Terms and Conditions

(1) Definitions and interpretation

To make our Terms of Consignment and Terms of Sale easier to read, we have given the following words a specific meaning:

“Auctioneer”	means Halls Holdings Ltd, a company registered in England and Wales with registration number 06597073 and whose registered office is located at Halls Holdings House, Bowmen Way, Battlefield, Shrewsbury, SY4 3DR, or its authorised auctioneer, as appropriate;
“Bidder”	means a person who places a bid for Goods at our auction;
“Buyer”	means the person who makes the highest bid for the Goods accepted by the Auctioneer;
“Commission”	means the commission that we charge you on the sale of the Goods as set out in Clause ‎5 below (terms of sale?);
“Consumer”	means an individual acting for purposes which are wholly or mainly outside that individual’s trade, business, craft or profession;
“Consumer Contracts Regulations”	means the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013;
“Deliberate Forgery”	means: (a) an imitation made with the intention of deceiving as to authorship, origin, date, age, period, culture or source; (b) which is described in the catalogue as being the work of a particular creator without qualification; and (c) which at the date of the auction had a value materially less than it would have had if it had been as described;
“FCA”	means the Financial Conduct Authority;
“Goods”	means the goods that you consign to us for sale at our auction;
“Lot(s)” “Money Laundering Regulations”	means the goods that we offer for sale at our auctions; means the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017, as amended;
“Premium”	means the premium that we will charge you on your purchase of a Lot to be calculated as set out in Clause 4 (terms of sale);
“Price”	means the total of the Hammer Price, Premium and any applicable VAT;
“Reserve”	means the minimum hammer price at which the Goods may be sold; which cannot be higher than the lower estimate.
“Sale Proceeds”	means the net amount due to the Seller;
“Seller”	means the owner of the Goods and any agent who consigns the Goods for sale on the owner’s behalf (if applicable);
“Terms of Consignment”	means the terms on which we agree to offer Lots for sale in our auctions as agent on behalf of Sellers;
“Terms of Sale”	means the terms of sale for bidders or buyers at our auctions; as amended or updated from time to time
“Total Amount Due”	means the Hammer Price for a Lot, the Premium, any applicable artist’s resale right royalty, any VAT due and any additional charges payable by a defaulting buyer under these Terms of Sale;
“Trader”	means a Seller who is acting for purposes relating to that Seller’s trade, business, craft or profession, whether acting personally or through another person acting in the trader’s name or on the trader’s behalf;
“VAT”	means Value Added Tax or any equivalent sales tax; and
“Website”	means our website available at https://fineart.hallsgb.com

(2) Notice for Bidders

Introduction. The following notes are intended to assist bidders and buyers, particularly those that are inexperienced or new to our salerooms. All of our auctions are governed by our Conditions of Business incorporating the Terms of Consignment (primarily applicable to sellers), the Terms of Sale (primarily applicable to bidders and buyers) and any notices that are displayed in our salerooms or announced by the auctioneer at the auction. Our Conditions of Business are available for inspection at our salerooms and the Terms of Sale are printed in the back of our auction catalogues. Our staff will be happy to help you if there is anything in our Conditions of Business that you do not fully understand.

Please make sure that you read our Terms of Sale set out in this catalogue, our online catalogue, on our website, or in our salerooms carefully before bidding in the auction. If your bid is successful, you will be obliged to comply with our Terms of Sale.

Agency.As auctioneers we usually act on behalf of the Seller whose identity, for reasons of confidentiality, is not normally disclosed. If you buy at auction your contract for the goods is with the seller, not with us as auctioneer. Our role, as auctioneers, is solely in and for the Seller’s interests. It is our strong advice that bidders and buyers seek and get independent advice about Lots and their values, where they are beyond the expertise of the Bidder/Buyer. Halls and its staff act only as agent for the vendor and do not act for, nor give advice to Bidders or Buyers. When Halls provides a condition report on, or makes a statement, or representation about a Lot(s), it is made on behalf of the Seller and not on Halls’ behalf, unless Halls is the principal. Any contract for sale is between the vendor and Buyer and not with Halls. Halls does not undertake, or owe any duty or responsibility to the Bidder in tort or contract (be it implied, direct or otherwise). If you, as Bidder are successful and buy the Lot(s) Halls enters into an agreement with you, the Buyer. The terms for this agreement are in section 3 below, the terms of sale, which governs the relationship between the Buyer and Halls.
Estimates and Descriptions of Lots.

Estimates are designed to help you gauge what sort of sum might be involved for the purchase of a particular lot. Estimates may change and should not be thought of as the sale price. The lower estimate may represent the reserve price (the minimum price for which a lot may be sold) and will not be below the reserve price. Estimates do not include the buyer’s premium or VAT (where chargeable). Estimates are prepared some time before the auction and may be altered by a saleroom notice or announcement by the auctioneer before the auction of the lot. They are not definitive. Estimates are only Halls’ opinion, given on behalf of the Seller and are bands within which Halls thinks the Lot will sell. It is Not an estimate of value.

Descriptions. The first line of a cataloguing description (in bold letters) and any illustration of the Lot (save for the colour, which may not be accurately presented) is sold by the seller to the Buyer as corresponding to the Lot in the catalogue. The remaining catalogue description (not in bold) is the opinion of Halls (provided on behalf of the vendor) about the Lot and does not form part of the contractual description of the Lot, in agreement with which the lot is sold by the seller. Lots are sold with all imperfections and faults and photographs in the catalogue, or elsewhere, of the Lots may not be a true representation of the colour and condition of the Lot. It is for the Bidder to be satisfied about every aspect of a Lot, included, but not limited to, size, condition, quality, attribution, origin, authenticity, age and value. It must be borne in mind that the real condition of a Lot may not be as good as that depicted in its photograph, or as seen physically. This is because elements of a Lot may have been replaced, or Lots may not be of satisfactory quality, or interiors and carcases may not be visible and might be damaged, or not original, such as upholstered furniture, or furniture that is covered in fabric.

Condition Reports. Condition reports can be requested on the majority of lots. This is a service provided by Halls Holdings Ltd, on behalf of the vendor, free of charge. Given this is provided additionally and free of charge, Halls Holdings Ltd is not forming a contract concerning the condition report with the person making the request for this condition report and so does not have responsibility to this person in respect of it. The condition report is Halls Holdings Ltd reasonable appraisal and opinion of the lot’s general condition, in terms stated in the relevant report and Halls Holdings Ltd does not guarantee, or represent that a condition report covers all defects, damage, or blemishes of a lot, internally or externally. Neither does the vendor owe the Bidder, or Buyer, any duty or obligation relating to this free report about a lot, which is available for the person requesting the report for physical inspection, or for inspection by a third party instructed by this person. WE STRONGLY ADVISE YOU TO PHYSICALLY INSPECT THE LOT(S), WHICH IS AVAILABLE FOR VIEWING, OR BEFORE THE SALE TO HAVE IT INSPECTED ON YOUR BEHALF.
Amendments. Estimates and descriptions might be amended by Halls Holdings Ltd at their discretion and may be made by notice, given in writing, or verbally before or during the sale.
Conduct of the sale. Halls Holding Ltd’s sales are public auctions, which the general public may attend and we would encourage people to take the opportunity to do so. We reserve the right to refuse admission to our salerooms and offices, our premises, or to any sale, and to remove anyone from our premises, or sales, without giving a reason. This is done at our sole discretion. We have complete discretion about whether to continue with a sale and, accordingly can stop a sale at our discretion. We have complete discretion whether a lot, or lots, is/are included, how we conduct the sale and we can offer the lots in any order that we choose. All parties must check the time the sale starts and the date of the sale and if there have been any withdrawn lots, or late entries. Halls Holding Ltd have complete discretion to refuse any bid, to use any bidding increments considered appropriate, combine, or divide lots, to withdraw any lot before the sale has been closed and to offer any lot again. The auctioneer has total discretion, where there is a reserve, to bid up to the reserve on the vendor’s behalf. If there is a reserve it will not exceed the lower estimate for the lot in question. The buyer of a lot is the bidder that has made the highest bid acceptable to the auctioneer (subject to the reserve), where the auctioneer has knocked down the hammer (the fall of the hammer) to this bidder. The auctioneer has total discretion in settling any dispute concerning the highest acceptable bid. Halls Holding Ltd does not accept responsibility for any errors or breakdowns, technically, including but not limited to the hardware (including screens used during the sale) and internet connections.
Buyer's Premium.The Terms of Sale oblige you to pay a buyer's premium of 24% on the hammer price of each lot purchased, plus VAT at the current rate.

