Adjudication
After sales
Advance
Payment slip
Bid bulletin
Catalogue
Clerk
Commissionaire
Sales terms and conditions
Conseil des ventes volontaires
Auction Crier
Pre-emption right
Bids
Valuation
Auctioneer Office

Expert
Exhibitions
Irresponsible bid
Costs borne by the buyer
Guarantee
Remainders
Starting bid
Purchase order
Payment
Reserve Price
Rebuy
Complaints and disputes
Voluntary Sales Company (VSC)
SYMEV
To sell

Adjudication
Every auction ends with the word « adjugé », and only then the property of the good is transferred.

After sales
It is possible to sell an item by mutual agreement within a period of fifteen days after the adjudication, but only at the minimum price of the last bid or, if there was no bid, at the minimum price of the starting bid. If his identity is known, the last bidder must be told.

Advance
Before the beginning of the sale, sellers can obtain an advance on the proceeds of the sale from the auction house (without any limit of the percentage of the hammer price).

Payment slip
Document serving as an invoice that is given to the buyer by the auctioneer. It lists the characteristics of the good (description, period, size…), its reference number in the catalogue, the hammer price and the amount of the costs. It stands for a payment proof and a title deed. It could be useful in case of a later transaction or if you want to insure the good.

Bid bulletin
It is given to the buyer by the auction crier at the moment of the adjudication. It allows you, after you have made your payment, to take possession of the good you have just bought. Don’t lose it! If someone would find it, he or she could reclaim the good it is bound to.

Catalogue
It is a printed book in which are described and sometimes illustrated, by following the order of the sale, the pieces of furniture and the items of the sale. Catalogues frequently come with a valuation table. It is an essential guidebook for auction sales. You can also find some of them in an electronic version on the Internet (www.auction.fr).

Clerk
A clerk is one of the auctioneer’s assistants. He is entitled to announce the valuations and to take purchase orders.

Commissionaire
It’s the name of the deliverymen at Drouot. They can be easily recognized thanks to their uniform (a black jacket with a red-edged collar). Commissionaires (or “Savoyards”) set up the goods for exhibition, they display them during the sale and, if they are asked for, they are responsible of the carriage of the goods to the buyer’s address.

Sales terms and conditions
Before being involved in an auction, it is very important to refer to the sales terms and conditions of the Voluntary Sales Companies (VSC). The sales terms stand for a contract. They are not negotiable, but you can put them into competition and chose freely the VSC that fits the most to your needs. You can ask these sales terms and conditions to the VSC’s, and they have to give them to you in writing. You can also find them on the last pages of the sales catalogues, or on the VSC’s websites.

Conseil des ventes volontaires
“Le Conseil des ventes volontaires de meubles aux enchères publiques” (CVV – the Voluntary Sales Council) had been founded by the law of July 2000 (and the decree of July 19th 2001) in order to open the French market of the public sales to competition
As a moral person, it is in charge of the certification of sales companies and experts, of the recording of foreign citizens statements, of the sanctioning of eventual breaches of laws, rules and professional obligations. At the same time, it is in charge of the vocational training leading to the required qualification to run sales.

Auction Crier
During the sale, he gets around among the audience, and he announces the bids and gives bid bulletins.

Pre-emption right
It’s a right granted to the French State (law of 21st December 1921) that allows it to acquire, through the national museums, items featuring in a public sale by substituting itself to the last bidder. This right occurs when the adjudication is done, and it is exercised on a proposal of the Department of Culture, on behalf of national museums.

Bids
During an auction sale, bigger amount than the initial price or than the previous offers.

Valuation
Estimate of a piece of art given by a capacitated person working for a Voluntary Sales company, an auctioneer office or Drouot-Estimations. For every lot, it is possible to find two valuations: a low one and a high one (which gives a valuation range).

Auctioneer Office
It’s the office of the legal auctioneer, the only person authorized to run legal sales, sales that are decreed by law or by order of a court.

