South Africa. Oudtshoorn Rifle Volunteers Victorian helmet plate circa 1890-99. Good scarce die-

CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS

The following conditions are the terms on which Bosleys contract, as auctioneers, with sellers (sometimes referred to as vendors) and acting as an agent on behalf of the sellers, with buyers (sometimes referred to as purchasers). Please read them carefully.
BOSLEYS act as an agent for the Seller at postal auctions. The contract for the sale of any lot will be between the Seller and the Buyer.
TITLE. The highest bidder will be the Buyer and no person may retract any bid. Tendering a bid is a legal offer to buy. Upon the fall of the hammer, the successful bidder enters into a legally binding contract subject to English law and the lot becomes the sole risk of the Buyer however legal title of any lot shall not pass to the Buyer until the lot is paid for in full including the Buyer’s premium and any other charges although at no time do Bosleys warrant such title.

BUYER’S PREMIUM. 22% plus VAT (at the current rate) on the hammer price. Please note there is no VAT on the hammer price.

POSTAL BIDS. Bosleys are pleased to execute postal bids for clients and will use all reasonable efforts to secure lots as cheaply as permitted by other bids and/or reserves if any and subject to their Conditions of Business. This is a free service and Bosleys cannot accept any liability for failure to execute any postal bid. If yours is the highest bid, you will secure the lot at one bid above the next highest bid ie if you bid £100 on a lot and the next highest bid is £50, you will secure the lot at £55 being the next increment. If two or more identical bids are received, the first one received is deemed the successful bid. All bids must be received by 1700 hours on the day of the sale and should be written on the bidding form provided in each catalogue. Bosleys are not responsible for wrong lot numbers entered against descriptions. Commission bids cannot be accepted from a Post Office box address. Overseas bidders please note that customs declarations cannot be falsified and that you are responsible for any Customs or import duty which maybe levied.

PAYMENT. Acceptable methods of payment BACS or Bank Tranfer.
All invoices must be paid in full within five days of the sale. Goods will not be released to any Buyer, unless specifically agreed to the contrary in writing, until all amounts due have been received. Items purchased and still in Bosleys’ possession will be covered by their insurance for a period of seven days after the sale, or if collected before the seven days, up to the time of collection.

1. (i)  Any amounts still outstanding 14 days after the sale will be subject to interest at a rate not exceeding 5% above Coutts & Co. Base Rate. Bosleys

   reserve the right to exercise a lien on any of the Buyer’s property in Bosleys possession for any purpose and after giving the Buyer 14 days written

   notice of such intent, to arrange the sale of such property to recover any outstanding amounts due to Bosleys.

2. (ii)  If the Buyer fails to pay within 30 days from the day of the sale, Bosleys may take any of the following actions

1. Issue proceedings against the Buyer on behalf of the Seller to recover the full amount due including commission, storage charges, interest etc.

2. Resell the lots either by public sale or private treaty to recover the full amount due including commission, storage charges, interest etc.

3. Cancel the sale of the relevant lots.

CATALOGUE DESCRIPTIONS. Whilst Bosleys make every effort to ensure the accuracy of their catalogue and descriptions as well as the authenticity and genuineness of all lots :

1. (i)  Each lot as set out in the catalogue is sold by the Seller with all faults, imperfections and errors of descriptions.

2. (ii)  Bosleys do not accept responsibility for the authenticity, genuineness, date, age, period, origin, attribution, condition or quality of any lot, unless

   they have been instructed in writing by the Seller to so certify, and in such cases Bosleys do so merely as agents of the Seller and are not

   themselves responsible for such claims.

3. (iii)  Catalogue illustrations are provided purely for the guidance of prospective buyers and are not to be relied to determine the colour or condition

   of any item. Occasional errors in applying the correct lot number to an illustration may occur however the description will take precedence over

   any illustration in identifying any lot.

4. (iv)  Estimates are provided purely for the guidance of prospective Buyers and are not to be relied on as a statement of fact. They are prepared long

   before the sale and maybe subject to revision.