In addition, other charges may apply (see 8 below).

Other charges.

VAT. Unless otherwise stated in our catalogue, Lots have no VAT payable on the hammer price as they are sold using the Auctioneers’ Margin Scheme. The VAT is applied on the buyer’s premium, and is not recoverable as input tax.

VAT is not applicable on hammer price nor on buyer’s premium for books and unframed maps.

Buyers outside the UK should familiarise themselves with the VAT status applicable to them by consulting HMRC’s website.

ARR. In accordance with Artists Resale Rights Regulations 2006, any artist’s resale right royalty payable on the sale of the Lot (marked AR), subject to relevant lots selling for a Hammer Price of £1,000 or more. The royalty will be paid by the buyer. The royalty will be charged at a rate of 4% of the total hammer price (exclusive of Buyer’s premium) up to £50,000. Above this there is a sliding scale, available on request. The maximum royalty is £12,500. This royalty is not subject to VAT and is payable in sterling, based on the prevailing rate of exchange on the day of the sale. The royalty is passed to Design and Artists Copyright Society (DACS), 33 Sutton Street, London, EC1. For further information please contact DACS:- 0845-4103410, or visit their website:- www.dacs.org.uk.

Inspection of goods by the buyer.As we act on behalf of the seller, we are dependent on information provided by the seller about their goods. We may inspect lots and will act reasonably in taking a general view about them. However, we are normally unable to carry out detailed examinations of lots to check their condition in the way a buyer would do. You will have ample opportunity to inspect the goods. You must inspect and investigate lots that you might wish to bid for. Please note carefully the exclusion of liability for the condition of lots set out in the Terms of Sale in clause 12.4.
a. Electrical goods.

These are sold as “antiques” and for collection and display only. If you buy electrical goods for use you must assume they will need re-wiring and budget for this extra cost, as the existing wiring is usually absent, or severed for safety reasons If there is any wiring present ask a qualified electrician to check them for compliance with safety regulations before you use them.

Firearms.

All prospective bidders are strongly advised to get advice from a licenced gunsmith, or firearms specialist to carry out an assessment and technical examination. Guns are not stripped and if they are to be used must be stripped and cleaned first. Hammer guns should have their actions/mechanisms checked by a professional firearms specialist before use. All guns’ safety mechanisms must be checked and tested before use.

Export of goods. If you intend to import/export goods you must find out:
whether a licence is needed; and
if there is a prohibition on importing goods of that character e.g. because the goods contain prohibited materials such as ivory.

In addition, please note that all Lots marked with Y are subject to CITES regulations when exporting from the UK. Halls undertakes full compliance with CITES and DEFRA regulations, on behalf of the vendor. Please see the regulations on the government website:- http://www.defra.gov.uk/ahvla-en/imports-exports/cites/ Any CITES licence, or permit that is refused, or any delay involved in getting a permit or licence will not allow any delay in full payment for the Lot(s) nor allow the recission or cancellation of any sale. It is the Bidder/Buyer’s sole responsibility to comply with all the rules and regulations relating to export and import of the purchases and to get any relevant licence(s). Prospective bidders are advised to acquaint themselves with the legislation and allow extra time for arranging exportation, if appropriate.

Bidding.All bidders will be required to register with Halls Holdings Limited before the auction starts. We reserve the right to impose/change a deadline before the auction by which you must register or by which we must receive a commission bid. If you wish to bid on high value lots this deadline may be several days before the auction in order to allow us sufficient time to carry out the necessary checks. Lots will be invoiced to the name and address on the registration form. Please enquire in advance about our arrangements for telephone or online bidding. For those bidders that have not registered with Halls Holdings Ltd before, or who have not yet provided ID this will be required before their bids can be accepted (see paragraph 13). Please note that we may refuse to register you if you do not provide us with all the information and documentation that we ask for or at our discretion. It is the bidder’s responsibility to check that their bids have been received. All bidding forms, whether a registration, commission (absentee), or telephone bidding form must be completed and delivered to us in order to bid at Halls Fine Art sales. In so doing bidders are agreeing to comply with our terms and conditions of sale. Bidding forms may be found, in our saleroom, at the back of our printed and digital catalogues and on our website. On request they may be emailed by Halls Holdings Ltd.

We may ask for a deposit and/or a financial reference from you before allowing you to bid, whether that be in person, online, or by commission (absentee) or telephone, or by any other means.

Commission bidding. You may leave commission bids with us, once you have pre-registered to bid, indicating the maximum amount to be bid against a lot (excluding the buyers' premium and/or any other charges and the applicable VAT rate). We will execute commission bids at the lowest level possible having regard to the reserve (if any) and competing bids. If two buyers submit an identical commission bid, we give precedence to the first bid received (where this can be reasonably ascertained). Please enquire in advance about our arrangements for leaving commission bids by telephone or email or via our website or online bidding platform. A registration and bidding form will need to be completed and received by Halls Holdings Ltd by no later than 4.30pm (GMT) the day before the sale, to allow time to carry out any necessary checks and process the bids.
Telephone bidding. A telephone line may be requested by a bidder, given that there are sufficient telephone lines and/or staff to execute these bids. Lines are allocated on a first come first served basis. A completed registration and telephone bidding form must be returned to Halls Fine Art by 4.30pm the day before the sale. Telephone bidding is free of charge and may not be available for all lots. Halls takes no responsibility for bidding on behalf of the bidder, if the bidder cannot be contacted, or is not available at the time of the sale, or for any failure in telecommunications, such as loss of a signal, or a breakdown on a landline, or a loss/interruption of a connection.
Internet bidding. Please see our website (https://fineart.hallsgb.com), or contact us on (fineart@hallsgb.com) for help on how to bid on the internet. Halls is not responsible, or liable for interruptions, delays, or losses of services resulting in failures to make a bid, owing to a loss of internet connection, or failure/fault with our system of bidding or website, or any kind of breakdown, or fault with our software, hardware or system, including computers and mobile devices.
Financial Checks & Anti-Money Laundering. As auctioneer we may have to conduct various checks into our customers, including due diligence, under the Monday Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017 and related legislation. Unless we confirm we already have this information, on registration you will be required to provide the following:
For individuals, official photo identification (driving licence, passport or equivalent) and proof of address (if this is not included in your ID document);
For corporate entities, the certificate of incorporation (or equivalent) with your official name, registered number (if any) and registered address, as well as details and ID documentation for directors and beneficial owners of the entity;
For trusts and estates, details and ID documentation for trustees/executors and details of beneficiaries are needed, as well as a copy of the grant of probate or deed of trust, which is also required. Please contact us for further information.

You may be asked for further information if we deem this necessary. If you are bidding for another person (your “Principal”) you will be required to provide the above information for yourself and your Principal, along with a signed letter from your Principal authorising you to bid.

Further information about ID requirements is available on our website https://fineart.hallsgb.com, or contact fineart@hallsgb.com. If we deem that you have not provided sufficient information for us to complete our anti-money laundering and terrorist financing checks to our satisfaction, we may refuse to register you to bid and we may postpone completion of or cancel any contract made by you and the Seller in the event you have made a successful bid.