Expert
The appraisal of a good consists in identifying this item to give it a valuation. In most of the specialized sales, the person authorized to run these sales is assisted by one or more experts. They are undisputed in their field of expertise, and they conduct required researches to qualify goods. The list of authorized experts is drawn up by “le Conseil des Ventes”, even if Voluntary Sales Companies are allowed to work with unauthorized experts.

Exhibitions
Usually, exhibitions take place the day before the sale, between 11:00 am and 6:00 pm, and during the morning before the sale, between 11:00 and noon.
Please note that at Drouot, three days a week are specifically dedicated to exhibitions: Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

Irresponsible bid
Sometimes, someone careless is involved in a bid he couldn’t afford. It is called an “irresponsible bid”. The item is put again on sale, but if it doesn’t reach the price of the previous adjudication, the careless person has to pay the difference!

Costs borne by the buyer
They are established at a rate going from 9 to 20 %. They are on a sliding scale according to the value of the bid, on the hammer price (on top of which there is the VAT at 19.6 %, except for books at 5.5 %). In case of a legal sale, costs are of 14.352 %.

Guarantee
Buyers have a legal ten year guarantee about the authenticity of the bought item, as it is specified in the legal statement, in the catalogue and on the payment slip.

Remainders
A lot from a sale could remain unsold for many reasons: withdrawal, rebuy, lack of bids...
When a lot is not produced to a sale, we say it’s “withdrawn”. A VSC is allowed to withdraw a lot if, for example, there is a doubt on its authenticity, or if it could be a stolen item. The seller who demands the withdrawal of an item could be compelled by the VSC to pay some costs that are already involved, according to the terms established by the sell order.

Starting bid
It is the starting point of the auction. Usually, this price is set at the half of the valuation.

Purchase order
A collector interested in an item appearing in a sale to which he couldn’t attend is allowed to give a purchase order to the auctioneer or to one of his assistants, and to give them a maximum bid. These orders are graciously executed. It stands for a mandate in order to purchase an item at the best price, according to your order. It is strongly recommended to ask for a written proof (or, in case of an electronic transaction, for a copy of the email or of the electronic form).

Payment
To pay, you have to show your bid bulletin. You can pay on the premises, in cash or with a cheque. In this last case, if the buyer is not known from the auctioneer or the expert, the item could possibly be delivered only after the cheque is cashed.

Reserve Price
This is an undisclosed minimum price settled between the seller and the auctioneer, below which the item would not be adjudicated. Since the law of the 10th July 2000, it is not possible for this reserve price to be higher than the public lower valuation.

Rebuy
When an item is unable to reach the reserve price settled by the seller in agreement with the auctioneer, the transaction is not done, and the item is reclaimed by its owner. Usually, the “rebuy costs” come to 3 % of the amount of the last bid.

Complaints and disputes
The Council, referred by the government commissioner, is competent to deal with complaints concerning VSC and authorized experts. It may pronounce disciplinary actions. We strongly recommend you to consult the section “What is a complaint?” under “information” on our homepage.

Voluntary Sales Company (VSC)
Voluntary sales come from the own decision of someone who wants to sell his goods either whole or in part. They must be run by a private trading company (owned by a person, partners or shareholders) authorized by “le Conseil des ventes volontaires” and having at least one manager, associate or employee who holds an auctioneer diploma.

SYMEV
The SYMEV is the organism that represents public auction sales companies and auctioneers.
Its purpose is to represent the profession to the French and European public authorities, and to institutions; to improve legal and tax environment; to promote auction sales; to set up communications operations of the profession; to bring new services to its members; to instigate lawsuits in the name of common interest; to negotiate collective agreements within the joint commission; to develop relations with foreign counterparts and institutional organizations.

To sell
To put an item up for auction, you just need to contact an auction house or an auctioneer office that will undertake a valuation of the good. In agreement with the seller, a reserve price is then settled. The seller then signs a sell order. The costs vary since they are established by each Voluntary Sales Company. Don’t forget to add the VAT. Legal fees of 5 % must also be added on the base price of the items sold during legal sales.