Bosleys have complete discretion as to the manner in which items described, whether to illustrate any item or to combine it in a lot and whether or not further expert advice or research should be sought. They also have complete discretion to withdraw any lot from auction should they have any doubt concerning its authenticity or attribution.
FORGERIES. Notwithstanding the preceding condition, if within 14 days of the sale, the Buyer returns any lot giving notice to Bosleys, in writing, that the item is a deliberate forgery and that the lot is in the same condition in which it was sold; Bosleys are authorised to rescind the sale. It is Bosleys’ policy to require the Buyer to obtain, at the Buyer’s expense, the written opinion of two recognised experts in the field, mutually acceptable to the Buyer and Bosleys, before Bosleys determine whether to rescind the sale. Should Bosleys decide to rescind the sale and the proceeds have already been paid to the Seller, Bosleys will approach the Seller for the return of the proceeds. This guarantee applies only to the original Buyer named on the original invoice and is not valid if the Buyer has sold or disposed of the lot to a third party at any time.
AGENTS. Any person acting as an agent for a Buyer should be aware of the fact that the sole responsibility for payment rests with the agent. AUCTIONEER’S DISCRETION.Theauctioneerhastherightathisabsolutediscretiontorefuseanybid,toadvancethebiddinginanysuchmanner as he may decide, to rescind a sale, to withdraw or divide any lot, and in the case of any dispute or error, put the lot up for sale again.
STORAGE. Where purchases are not paid for within fourteen days after the sale, Bosleys will arrange storage at the Buyer’s expense. Storage charges are currently £3 per lot, per day plus VAT. Goods will not be released until all such charges are paid for in full.
SELLING AT AUCTION. Bosleys offer the following attractive terms to sellers.
Only 20% commission on the hammer price.
No fees for unsold lots as long as the reserve was agreed by Bosleys, in writing, prior to the auction.
No lotting fees.
No charge for photography.
No minimum commission per lot.
Insurance fee of only £1 per £100 of the hammer price or lower estimate if unsold (minimum fee £10 per sale).
Any charges attract VAT at the current rate.
The Seller will bear all costs relating to transporting items for sale to Bosleys together with any insurance fees, import duty or charges by HM Customs. RESERVES. If any lot carries a reserve which has been agreed between the Seller and Bosleys, the lot will be sold subject to this reserve, subject to any discretion agreed with the Seller. The Seller automatically gives Bosleys 10% discretion on any agreed reserve. The reserve cannot be above the lower estimate published in the catalogue. The Seller may not bid, or employ any agent to bid, on lots which the Seller has put up for sale although Bosleys may bid on the Seller’s behalf.
PAYMENT TO SELLERS. Payment for lots sold, less relevant charges, will usually be paid to the Seller within 14 working days of the sale as long as payment for such lots has been received by Bosleys. Please note that Bosleys will not pay the proceeds to the Seller until payment has been received from the Buyer. Should payment still be outstanding from the Buyer 30 days after the sale Bosleys have right to rescind the sale. Bosleys have no liability to pay the Seller if the lots have not been paid for by the Buyer or the sale of the lots have been rescinded.
WITHDRAWAL OF LOTS. A Seller may not withdraw any lot from the sale without Bosleys’ permission. If either Bosleys or the Seller withdraw a lot, the Seller will be charged a fee equal to 30% of lowest estimate or highest bid received, plus any photography, advertising, publicity and research charges incurred with a minimum fee of £50 per lot.
UNSOLD LOTS. All unsold items remaining uncollected 14 days after the sale , unless agreed with Bosleys in writing, will be liable to storage charges of £3 per lot, per day plus insurance. The goods will not be released to the Seller until any such charges have been paid in full. The Seller will also bear all costs, including insurance, of returning unsold items. If any lots remain uncollected 90 days after the date of the sale, Bosleys may dispose of the items as they see fit in order to recover any outstanding charges.
For a period of 14 days after the sale, the Seller gives Bosleys complete discretion to accept late bids or other offers in order to obtain an amount for the Seller equal to the net proceeds had the lot sold at its reserve or for a lesser amount agreed between the Seller and Bosleys. All such transactions are subject to the same conditions as if the items had sold at auction.
PHOTOGRAPHS AND ILLUSTRATIONS, for which no charge is made, are solely at Bosleys discretion. The Seller gives Bosleys the full and absolute right to photograph any item consigned to auction and to use or publish such photographs at any time in connection with the sale or in any way they see fit. All rights of these images will belong to Bosleys.