Bidding through an agent. Every bidder shall be deemed to act as the principal, unless there is in force a written acknowledgement by Halls Holdings Limited that he/she acts as agent on behalf of a named principal. Bids by the person named on the bidding form will be deemed as being placed solely by that person named, unless agreed by Halls Holdings Ltd, 48 hours before the start of the sale. If the bidder wishes to bid on behalf of a third party (the bidder’s principal), the pre-registration requirements outlined in paragraphs 9, 10, 12 and 13 above must be met by both the bidder and the bidder’s principal. In addition to this the bidder’s principal will need to provide Halls Holdings Ltd with written confirmation that the bidder has his, or her, authority to bid. Halls Holdings Ltd refers bidders to their due diligence requirements concerning their principal and the origin of their principal’s monies, and in the event that the bidder is the buyer the warranties that they provide. Please note that any bidder bidding as an agent on behalf of someone else (regardless of whether the bidder has, or has not, disclosed this fact) will be jointly and severally liable with the principal to the vendor and to Halls Holdings Ltd under any contract resulting from the acceptance of a bid.
Methods of Payment.Halls Holdings Ltd does not accept payment by cheque or credit cards, but accepts payments by debit cards, bank transfers and cash up to £8,000. All lots shall be paid for and removed within two working days of the sale.

To Pay online: Login to/create an account on Hall's Fine Art website. In 'my account' click on 'invoices and payments' to find your outstanding invoice. Follow the onscreen instructions to make payment.

To Pay by direct bank transfer use the following details:

Bank: Barclays

Bank account name: Halls Holdings Ltd

Sort Code: 20-78-01

Account: 10470120

Please note: Barclays may not be part of the Confirmation of Payee service, therefore you may receive a warning that the bank details cannot be verified. This should not stop you from proceeding with the payment, however if you would like further reassurance please do not hesitate to contact us to confirm the bank details.

For all international buyers please let Halls know from which country and bank payment will be made, if the buyer concerned wishes to pay by bank transfer, as Halls’ bank (Barclays) fees will vary depending on the amount and country. Once Barclays Bank has this information they can confirm the fees involved before the buyer makes their payment. Please make payment via bank transfer using the following bank details:

Bank: Barclays

Bank address: 1 Churchill Place, London, E14 5HP

IBAN: GB87BARC20780110470120

BIC: BARCGB22

Beneficiary: Halls Holdings Ltd.

Beneficiary address: Bowmen Way, Battlefield Shrewsbury, SY4 3DR

For this we shall require your Swift number.

Please check with your bank for the cost of making the transfer, as there is usually a fee for this service. This varies from bank to bank.

All overseas buyers must check with Halls first before making payment by bank transfer, as the country from which the buyer has been bidding may be a restricted country, or one that requires due diligence checks to be carried out and, as a result of this, payment may be rejected by Barclays, resulting in non-refundable transfer costs being paid by the buyer. Halls Holdings Ltd bank details are: Barclays, Sort Code: 20-78-01, Account: 10470120. Late payment may result in interest 5% above the Bank of England’s base rate being charged.

Collection and storage.Please note what the Terms of Sale state about collection and storage. Any delay may involve you having to pay storage charges. Halls reserves the right to charge a storage and handling (or warehousing) fee of £5 + VAT/lot per day after two days of the sale for lots not collected (i.e. the third day following the sale) within 7 days of the sale. See clause 9 of the terms of sale below.
Removal of goods. No purchase shall be claimed or removed until the sale has been concluded and until payment in full has been made and the funds cleared (unless a prior arrangement has been made with Halls Holdings Ltd). All lots shall be paid for and removed at the buyer’s risk and expense by the end of the second working day following the sale. Buyers should ensure they have an appropriate vehicle and means of collection and/or lifting equipment as required. Warehousing fees will be charged from the third day following the sale if purchases are not collected within seven days of the sale.
The Seller’s responsibility to the Bidder. The Seller does not agree, or make any statement of fact, warranty, or guarantee and provides no duty or obligation, in contract or tort, concerning the accuracy or completeness of any statement or representation given by him/her, regarding the value or description of the Lot, to you the Bidder unless you the Bidder is successful and is the Buyer.
Explanation of cataloguing terms for paintings, miniatures, sculpture and prints. Any statement as to authorship, attribution, age, origin, provenance, condition and date is a statement of opinion and is not to be taken as a statement of fact. Halls Fine Art reserves the right, in forming their opinion, to consult and rely upon any expert authority considered by them to be reliable. The following terms used in the catalogue are explained below, but are subject to paragraph three above, under Descriptions of Lots:-

‘John Constable’. In our opinion a work by the artist. Asterisks are used when the artist’s forename(s) is/are not known. This is followed by the artist’s surname and whether preceded by an initial, or an asterisk or not indicates that in our opinion the picture is by the artist named in the catalogue.
‘Attributed to John Constable’. In Halls’ opinion probably a work by the artist, but authorship is less certain than above.
‘Studio of John Constable’. In our opinion probably a work by an unknown artist in the studio of the artist, which might, or might not, have been executed under the guidance of the artist.
‘Circle of John Constable’. In Halls’ opinion a work by an as yet unidentified hand, closely associated with the artist, but probably not a pupil of the artist named.
‘Follower of John Constable’. In our opinion by an artist working in the style of the artist named, contemporaneous, or later and not necessarily a pupil of the artist named.
‘Manner of John Constable’. In our opinion in the style of the artist, but later in date.
‘After John Constable’. In our opinion, a copy of a known work by the artist listed.
‘Bears a signature and/or date, and/or inscription’. In our opinion the signature and/or date and/or inscription may have been added by another hand.
‘Signed and/or inscribed and/or dated’. In Halls’ opinion probably a work by the artist, but authorship is less certain than above.
The first dimension is the height and the second is the width.
Dimensions for prints. As above, but ‘I’ indicates the dimensions of the image proper, ‘Pl’ indicates the image of the platemark, which may, or may not have a margin within the plate itself.
Pictures are framed unless otherwise stated.

Explanation of cataloguing terms for photographs.

‘Cecil Beaton’. In our opinion a work by the artist.
‘Attributed to Cecil Beaton’. In Halls’ opinion probably a work by the artist, but authorship is less certain than above.
‘Signed and/or inscribed and/or dated and/or titled in another hand’. In our opinion the signature and/or inscription and/or date and/or title are by another hand.
‘Signed and/or inscribed and/or dated and/or titled’. In Halls’ opinion probably a work by the artist, but authorship is less certain than above.
All photographs are sold without frames, unless stated in the catalogue description.
Dimensions are of the paper on which the image is printed, including whether there is or is not a margin, unless otherwise stated.

Jewellery. Prospective buyers are reminded that coloured gemstones have been historically treated to enhance their appearance. A variety of methods have been and are currently used to improve both transparency and colour of various gemstones, including but not limited to, emeralds, sapphires, rubies and jade. All white and yellow metals have not been tested. The international jewellery trade generally accepts these methods. It is not our responsibility to obtain gemmological reports on all stones offered for sale and therefore all Halls’ estimates assume that gemstones have been enhanced.

Some lots are accompanied by gemmological certificates which give an opinion on some or all of the gemstones included in that particular lot. These certificates may have been obtained by Halls or obtained by the vendors. The content of these reports is not guaranteed by Halls and we cannot be held responsible for any disagreement related to their content after the sale.

Pearls known and guaranteed to be cultured or natural are described in accordance with this in the cataloguing. Where the origin of a pearl is unknown and not guaranteed it will be specified in the cataloguing as ‘untested’. Items described as ‘seed pearls’ have also not been tested and cannot be guaranteed as natural pearls.

Images are not life-sized unless specifically stated. All weights and measurements stated in the catalogue are approximate only. These figures are for reference only and bidders/buyers.

Explanation of catalogue terms

’By Boucheron’. In our opinion it is by this maker.
‘Attributed to Boucheron’. In Halls’ opinion probably by the jeweller/manufacturer but authorship is less certain than above.

Any disputes to the authenticity of a lot, including signatures, age and condition, and as to the treatment / origin of gemstones including pearls, synthetic diamonds and enhanced diamonds and gemstones, must be brought to the attention of Halls within two weeks of the sale date.

