1. APPLICATION AND CONTRACTUAL RELATIONSHIP
1.1. By making a bid, a Bidder acknowledges his acceptance of these Conditions and
will be bound by them.
1.2. Baldwin’s of St James’s Ltd. (“Auctioneer”) act as Auction Agent for the Seller for
the sale of a Lot to the Buyer unless any of these entities is in fact the owner of the Lot.
As such, the Auction Agent is not responsible for any default by the Seller or the Buyer.
1.3. The contract for the sale of a Lot is between the Seller and the Buyer and is subject
to these Conditions and the Seller’s Conditions.
2. PRE-SALE AND DESCRIPTIONS
2.1. Statements made by us in a Catalog, during the course of the Auction or elsewhere,
describing a Lot, including its authorship, origin, age, size, condition, genuineness,
authenticity or value, are intended as a guide for interested Bidders. These are statements
of opinion only and should not be relied on as statements of fact. Illustrations of the
Lots are for general identification only.
2.2. Lots by their nature are usually aged and varied in condition. The absence of any
description of a defect, damage, modification or restoration in any Catalog does not
imply that there are none.
2.3. Coins are graded to accepted international 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.
2.4. If you are interested in a Lot, we strongly recommend that you view it in person
before the Auction and form your own opinion of the description of the Lot.
2.5. We reserve the right to change any aspect of the published description of a Lot
prior to the Auction. Any change may be published on our website, displayed at the
Auction, announced by the auctioneer prior to the sale and/or communicated in any
other manner.
2.6. All copyright in Catalogs, including images, belongs to Auctioneer.
3. ABSENTEE COMMISSION BIDS
3.1. If you are unable to attend the Auction personally, you may submit a Commission
Bid and we will endeavor to purchase the Lot on your behalf for the lowest price
possible. You must submit this in writing using the Commission Bid Form and send it
to us by post, fax or email at least 24 hours prior to the Auction.
3.2. For all Commission Bids, you must supply your name and address, contact telephone
number and email. You must also provide the Lot number and description of the Lot,
the amount of your Bid and any other information requested in the Commission Bid
Form or by us. It is your responsibility to provide the correct information and to ensure
that we have received your Commission Bid.
3.3. We do not charge for this service and therefore we will not incur any liability for
executing (or failing to execute) the Commission Bid.
3.4. If you submit a Commission Bid verbally (whether by telephone or otherwise), we
shall not be responsible for any misunderstandings (by either us or our agents or you)
in relation to your Bid. All bids made in this way must be confirmed in writing before
the Auction.
3.5. If we receive two Commission Bids for equal value for the same Lot, the Bid
received first by us shall take precedence.
3.6. “Buy” commissions and unlimited Commission Bids will not be accepted.
4. AUCTION SALE
4.1. This sale is a public auction sale conducted by licensed and bonded auctioneers.
4.2. Before the Auction, all potential Bidders must notify their name and address to
the Auctioneer and, if required, provide proof of identity to our satisfaction and bank
or other credit references. Bidders unknown to Auctioneer are requested to establish
credit or deposit 25% of the total amount of their bids before the sale. We cannot
accept bids from minors.
4.3. The highest Bidder for each Lot shall be the Buyer. If there is a dispute, the
Auctioneer shall have absolute discretion to determine the dispute including re-offering
the disputed Lot for sale. The Auctioneer reserves the right to refuse any bid he feels
is not made in good faith.
4.4. A Bidder must submit a bid for an entire Lot and each Lot constitutes a separate
sale. The Auctioneer shall, however, have absolute discretion to divide any Lot, to
combine any two or more Lots, or to withdraw any Lot from the Auction without
giving any reason (including after the hammer has fallen). Bidding shall be regulated
at the absolute discretion of the Auctioneer. The Auctioneer has the right to refuse
any bid.
4.5. All sales are final. Subject to Condition 4.4, the contract for the sale of the Lot is
concluded on the fall of the hammer.
