A lady sent me an e-mail that touched on several issues. She consigned some items to an auctioneer and was displeased with the results from the auction.
“I took a lot of antiques and collectibles to an auctioneer to sell. I kept a list of what I consigned with the details of each item and I gave the auctioneer a copy. I was out-of-town the day of the auction, so I have no one to verify the sales that were made of my things. The auctioneer gave me copies of the buyers’ purchase tickets for my sales and one item was not accounted for. I also questioned the prices he got for some of the other pieces that were sold. I had two pieces that the auctioneer said no one bid on, so he claimed to have thrown them in a box lot that he sold for $3. I found this very hard to believe, so I went online to find what recourse I might have. I found a website and sent in an inquiry about my situation.

“The lady at the site was nice enough to say I should get an attorney. I didn’t do that because I thought the cost would be too great. I did read on her site that auctioneers have to take movies or films of each bidder. Is this true and, if so, how long does he have to save them? What is the statute-of-limits on this sort of thing?”

This is why I have a sign in my office that reads, “You can’t make the (darned) stuff up!” That sentiment is certainly true about a lot of situations that cross my desk.

This lady started off fine. She made an inventory of all the items that she was going to consign for auction and included a description for each item. Then she shared a copy of her list with the auctioneer. That was a smart thing to do and every consignor should follow her example. Unfortunately, things went downhill from there.

Obviously, the consignor chose to do business with an auctioneer about whom she knew too little. That is clear from the fact that she now doesn’t believe him or trust him. That was a big mistake. How many times I have hammered the point that consignors must “know” the auctioneers they deal with to be certain these auctioneers are honest, competent, and reliable.
That couldn’t be the case with this lady. It doesn’t mean that the auctioneer she chose was not what he should have been. It means that she doubts that he was and this reveals that she knew far too little about this fellow to consign her valuable property to him.

So what could be worse than consigning goods to an auctioneer that you don’t know to be honest, competent, and reliable? Well, not being present at the auction to watch how your items were handled, represented, and sold would be worse and that is what this lady did. She failed to attend the auction in which her goods were sold. We don’t know why, but it was a mistake for her not to be there and witness what occurred. I emphasize to consignors all the time that if they are not going to act to protect their own interests, they can’t expect others to do so for them.

The lady then questioned the auctioneer about what pieces he sold and how much he got for them. By now, my sympathies are tilted sharply toward the auctioneer. The reader is calling upon him to explain what he did and what happened when she has no basis for questioning the sale’s results, other than her unfounded doubts.

The auctioneer apparently tried to answer her concerns, but she didn’t believe his explanation. She then went online to research what “recourse” she might have and some “nice” woman advised her to “get a lawyer.”

Being a lawyer, I say everyone needs one, but I’m not sure the best use for one is with a dispute about what went into a $3 box lot. The lady agreed with my assessment, because even she “thought the cost would be too great.” So look what she did. She e-mailed me.

While it is true that the price readers pay for my advice here is extremely reasonable, that doesn’t mean I’m going to support them when they have done something foolish – and what this lady did was foolish.

The wheels fell completely off when I got to the last issue – the reported requirement “that auctioneers have to take “movies or films” of each bidder.” This is the place where I stopped reading the e-mail and looked straight at my sign ... and shook my head as I read and mouthed the words. Oh boy!
There is no legal requirement that any auctioneer ever take “movies or films” of bidders. Why would there be? Many auctioneers voluntarily make audiotapes or videotapes of their auctions to keep a record of the lots offered, bids called, identification of the buyers, and the “hammer prices” for the lots sold (i.e., highest bid made for each lot). If this auctioneer has such a tape, I’ve got a dollar against a penny that the tape would confirm every point he reported to the reader. I haven’t seen one thing that would cause me to question this fellow’s integrity. Auctions don’t come out like consignors, want, wish, or need. Auctions come out like they do and sometimes the buyers take the day. When that happens, prices are soft and that is just the way it is.

I have two points with which to close. One is for consignors and the other for auctioneers.

First, if you are a consignor and are going to worry about how an auctioneer represents and offers your goods, calls the bids for them, and the prices for which they sell, you need to be at the auction to view all of this. If you can’t attend for any reason, you should dispatch a trusted representative to attend in your stead.

Second, if you are an auctioneer, you need to think about this issue and how you can avoid being on the wrong end of a consignor’s post-auction scrutiny.
Auctioneers ought to emphasize to every consignor the importance of attending the auction so the consignor can see firsthand the offering and sale of the consigned goods. That would eliminate many of the questions that might otherwise arise. My suggestion is to include this as a term near the beginning of the consignment contract. Like the old saying goes, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” … which would spare me the need to turn to my sign again.

The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of Farm World. Readers with questions or comments for Steve Proffitt may write to him in care of this publication.