Clocks and watches. Bidders/Buyers must note that the working order of all clocks and watches is not guaranteed. Most clocks and watches have had some restoration, or repairs in the course of their lives and may have later components/parts. An absence of a condition report does not indicate that the Lot has no defects, damage, restoration, or repairs. Bidders should allow for the fact that a general service and or clean may be required for the Lot. Bidders must also take note that the USA has significant restrictions concerning the importation of watches, including, but not limited to Rolex, Corum and Muller.

(3) TERMS OF CONSIGNMENT

1 Introduction, definitions and interpretations

Both the sale of goods at our auctions and your relationship with us are governed by the Terms of Consignment (primarily applicable to sellers), the Terms of Sale (primarily applicable to bidders and buyers) and any notices displayed in the saleroom or announced by us at the auction (collectively, the “Conditions of Business”). The Terms of Consignment and Terms of Sale are available at our saleroom on request.

Please read these Terms of Consignment carefully. Please note that if you (or another person acting on your behalf) provide goods to us to sell on your behalf at our auction, this signifies that you agree to and will comply with these Terms of Consignment.

Please note that these Terms of Consignment relate to auctions held at our premises only. We have separate terms for online only auctions.

In these Terms of Consignment, the words “you”, “yours”, etc. refer to the Seller. The words “we”, “us”, ‘’our’’, etc. refer to the Auctioneer. If the consignment of Goods to us is made by an agent we assume that you (as owner of the Goods) have authorised the consignment and authorised the agent to contract on your behalf. All obligations that apply to the Seller under these Terms of Consignment shall apply to the owner of the Goods and their agent, jointly and separately. Any reference to a ‘Clause’ is to a clause of these Terms of Consignment unless stated otherwise.

2 Information that we are required to give to Consumers

2.1 A description of the main characteristics of the auction-related services that we are providing to you as set out in these Terms of Consignment or otherwise agreed with you in writing.

2.2 Our name, address and contact details as set out in these Terms of Consignment and/or on our Website.

2.3 The rate at which we will charge you the Commission plus any applicable VAT on the sale of the Goods as set out in Clause 5.

2.4 The fee that we will charge you plus any applicable VAT as set out in Clause 18 if either the Goods are unsold at auction or the Goods are withdrawn by you from the auction after the Goods have been catalogued and/or marketed by us prior to the auction in any way.

2.5 The arrangements for collection of any unsold Goods as set out in Clauses 18 and 20 and terms regarding payment of any Proceeds due to you set out in Clause 17.

2.6 If you have any complaints, please get in contact with us using the contact details set out on our website.

3 Procedure for consigning Goods for sale at auction

3.1 If you consign Goods to us for sale at auction, you will need to provide us with the following information about you, in a form acceptable to us:

3.1.1 Your legal name and proof of identity (as set out in Clause 3.2) and other information as we may require to conduct such checks under the Money Laundering Regulations as we deem necessary;

3.1.2 Information about the Goods (as set out in Clause 12);

3.1.3 Your bank account details;

3.1.4 Your address and contact details;

3.1.5 Your VAT registration number (if applicable); and

3.1.6 Your confirmation of whether you are selling the Goods as a Trader or as a Consumer.

3.2 We may have to conduct various checks into our customers under the Money Laundering Regulations and related legislation. In this regard we will require the following for the consignor of property to us:

3.2.1 For individuals, official photo identification (driving licence, passport or equivalent) and proof of address (if this is not included in your ID document);

3.2.2 For corporate entities, the certificate of incorporation (or equivalent) with your official name, registered number (if any) and registered address, as well as details and ID documentation for directors and beneficial owners of the entity;

3.2.3 For trusts and estates, details and ID documentation for executors/trustees and details of beneficiaries; as well as a copy of the grant of probate, or deed of trust, which is also required.

Further information about ID requirements is available on our website https://fineart.hallsgb.com, or contact fineart@hallsgb.com.

3.3 If you do not provide us with, or we are not satisfied with, any of the above information, or other information, we require for anti-money laundering and terrorist financing checks, we may refuse to accept consignment of your Goods for sale in our auction and we may postpone or cancel the contract for sale between you and a successful bidder.

3.4 You must provide the Goods to us by any stated deadline (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.

4 The contract between you and the Buyer

4.1 The contract between you and the Buyer will be formed when the hammer falls accepting the highest bid for the Goods at the auction.

4.2 You may directly enforce any terms in the Terms of Sale against a Buyer and/or a Bidder to the extent that you have suffered damages and/or loss as a result of the Buyer and/or the Bidder’s breach of the Terms of Sale.

4.3 If you breach these Terms of Consignment, you may be responsible for damages and/or losses suffered by a Buyer, Bidder and/ or by us. If we are contacted by a Buyer and/or a Bidder who wishes to bring a claim against you, we may in our discretion provide the Buyer and/or Bidder with information or assistance in relation to that claim.

4.4 We normally act as an agent only and will not have any responsibility for default by you or the Buyer.

4.5 We may delay completion of, or cancel, any contract for sale where we have not completed our enquiries pursuant to the Money Laundering Regulations and related legislation to our satisfaction, or where we have concerns about the Buyer in relation to the Money Laundering Regulations and related legislation, or where we have reason to believe that the transaction might be unlawful for any reason, or that the sale might put us under any civil or criminal liability.

5 Commission

We will charge you a commission on the sale of the Goods calculated as a percentage of the Hammer Price at the following rates: 18% plus VAT. Photography is also charged per lot at a rate of £12 plus VAT.

6 Loss and Damage to Goods

6.1 We are not authorised by the FCA to provide insurance to you. However, subject only to Clauses 6.4, 6.5 and 6.6, we accept liability for Goods from the time we take possession of the Goods until title passes to the Buyer/the hammer falls.

6.2 Our liability for Goods is limited to our pre-sale mid-estimate for the lot before the sale, or the Hammer Price if the lot has sold, or to the mid-estimate if the lot is unsold, subject to normal deductions (set out in clause 6.3).

6.3 To justify accepting liability for Goods as set out above, we will charge you 18% of the Hammer Price plus VAT subject to a minimum charge of £12 plus VAT or, if unsold 18% plus VAT of our mid-estimate for the lot.

6.4 The liability accepted by us in Clause 6.1 does not include any liability for loss or damage to the Goods that is caused by or results from: (i) any inherent vice or defect affecting the Goods; (ii) acts of God, flood, drought, earthquake or other natural disaster; (iii) acts of terrorism, civil commotion, riots or war; or (iv) nuclear, chemical or biological contamination.

6.5 If you (or your agent) instruct us in writing not to assume liability for Goods, the Goods remain entirely at your risk unless and until the Goods pass to the Buyer or are collected by you or on your behalf. In this case Clauses 6.1 - 6.4 will not apply.

6.6 In the particular case of framed works, our specialist might need to remove the frame for the purpose of ascertaining the artist/provenance and/or collecting other necessary details for the valuation and cataloguing of said artwork. Due to the fragile nature of picture frames, we accept no responsibility for any damage, however caused to them, whilst in our possession, either in the auction room, in store or in transit.

7 Photographs

You will pay for the cost of any photographs of your Goods produced for the auction catalogue. We reserve the right to photograph all Goods unless you specifically request us not to. The copyright in such photographs will be owned by us, along with the text of the auction catalogue.

8 Minimum bids and our discretion

Goods will normally be offered subject to a Reserve agreed between you and us before the auction in accordance with Clause 9. We may sell Goods below the Reserve provided that we account to you for the same sale proceeds as you would have received had the Reserve been the Hammer Price. If you specifically give us a “discretion” we may accept a bid of up to 10 % below the reserve, usually the lower estimate. Sometimes wide discretion is agreed (50% below the reserve), or no reserve is requested (where the Lot is sold for the best bid.

9 Reserves

9.1 Reserves must be reasonable and may not exceed our lower pre-sale estimate for that lot. We may decline to offer Goods which, in our opinion, would be subject to an unreasonably high reserve (in which case the Goods carry the storage and insurance charges set out in these Terms of Consignment).