4.6. You cannot cancel your purchase of a Lot once the hammer has fallen.
4.7. The Auctioneer reserves the right to include in any Auction its own material as
well as material from affiliated or related companies, principals, officers or employees.
The Auctioneer may have direct or indirect interests in any of the Lots in the Auction
and may collect commissions. THE TWO PRECEDING SENTENCES SHALL BE
DEEMED A PART OF THE DESCRIPTION OF ALL LOTS CONTAINED IN
THE CATALOG.
4.8. The Auctioneer may bid for its own account at any auction.
4.9. All Lots are offered for sale subject to a Reserve.
4.10. Estimates in the Catalog are not limits or reserves but reflect the actual market
prices and are intended as a guide for bidders. The actual prices realized may be higher
or lower than these valuations. The starting price will be about 80% of the estimates,
unless there are higher offers.
5. PAYMENT
5.1. The Purchase Price payable by a Buyer is the Hammer Price plus a Buyer’s Premium
of 20% of the Hammer Price. The Buyer of a lot is responsible for paying New York
sales tax, unless the Lot is exempt.
5.2. The Buyer of a Lot shall pay the Purchase Price in full before the Lot can be
delivered to the Buyer.
5.3. Except where Condition 5.2 applies, any part of the Purchase Price outstanding
after the Auction shall be payable by you within 14 days of the date of the Auction,
the due date.
5.4. The Purchase Price is payable by you in full in US funds. You are not entitled to
set-off any amounts that you claim are due from us or anyone else or make any other
deductions.
5.5. Unless we have agreed in writing otherwise, you shall act on your own account as
principal in respect of the sale and therefore if you accept a commission from a third
party to bid on their behalf, you do so at your own risk and will remain personally
liable (jointly with your principal) to us for the Purchase Price in accordance with these
Conditions.
5.6. The methods of payment and surcharges are set out below.
5.7. If the Purchase Price has not been settled within 30 days of the Auction date
interest will be charged at 2% per month from the due date of payment to the date that
cleared funds are received whether that is before or after any legal judgment. This is
without prejudice to any other rights that we have for non-payment.
5.8. If you fail to comply with your obligations under these Conditions, the Lot, in
respect of such non-compliance, may at our discretion be put up for sale at Auction or
privately and resold. In this case, you will be liable in full and will indemnify us for all
losses, costs and expenses (including attorneys’ fees and legal costs) incurred as a result,
including the costs of the resale and the amount (if any) by which the Hammer Price
obtained on the resale is less than the Hammer Price obtained on the original sale of
the Lot to the Buyer.
6. RISK, TITLE AND DELIVERY
6.1. The risk of damage/loss to the Lot will pass to the Buyer on the fall of the hammer.
Title in a Lot will not pass to the Buyer until the Purchase Price has been paid in full.
6.2. Unless agreed by us, you should collect the Lot within 7 days of the date of payment
in full. We reserve the right to charge for storage and to resell by Auction or privately
without notice to you, if a Lot is not collected. Alternatively, we will send the Lot to
you by recorded post. Postage and insurance costs will be charged as additional costs.
6.3. Except in relation to Forgeries, you must satisfy yourself that the correct Lot has
been delivered to you at the time of collection/delivery. We will not be responsible for
any discrepancy which might be discovered after the Lots have been collected. If we
have shipped the Lot to you, we will not be responsible for any discrepancies if you fail
to notify us within 24 hours of receipt.
6.4. It is the Buyer’s responsibility to obtain any necessary import, export or other
licences required in relation to a Lot.
7. GUARANTEE FOR FORGERIES
7.1. The Auctioneer is a member of the International Association of Professional
Numismatists and in accordance with the conditions of membership, shall provide
a guarantee to the Buyer for all Lots against Forgeries on the terms set out in these
Conditions (‘Guarantee’).
