (e.g. we have clients all over the world and very occasionally a money transfer can become held up). Items are not released to purchasers until payment has been met in full.
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We advertise in a variety of UK, US and European specialist motoring magazines and also promote our auctions via several high-traffic websites not to mention club newsletters etc. Our own website is one of the most popular in the industry and our client database houses over 45,000 records worldwide.
Numbers vary but we have had crowds of over 2,000 attend our sales and enjoy a strong following both nationally and internationally. We have made it our business to try and forge links with the world’s foremost collectors, museums, institutions and dealers but also do our best to welcome newcomers to the market.
Our printed auction catalogues are beautifully presented and posted / couriered to dozens of countries. However, their circulation is dwarfed by our online auction catalogues which provide full descriptions and photographs 24 hours a day, seven days a week in the lead up to a sale.
For what we charge we believe our marketing reach to be unrivalled. H&H has been fortunate enough to set numerous world auction record prices over recent years. Why not see whether your item could be one of them?
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Please arrange for your vehicle(s) to be delivered to the auction site two days (typically a Monday) prior to the sale between 9am and 5pm - entries will not be accepted on the day of the sale. Automobilia should be delivered to the office at least a calendar month before the auction via prior arrangement with the department. If you need help with transportation please do not hesitate to contact the office and we will be only too pleased to help.
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We reserve the right to reject any motor vehicle that is listed on the alert register as having been accident damaged or written off by an Insurance Company. Special dispensations are available for vehicles which have been repaired using a replacement bodyshell, chassis or frame (please contact us for clarification on this point).
If the failure to declare that a motor vehicle is listed on the alert register as having been accident damaged or written off by an Insurance Company results in the loss of a sale then the seller will be liable for our costs and commissions (see Condition 1.3 in our Terms and Conditions).
Where a financial encumbrance is outstanding this can be settled by us, providing the outstanding amount is less than the sale proceeds. However, there will be an administration charge for this service of £75 + VAT.
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Please note that road registered vehicles are not accepted without the current logbook or V5C registration document. If this is to follow please be aware that no payment will be made until we receive the logbook or indeed any other documentation or items that have been sold with the vehicle.
We will accept ‘barn find’ vehicles and others which have been off the road (or not registered / unlicensed) for years subject to sufficient proof of ownership. The same criteria will be applied to competition machinery.
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We look forward to being of service to you be it now or in the future. If you have any questions at all then please do not hesitate to contact us and we will do our best to answer them.
TEL: 08458 334455 (UK) / +44 1925 210035 (Non UK)
FAX: 08458 334433 (UK) / +44 1925 730830 (Non UK)
E-mail: info@handh.co.uk
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