9.2 Once we have agreed a Reserve, this cannot be changed except with your and our consent.

9.3 Where a Reserve has been agreed, only we may bid on your behalf and only up to the Reserve (if any) and you may in no circumstances bid personally or ask anyone else to bid on your behalf.

9.4 A reserve set above our recommendation may be set by prior agreement. This does carry an Unagreed Reserve fee which is 10% of the reserve price, levied if the Lot does not sell.

10 Electrical items

10.1 You must test any electrical items that you wish to consign to us for sale using external contractors. We will not accept any Goods that are not certified as safe by an electrician (unless they are antiques).

10.2 If we notify you that we will not accept uncertified electrical Goods, you must remove such Goods promptly at your expense following such notification. If you do not collect the Goods within 7 days of our written notice to do so, we may dispose of the Goods at your expense.

11 Unsafe Goods

If in our opinion any of your Goods, in particular those which are soft furnishings, infringe safety regulations, we will not offer these Goods for sale. You must remove such Goods at your expense. If you do not collect such Goods within 7 days of our written notice to do so, we may dispose of the Goods at your expense.

12 Warranties and information about the Goods

12.1 You must provide us with all information that you have relating to the provenance, export/import history, condition, attribution and authenticity of the Goods (and any additional information that may be relevant).

12.2 In addition to any warranties implied by law, you warrant to us and the Buyer that:

12.2.1 any information that you provide in relation to the Goods is complete, correct and up to date;

12.2.2 the Goods will match any description of the Goods that you provide to us;

12.2.3 as far as you are aware, the main characteristics of the Goods set out in the auction catalogue (as amended by any notice displayed in the saleroom or announced by us at the auction) are correct.

12.2.4 to the best of your knowledge, the Goods have been lawfully imported and lawfully and permanently exported as required by the laws of any country in which the Goods were located; required declarations upon the export and import of the Goods have been properly made; and any duties and taxes on the export and import of the Goods have been paid; and

12.2.5 you will pay all taxes and duties potentially due on the sale of the Goods.

12.3 You warrant that the Goods are not connected with any criminal activity including tax evasion, and that you are neither under investigation, nor have you been charged with or convicted of money laundering, terrorist activities or other crimes.

12.4 Where you are acting on behalf of another person, you warrant that:

12.4.1 you have conducted appropriate customer due diligence on the ultimate owner(s) of the Goods in accordance with all applicable anti-money laundering and sanctions laws, consent to us relying on this due diligence, and you will retain for a period of not less than 5 years the documentation evidencing the due diligence;

12.4.2 You will make such documentation promptly available for immediate inspection by an independent third-party auditor upon our written request to do so;

12.4.3 the arrangements between you and the ultimate owner(s) in relation to the Goods or otherwise do not, in whole or in part, facilitate tax crimes; and

12.4.4 you do not know, and have no reason to suspect, that the Goods are connected with, the proceeds of any criminal activity, including tax evasion, or that the ultimate owner(s) are under investigation, or have been charged with or convicted of money laundering, terrorist activities or other crimes.

12.5 You must let us know promptly, and in any event before the auction, if you find out that the warranties in 12.3 and 12.4 above are incorrect and/or if any of the information you have provided to us relating to the Goods is incorrect or incomplete and/or if the Goods do not match the description that you provided to us or the main characteristics of the Goods set out in the auction catalogue.

12.6 Any information that you provide in relation to the Goods may form part of the contract between both of us and the Buyer and you acknowledge that the Buyer may have a statutory right to reject the Goods if the information provided is incorrect.

12.7 If we have to refund the price of any Goods to the Buyer due to the Goods being a Deliberate Forgery, you must promptly, and in any event within 7 days, reimburse to us any Proceeds that we have transferred to you for those Goods following receipt of our written notice requesting you to do so.

13 Transfer of ownership of the Goods

You warrant and undertake to us and the Buyer that you are the true owner of the Goods (or are properly authorised by the true owner to sell the Goods on the owner’s behalf) and you currently have and will have the right to sell the Goods to the Buyer with good and marketable title free of any third party rights or claims at the time when ownership of the Goods is to be transferred.

14 Indemnity

You will indemnify and keep us fully indemnified against any and all liability, loss, damage, costs (including reasonable legal fees and any VAT in relation to such fees) and expenses which we may incur or suffer as a result of any breach of Clauses 12 or 13 by you or anyone acting on your behalf, including without limitation, if we are required to refund the price of any Goods to the Buyer as a result of your breach of these clauses.

15 Terms of Sale

You agree that the Goods will be sold to the Buyer in accordance with our Terms of Sale, a copy of which will be displayed in the saleroom and printed in our auction catalogue.

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

You authorise us to deduct our Commission at the stated rate and all expenses incurred on your account from the Hammer Price, plus any applicable VAT. You consent to our right to charge the Buyer and retain beneficially the Premium plus any applicable VAT paid by the Buyer in accordance with our Terms of Sale and any interest earned on the sale proceeds until the date of settlement.

17 Settlement

17.1 Provided that the Buyer has paid for the Goods and we have completed necessary checks under the Money Laundering Regulations, we will usually pay the net sum due to you within thirty days of the last day of the auction, by BACS, or by crossed cheque, to the seller.

17.2 If the Buyer has not paid for the Goods, we will not submit payment to you. In this case no settlement will be made. We will however discuss with you the rights that we may exercise under Clause 9 of our Terms of Sale in relation to a Buyer’s failure to pay. We will not release the Goods to the Buyer until we have received payment in full of the Price for the Goods and have completed necessary checks under the Money Laundering Regulations.

17.3 You must notify us in writing if your bank account details, or postal address (as appears on your ID) change. We will not be responsible for any payments made to the incorrect bank account, or for correspondence being sent to the wrong address, if this is because you have not provided us with the correct bank account details or your change of address.

17.4 If we make payments to your bank account in error, we may request reimbursement by sending you an invoice.

17.5 We may deduct any sums that you owe to us from the Proceeds.

18 Unsold and withdrawn items

18.1 If the Goods are unsold at auction, you authorise us to negotiate a sale by private treaty not later than the close of business two days following the last day of the auction. In this case you will pay to us the same charges as if such Goods had been sold at auction and, so far as appropriate, these Terms of Consignment will apply to any such sale.

18.2 In addition to Clause 18.1, we may, with your consent, re-offer unsold Goods at a future auction (or by private treaty thereafter as set out in Clause 18.1 above) but we may recommend a variation in estimates or Reserve. Where, in our opinion, Goods are unsaleable, we will notify you and you must collect such Goods from the saleroom within seven days of the date of our notice to do so. If you fail to collect such Goods promptly, we may charge you reasonable storage charges at a daily rate.

18.3 You will pay us a charge of 20% of the lower estimate or a minimum of £50 plus VAT on any Goods that are withdrawn from the auction after being catalogued and/or photographed and/or marketed by us before the auction in any way.

19 Withdrawal of the Goods by us

19.1 We may (acting reasonably) at our discretion at any time withdraw your Goods from our auction:

19.1.1 for legal, reputational or operational reasons (including if you fail to provide evidence to verify your identity or your title to the Goods to our satisfaction);

19.1.2 if we reasonably believe that you may be, or are about to be, in breach of these Terms of Consignment; or

19.1.3 if we reasonably believe the Goods to be a Deliberate Forgery.

20 Warehousing

20.1 We have no liability for Goods that you deliver to our saleroom without sufficient sale instructions, or notification. We reserve the right to charge you a minimum warehousing charge of £5 per lot per day plus any applicable VAT.

20.2 We will notify you to ask you to remove any of your unsold or withdrawn Goods. Unsold and withdrawn Goods will be subject to the charges set out in Clause 20.1 above if you do not remove them within 7 days of the date of notification requesting you to do so. If the goods are not collected within the seven days, the warehousing will be charged from the third day following the sale.