7.2. For the purposes of these Conditions, a ‘Forgery’ means an imitation that has been
created with the fraudulent intent to deceive in respect of the authorship, origin, date,
age, period and the correct description does not correspond with the description in
the Catalog and as a result has a value significantly less than it would have been had it
been genuine.
7.3. You must notify us in writing within one (1) month of you becoming aware that the
Lot may be a Forgery. The Lot must be returned to us in the same condition as at the
time of sale and you must submit evidence that the Lot is a Forgery, the onus being on
you to prove that it is a Forgery.
7.4. You acknowledge that:
(a) we reserve the right to re-assess the Lot or engage at our expense any expert or
authority considered by us at our sole discretion to have the necessary expertise to
undertake a re-assessment of the Lot;
(b) following our re-assessment of the Lot, you agree to be bound by our decision as
to whether or not the Lot is a Forgery.
7.5. You shall not be entitled to a refund for a Forgery if:
(a) the grounds for claiming that the Lot is a Forgery is based primarily on a difference
of opinion between us and a third party providing coin grading services;
(b) the grounds for claiming that the Lot is a Forgery is by reason of any damage and/
or restoration and/or modification work of any nature;
(c) the description of the Lot in the Catalog was in accordance with generally accepted
opinions of numismatic specialists as at the date of publication or the catalog indicated
that there was a conflict of opinion.
(d) it has been proved that the Lot is a Forgery by applying a method that was
unavailable or not generally applied within the industry of numismatics as at the date
of publication of the catalog or was disproportionately expensive, in both cases as
determined in our absolute discretion.
7.6. If we agree that the Lot is a Forgery then subject to:
(a) you being able to confirm in writing that you can transfer legal and beneficial title
to the Lot to us or as directed by us free from all encumbrances or third party claims
of any nature; and
(b) the exclusions in Condition 7.7, then the sale of the Lot will be rescinded so that it
is cancelled and we will refund the Purchase Price to you in full.
7.7. Your right to return the Lot and receive a refund of the Hammer Price under the
Guarantee is your sole remedy against us, our agents and sub-contractors and/or the
Seller for a Forgery. You will not be entitled to claim interest on the amount due to
you. Neither we, our agents or sub-contractors nor the Seller shall be liable for costs,
expenses, damages or any other liability however it arises relating to a Forgery.
7.8. In accordance with the restriction in Condition 10.2, the benefit of the Guarantee
is personal to the original Buyer and is not transferable to a new owner of the Lot or
any other person.
8. EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY AND WARRANTIES
8.1. Except where these conditions expressly state otherwise, no warranty as to
merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose is given to a buyer concerning
a lot and each lot is sold “as is” and as shown with all faults, imperfections, errors
of description (including authorship, origin, age, size, condition or value) or lack of
authenticity or genuineness and neither we nor the seller nor any of our agents or
sub-contractors will be liable for any damages, costs, expenses or any other liability
arising out of the same whether or not caused by negligence. The auction is not an
approval sale.
8.2. Except as provided in 6.3, any claims for adjustment other than authenticity must
be made in writing within seven (7) days after delivery of the goods. No Lots may be
returned without our written permission. It is the Buyer’s responsibility to have the Lots
fully insured while in his possession. Our maximum liability under these Conditions is
the amount of the Purchase Price paid by you.
8.3. Neither we nor any of our agents or sub-contractors shall be liable, whether in
tort (including negligence or breach of statutory duty), contract, misrepresentation or
otherwise:
(a) for loss of profits or business, depletion of goodwill and/or similar losses; loss of
contracts; or
(b) any special, indirect, incidental, consequential, exemplary or pure economic loss,
costs, damages, charges or expenses.
8.4. We shall not be liable to you or be deemed to be in breach of these Conditions by
reason of any delay in performing, or any failure to perform, any of our obligations
in the Conditions, if the delay or failure was due to any cause beyond our reasonable
control.