20.3 If you do not remove your unsold or withdrawn Goods within 7 days of the date of our notification we may either: (a) sell such Goods and offset relevant charges, set out in clause 20.1 above, and including any commission, photography charges, artist’s resale rights royalties etc., from any net proceeds of sale; or (b) at your expense dispose of such Goods.

21 Our liability to you

21.1 We will not be liable to you for any loss of opportunity or disappointment suffered as a result of participating in our auction.

21.2 In addition, neither we nor the Buyer shall be responsible to you and you shall not be responsible to the Buyer or us for any other loss or damage that any of us suffer that is not a foreseeable result of any of us not complying with the Conditions of Business. Loss or damage is foreseeable if it is obvious that it will happen or if at the time of the sale of the Lot, we, you and the Seller knew it might happen.

21.3 Subject to Clause 21.4, if we are found to be liable to you for any reason (including, amongst others, if we are found to be negligent, in breach of contract or to have made a misrepresentation), our liability will be limited to the Proceeds due for the Goods if sold or the Reserve if unsold.

21.4 Notwithstanding the above, nothing in these Terms of Consignment limits the liability of us or our employees or agents for:

21.4.1 death or personal injury resulting from negligence (as defined in the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977);

21.4.2 fraudulent misrepresentation; or

21.4.3 any liability which cannot be excluded by law.

22 Notices

22.1 All notices between you and us regarding these Terms of Consignment must be in writing and signed by or on behalf of the party giving it. A notice given by email will be deemed to be signed for the purposes of this Clause if the email is sent from an email address, registered with us as belonging to the client, or is sent by us from a registered email address to the client’s registered email address.

22.2 Any notice referred in Clause 22.1 may be given:

22.2.1 by delivering it by hand;

22.2.2 by first class pre-paid post or Recorded Delivery; or

22.2.3 by email, provided that a copy is also sent by pre-paid post or Recorded Delivery.

22.3 Notices must be sent:

22.3.1 by hand or registered post:

to us, at our address set out in these Terms of Consignment or at our registered office address appearing on our Website; and
to you, at the last postal address that you have given to us as your contact address in writing.

22.3.2 by email:

to us, by sending the notice to the valuer instructed by you and to the email address below:

fineart@hallsgb.com

to you, by sending the notice to any email address that you have given to us as your contact email address in writing.

22.4 Notices will be deemed to have been received:

22.4.1 if delivered by hand, on the day of delivery; or

22.4.2 if sent by first class pre-paid post or Recorded Delivery, two business days after posting, exclusive of the day of posting; or

22.4.3 if sent by email, at the time of transmission unless sent after 17.00 in the place of receipt in which case they will be deemed to have been received on the next business day in the place of receipt.

22.5 Any notice or communication given under these Terms of Consignment will not be validly given if sent by fax, any form of messaging via social media or text message.

23 Data Protection

We will hold and process any personal data in relation to you in accordance with our current privacy policy, a copy of which is available on https://fineart.hallsgb.com

24 General

24.1 Each of the clauses of these Terms of Consignment operates separately. If any court or relevant authority decides that any of them are unlawful, the remaining clauses will remain in full force and effect.

24.2 We may change these Terms of Consignment from time to time, without notice to you. Please read these Terms of Consignment carefully, as they may be different from the last time you read them.

24.3 Except as otherwise stated in these Terms of Consignment, each of our rights and remedies: (a) are in addition to and not exclusive of any other rights or remedies under these Terms of Consignment or general law; and (b) may be waived only in writing and specifically. Delay in exercising or non-exercise of any right under these Terms of Consignment is not a waiver of that or any other right. Partial exercise of any right under these Terms of Consignment will not preclude any further or other exercise of that right or any other right under these Terms of Consignment. Waiver of a breach of any term of these Terms of Consignment will not operate as a waiver of breach of any other term or any subsequent breach of that term.

24.4 These Terms of Consignment are between you and us. No person other than you, the Buyer or us will have any rights to enforce any of these Terms of Consignment.

24.5 These Terms of Consignment and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with them (including any non-contractual claims or disputes) shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and the parties irrevocably submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts.

(4) TERMS OF SALE

1 Introduction, definitions and interpretations

Both the sale of goods at our auctions and your relationship with us are governed by the Terms of Consignment (primarily applicable to sellers) the Terms of Sale (primarily applicable to bidders and buyers) and any notices displayed in the saleroom or announced by us at the auction (collectively, the “Conditions of Business”). The Terms of Consignment and Terms of Sale are available at our saleroom on request.

Please read these Terms of Sale carefully. Please note that if you register to bid and/or bid at auction this signifies that you agree to and will comply with these Terms of Sale.

Please note that these Terms of Sale relate to auctions held at our premises only. We have separate terms for online only auctions.

In these Terms of Sale the words 'you', 'yours', etc. refer to you as the Buyer. The words “we”, “us”, etc. refer to the Auctioneer. Any reference to a ‘Clause’ is to a clause of these Terms of Sale unless stated otherwise.

2 Information that we are required to give to Consumers

2.1 A description of the main characteristics of each Lot as contained in the auction catalogue.

2.2 Our name, address and contact details as set out herein, in our auction catalogues and/or on our Website.

2.3 The price of the Goods and arrangements for payment as described in Clauses 4, 6, 8 and 9.

2.4 The arrangements for collection of the Goods as set out in Clauses 9 and 10.

2.5 Your right to return a Lot and receive a refund if the Lot is a Deliberate Forgery as set out in Clause 14.

2.6 We and Trader Sellers have a legal duty to supply any Lots to you in accordance with these Terms of Sale.

2.7 If you have any complaints, please send them to us directly at the address set out on our Website.

2.8 We also refer you to your warranties as a Bidder and Buyer as set out in clause 6.

3 Bidding procedures and the Buyer

3.1 You must register your details with us before bidding and provide us with any requested proof of identity and billing information, in a form acceptable to us (Paragraph 12 & 13 of the ‘Notice to Bidders’ in the Sale Catalogue refers). You must also satisfy any security arrangements we have in place before entering the auction room to view or bid.

3.2 We strongly recommend that you attend the auction in person if possible. You are responsible for your decision to bid for a particular Lot. If you bid on a Lot, including by telephone and online bidding, or by placing a commission bid, we assume that you have carefully inspected the Lot and satisfied yourself regarding its condition.

3.3 If you instruct us in writing, we may execute commission bids on your behalf. Neither we nor our employees or agents will be responsible for any failure to execute your commission bid, unless our failure to do so is unreasonable. Where two or more commission bids at the same level are recorded, we have the right to prefer the first bid made (where this can be reasonably ascertained).

3.4 The Bidder placing the highest bid for a Lot accepted by the Auctioneer will be the Buyer at the Hammer Price. Any dispute about a bid will be settled at our discretion. We may reoffer the Lot during the auction or may settle the dispute in another way. We will act reasonably when deciding how to settle the dispute.

3.5 Bidders will be deemed to act as principals, even if the Bidder is acting as an agent for a third party.

3.6 We may bid on Lots on behalf of the Seller up to one bid below the Reserve.

3.7 We may refuse to accept any bid if it is reasonable for us to do so.

3.8 Bidding increments will be at our sole discretion (but will be in line with standard auction practice).

4 The purchase price

As Buyer, you will pay:

the Hammer Price;
a premium of 24% of the Hammer Price, excluding VAT;
In accordance with Artists Resale Rights Regulations 2006, any artist’s resale right royalty payable on the sale of the Lot (marked AR), subject to relevant lots selling for a Hammer Price of £1,000 or more. The royalty will be paid by the buyer. The royalty will be charged at a rate of 4% of the total hammer price (exclusive of Buyer’s premium) up to £50,000. Above this there is a sliding scale, available on request. The maximum royalty is £12,500. This royalty is not subject to VAT and is payable in sterling, based on the prevailing rate of exchange on the day of the sale. The royalty is passed to Design and Artists Copyright Society (DACS), 33 Sutton Street, London, EC1. For further information please contact DACS:- 0845-4103410, or visit their website:- www.dacs.org.uk
any VAT due.

5 VAT

5.1 You shall be liable for the payment of any VAT applicable on the Hammer Price and premium due for a Lot. Please see the symbols used in the auction catalogue for that Lot in paragraph 8 of ‘Notice to Bidders’ in our auction catalogue for further information.

5.2 We will charge VAT at the current rate at the date of the auction.

6 Buyer Warranties

6.1 You warrant that the funds used for settlement are not connected with any criminal activity including tax evasion, and that you are neither under investigation, nor have you been charged with or convicted of money laundering, terrorist activities or other crimes.

6.2 Where you are bidding on behalf of another person, you warrant that:

6.2.1 you have conducted appropriate customer due diligence on the ultimate buyer(s) of the Lot(s) in accordance with all applicable anti-money laundering and sanctions laws, you consent to us relying on this due diligence, and you will retain for a period of not less than 5 years the documentation evidencing the due diligence;

6.2.2 You will make such documentation promptly available for immediate inspection by an independent third party auditor upon our written request to do so;

6.2.3 the arrangements between you and the ultimate buyer(s) in relation to the Lot or otherwise do not, in whole or in part, facilitate tax crimes;

6.2.4 you do not know, and have no reason to suspect, that the funds used for settlement are connected with, the proceeds of any criminal activity, including tax evasion, or that the ultimate buyer(s) are under investigation, or have been charged with or convicted of money laundering, terrorist activities or other crimes.

6.3 You must pay Halls Holdings Ltd by no later than the end of the second working day following the sale the Hammer Price of the Lot, plus the Buyer’s Premium and appropriate VAT rate, plus any other relevant charges, including but not limited to a royalty on lots subject to Artists Resale Rights (as set out in paragraphs 4 and 5 above) and any relevant warehousing and interest charges, as set out in paragraphs 4 above and 9 below.

6.4 All payments must be made in sterling, unless otherwise agreed by us.

6.5 If you do not pay us the amount due, as in 6.3 above, we will have the right to terminate this agreement owing to your breach of contract, or sell the lot without reserve by auction, or private treaty, deducting our warehousing fee and standard charges, including commission, photography etc. as described in 6.3, remitting any net proceeds to you. Furthermore, we reserve the right to refuse to register you for any future auctions and to reject any of your bids.

6.6 You indemnify us against all losses, expenses and all legal and other costs (irrespective of whether court proceedings have been issued or not), incurred by Halls Holdings Ltd as a result of our necessary actions taken to recover monies owed by you.

7 The contract between you and the Seller

7.1 The contract for the purchase of the Lot between you and the Seller will be formed when the hammer falls accepting the highest bid for the Lot at the auction.

7.2 You may directly enforce any terms in the Terms of Consignment against a Seller to the extent that you suffer damages and/or loss as a result of the Seller’s breach of the Terms of Consignment.

7.3 If you breach these Terms of Sale, you may be responsible for damages and/or losses suffered by a Seller or us. If we are contacted by a Seller who wishes to bring a claim against you, we may in our discretion provide the Seller with information or assistance in relation to that claim.

7.4 We normally act as an agent only and will not have any responsibility for default by you or the Seller (unless we are the Seller of the Lot).

7.5 In addition to any other rights we may have to cancel a contract for sale under these Terms of Sale, in the event:

7.5.1 you are in breach of your warranties in clause 6; or

7.5.2 we have not completed our enquiries pursuant to the Money Laundering Regulations and related legislation to our satisfaction; or

7.5.3 we have reason to believe that the transaction might be unlawful for any reason, or that the sale might put us under any civil or criminal liability, we may delay completion of a sale, delay release of a Lot or cancel the sale of a Lot.

8 Payment

8.1 Immediately following your successful bid on a Lot you will:

8.1.1 give to us, if not already provided to our satisfaction, proof of identity in a form acceptable to us (and any other information that we require in order to comply with our anti-money laundering obligations – please refer to Paragraph 13 of the Notice to Bidders in the Sale Catalogue ); and

8.1.2 pay to us the Total Amount Due by a payment method acceptable to us (see 15 of the Bidders notice)

8.2 If you owe us any money, we may use any payment made by you to repay these debts. This may include an interest rate of 5% above the Bank of England’s base rate being charged for late payments.

9 Title and collection of purchases

9.1 While you are bound by the contract for the purchase of the Lot from the fall of the hammer on your successful bid, ownership of the Lot will not pass to you until:

9.1.1 you have paid us in full the Total Amount Due in cleared funds for that Lot;

9.1.2 you have provided us with the information set out in clause 8.1.1; and

9.1.3 we have completed our enquiries pursuant to the Money Laundering Regulations and related legislation.

You may not claim or collect a Lot until you have paid for it and ownership has passed to you.

9.2 Unless notified otherwise, you will (at your own expense) collect any Lots that you have purchased and paid for not later than 7 days following the day of the auction.

9.3 If you do not collect the Lot within this time period, you will be responsible for any reasonable removal, storage and insurance charges in relation to that Lot(s), unless the delay was caused by our continuing investigations under Clause 7.5.2. (see paragraphs 16 and 17 of ‘Notice to Bidders’). A warehousing charge of £5/lot per day (+ VAT) will be charged after two days from the date of the sale, if purchased lots are not paid for and collected within 7 days of the sale.

9.4 Risk of loss or damage to the Lot will pass to you when you (or your agents) take physical possession of the Lot.

9.5 If you do not collect the Lot that you have paid for within 14 days after the auction, we may sell the Lot. We will pay the net proceeds of any such sale to you, but (unless the delay was caused by our continuing investigations under Clause 7.5.2) will deduct any storage charges or other sums that we have incurred in the storage and sale of the Lot. We reserve the right to charge you for photography and a selling commission at our standard rates on any such resale of the Lot.

10 Remedies for non-payment or failure to collect purchases

10.1 Please do not bid on a Lot if you do not intend to buy it. If your bid is successful, these Terms of Sale will apply to you. This means that you will have to carry out your obligations set out in these Terms of Sale. If you do not comply with these Terms of Sale we may (acting on behalf of the Seller and ourselves) pursue one or more of the following measures:

10.1.1 take action against you for damages for breach of contract;

10.1.2 reverse the sale of the Lot to you and/or any other Lots sold by us to you;

10.1.3 resell the Lot by auction or private treaty (in which case you will have to pay any difference between the price you should have paid for the Lot and the price we sell it for as well as the charges outlined in Clause 8.5). Please note that if we sell the Lot for a higher amount than your winning bid, the extra money will belong to the Seller;

10.1.4 remove, store and insure the Lot at your expense;

10.1.5 if you do not pay us within two days following the end of the sale, we may charge interest at a rate not exceeding 5.0% per month on the total amount due;

10.1.6 keep that Lot or any other Lot sold to you until you pay the Total Amount Due;

10.1.7 reject or ignore bids from you or your agent at future auctions or impose conditions before we accept bids from you; and/or

10.1.8 if we sell any Lots for you, use the money made on these Lots to repay any amount you owe us.

10.2 We will act reasonably when exercising our rights under Clause 9.1. We will contact you before exercising these rights and try to work with you to correct any non-compliance by you with these Terms of Sale.

11 Health and safety

Although we take reasonable precautions regarding health and safety, you are on our premises at your own risk. Please note the lay-out of the premises and security arrangements. Neither we nor our employees or agents are responsible for the safety of you or your property when you visit our premises, unless you suffer any injury to your person or damage to your property as a result of our employees’ or our agents’ negligence.

12 Seller’s Warranties

12.1 The Seller warrants to us and to you that:

12.1.1 the Seller is the true owner of the Lot for sale or is authorised by the true owner to offer and sell the lot at auction;

12.1.2 the Seller is able to transfer good and marketable title to the Lot to you free from any third party rights or claims; and

12.1.3 as far as the Seller is aware, the main characteristics of the Lot set out in the auction catalogue (as amended by any notice displayed in the saleroom or announced by the Auctioneer at the auction) are correct.