8.5. Nothing in these Conditions excludes or limits our liability for any matter which it
would be illegal for us to exclude or attempt to exclude under New York law or for our
fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation.
9. DATA PROTECTION
9.1. By agreeing to these Conditions, a Bidder acknowledges and agrees that we will use
personal information of a Bidder for the purpose of the Auction and ancillary matters,
including providing a Buyer’s personal details to any other person where necessary to
enforce our rights under these Conditions.
10. GENERAL
10.1. These Conditions and the Seller’s Conditions constitute the entire agreement
between us and supersede all other agreements, understandings, warranties and
representations concerning the subject matter hereof. All other terms, warranties and
representations, express or implied by statute or otherwise are excluded to the fullest
extent permitted by law. No variation to these Conditions shall be legally binding unless
agreed in writing by us.
10.2. All rights and benefits granted to a Bidder under these Conditions are personal to
him and may not be assigned or in any other way transferred to any other person. Any
such assignment or transfer will be invalid and unenforceable against us.
10.3. A notice required or permitted to be given by either of us to the other under these
Conditions shall, in the case of a Bidder, be to the last address notified to us and in the
case of Auctioneer, shall be to the registered office of Auctioneer.
10.4. No failure or delay by us in exercising any of our rights under these Conditions
shall be deemed to be a waiver of that right, and no waiver by us of any breach of these
Conditions by you shall be considered as a waiver of any subsequent breach of the
same or any other provision.
10.5. We may perform our obligations and exercise our respective rights through any of
our group companies or assign our rights under these Conditions.
10.6. If any provision of these Conditions is held by any court or other competent
authority to be invalid or unenforceable, in whole or in part, the validity of the other
provisions and the remainder of the provision in question shall not be affected.
10.7. These Conditions, as well as the Buyer’s and our respective rights and obligations
hereunder, shall be governed by and construed and enforced in accordance with the
laws of the State of New York. By bidding at the Auction, whether in person, by
agent, Commission Bid, telephone or other means, the Buyer shall be deemed to have
consented to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state courts of, and the federal courts
sitting in, the State of New York.
11. INTERPRETATION
11.1. In these Conditions:
‘Auction Agent’, ‘Auctioneer’, ‘us’ or ‘we’ means Baldwin’s of St James’s Ltd.;
‘Bidder’ and ‘you’ means a person making, attempting to make or considering making
a bid for a Lot including a Buyer;
‘Buyer’ means the person who makes the highest bid for a Lot which is accepted by the
auctioneer and if the person is acting as an agent, will be a reference to its principal only
if the Auction Agent has accepted the agency in writing;
‘Catalog’ means a catalog, price list or other publication or price list;
‘Commission Bid’ means an instruction from a Bidder to us to bid on their behalf
at the Auction;
‘Conditions’ means these conditions of sale and any other additional terms notified
to Bidders in writing in a Catalog or otherwise (which includes notices displayed at the
Auction) or as agreed in writing between the Auction Agent and the Bidder;
‘Hammer Price’ means the amount of the highest bid for a Lot accepted by the
auctioneer;
‘Including’ or ‘include’ mean including without limitation and include without
limitation, respectively;
‘Lot’ means any item deposited with us for sale at auction including items described
against any Lot number in a Catalog;
‘Purchase Price’ means the Hammer Price plus Buyer’s Premium and New York sales
tax, where applicable;
‘Reserve’ means a confidential price below which the Auctioneer will not sell a Lot or
will re-purchase on behalf of the Seller or for the account of the Auctioneer. Unless
otherwise specified at the time of Lot consignment, this will be set at approximately
80% of the Lot estimate at complete discretion of the auctioneer;
‘Seller’s Conditions’ means the terms and conditions of sale between Auction Agent
and a Seller for the sale of a Lot as displayed in the Auction room, on our website or
available from the Auction Agent.
11.2. Headings in these Conditions are for convenience only and shall not affect their
interpretation.