12.2 If, after you have placed a successful bid and paid for a Lot, any of the warranties above are found not to be true, please notify us in writing. Neither we nor the Seller will be liable to pay you any sums over and above the Total Amount Due and we will not be responsible for any inaccuracies in the information provided by the Seller except as set out below.

12.3 Please note that many of the Lots that you may bid on at our auction are second-hand.

12.4 If a Lot is not second-hand and you purchase the Lot as a Consumer from a Seller that is a Trader, a number of additional terms may be implied by law in addition to the Seller’s warranties set out at Clause 12.1 (in particular under the Consumer Rights Act 2015). These Terms of Sale do not seek to exclude your rights under law as they relate to the sale of these Lots.

12.5 Save as expressly set out above, all other warranties, conditions or other terms which might have effect between the Seller and you, or us and you, or be implied or incorporated by statue, common law or otherwise are excluded.

13 Descriptions and condition

13.1 Our descriptions of the Lot will be based on: (a) information provided to us by the Seller of the Lot (for which we are not liable); and (ii) our opinion (although it is likely that we will not be able to carry out a detailed inspection of each Lot).

13.2 We will give you a number of opportunities to view and inspect the Lots before the auction. You (and any independent consultants acting on your behalf) must satisfy yourself about the accuracy of any description of a Lot. We shall not be responsible for any failure by you or your consultants to properly inspect a Lot.

13.3 Representations or statements by us as to authorship, genuineness, origin, date, age, provenance, condition or estimated selling price involve matters of opinion. We undertake that any such opinion will be honestly and reasonably held and accept liability for opinions given negligently or fraudulently.

13.4 Please note that Lots (in particular second-hand Lots) are unlikely to be in perfect condition. Lots are sold “as is” (i.e. as you see them at the time of the auction). Neither we nor the Seller accept any liability for the condition of second-hand Lots or for any condition issues affecting a Lot if such issues are included in the description of a Lot in the auction catalogue (or in any saleroom notice) and/ or which the inspection of a Lot by the Buyer ought to have revealed.

14 Deliberate Forgeries

14.1 You may return any Lot which is found to be a Deliberate Forgery to us within thirty days of the auction provided that you return the Lot to us in the same condition as when it was released to you, accompanied by a written statement identifying the Lot from the relevant catalogue description and a written statement of defects.

14.2 If we are reasonably satisfied that the Lot is a Deliberate Forgery we will refund the money paid by you for the Lot (including any Premium and applicable VAT) PROVIDED that if:

14.2.1 the catalogue description reflected the accepted view of experts as at the date of the auction; or

14.2.2 you personally are not able to transfer good and marketable title in the Lot to us;

you will have no right to a refund under this Clause 14.2.

14.3 If you have sold the Lot to another person, we will only be liable to refund the price that you paid for the Lot. We will not be responsible for repaying any additional money you may have made from selling the Lot.

14.4 Your right to return a Lot that is a Deliberate Forgery does not affect your legal rights and is in addition to any other right or remedy provided by law or by these Terms of Sale.

15 Our liability to you

15.1 We will not be liable for any loss of opportunity or disappointment suffered as a result of participating in our auction.

15.2 In addition to the above, neither we nor the Seller shall be responsible to you and you shall not be responsible to the Seller or us for any other loss or damage that any of us suffer that is not a foreseeable result of any of us not complying with the Conditions of Business. Loss or damage is foreseeable if it is obvious that it will happen or if at the time of the sale of the Lot, we, you and the Seller knew it might happen.

15.3 Subject to Clause 15.4, if we are found to be liable to you for any reason (including, amongst others, if we are found to be negligent, in breach of contract or to have made a misrepresentation), our liability will be limited to the total purchase price paid by you to us for any Lot. Neither the Seller, nor Halls will be liable for any associated expenses, including but not limited to travel expenses, loss of business, revenues, profits or income, or for disruption of business, loss of reputation, or time spent by staff and/or management, or for indirect costs or related damages of any type, irrespective of the alleged source or nature, or extent of the loss suffered and irrespective of whether the alleged loss/damage is due to or purported to be because of breach of contract, negligence, statutory duty, a dispute over title, or any other claim. Where Halls and the Seller are liable concerning any Lot, or any estimate, or catalogue description of any Lot, or the conduct of any Sale regarding any Lot, Halls and/or the Seller’s liability (both Halls and Seller if both Halls and the Seller are liable), whether for a contribution, an indemnity, restitution, damages, or other will be limited to and not exceed the purchase price paid by you to us for any Lot(s), irrespective of the amount or source of the loss, or alleged damage, or amount claimed and whether the liability is due to breach of contract, negligence, or any other. The purchase price being the Price and any ARR levy (if appropriate)

15.4 Notwithstanding the above, nothing in these Terms of Sale shall limit our liability (or that of our employees or agents) for:

15.4.1 death or personal injury resulting from negligence (as defined in the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977);

15.4.2 fraudulent misrepresentation; or

15.4.3 any liability which cannot be excluded by law.

16 Notices

16.1 All notices between you and us regarding these Terms of Sale must be in writing and signed by or on behalf of the party giving it. A notice given by email will be deemed to be signed for the purposes of this Clause if the email is sent from an email address, registered with us as belonging to the client, or is sent by us from a registered email address to the client’s registered email address.

16.2 Any notice referred in Clause 16.1 may be given:

16.2.1 by delivering it by hand;

16.2.2 by first class pre-paid post or Recorded Delivery; or

16.2.3 by email,

16.3 Notices must be sent:

16.3.1 by hand or registered post:

to us, at our address set out in these Terms of Sale or at our registered office address appearing on our Website; and
to you, at the last postal address that you have given to us as your contact address in writing; or

16.3.2 by email:

to us, by sending the notice to the following email address:

fineart@hallsgb.com

to you, by sending the notice to any email address that you have given to us as your contact email address in writing.

16.4 Notices will be deemed to have been received:

16.4.1 if delivered by hand, on the day of delivery;

16.4.2 if sent by first class pre-paid post or Recorded Delivery, two business days after posting, exclusive of the day of posting; or

16.4.3 if sent by email, at the time of transmission unless sent after 17.00 in the place of receipt in which case they will be deemed to have been received on the next business day in the place of receipt.

16.5 Any notice or communication given under these Terms of Sale will not be validly given if sent by fax, any form of messaging via social media or text message.

17 Data Protection

We will hold and process any personal data in relation to you in accordance with our current privacy policy, a copy of which is available on https://fineart.hallsgb.com

18 General

18.1 We may, acting reasonably, refuse admission to our premises or attendance at our auctions by any person.

18.2 We act as an agent for our Sellers. The rights we have to claim against you for breach of these Terms of Sale may be used by either us, our employees or agents, or the Seller, its employees or agents, as appropriate. Other than as set out in this Clause, these Terms of Sale are between you and us and no other person will have any rights to enforce any of these Terms of Sale.

18.3 We may use special terms in the catalogue descriptions of particular Lots. You must read these terms carefully along with any glossary provided in our auction catalogues.

18.4 Each of the clauses of these Terms of Sale operates separately. If any court or relevant authority decides that any of them are unlawful, the remaining clauses will remain in full force and effect.

18.5 We may change these Terms of Sale from time to time, without notice to you. Please read these Terms of Sale carefully, as they may be different from the last time you read them.

18.6 Except as otherwise stated in these Terms of Sale, each of our rights and remedies : (a) are in addition to and not exclusive of any other rights or remedies under these Terms of Sale or general law; and (b) may be waived only in writing and specifically. Delay in exercising or non-exercise of any right under these Terms of Sale is not a waiver of that or any other right. Partial exercise of any right under these Terms of Sale will not preclude any further or other exercise of that right or any other right under these Terms of Sale. Waiver of a breach of any term of these Terms of Sale will not operate as a waiver of breach of any other term or any subsequent breach of that term.

18.7 These Terms of Sale and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with them (including any non-contractual claims or disputes) shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and the parties irrevocably submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts.