Validity

Numismatik-Auktionen GmbH (FN 333585t) – hereinafter, for brevity’s sake, referred to as ‘the auctioneer’ – conducts the auction at the behest of, and on behalf of, the owner according to the conditions of the Austrian Commercial Code. The auctioneer performs the contract exclusively according to their own business conditions, and any conflicting business conditions of contractual partners have no contractual basis and are ineffective. Compelling statutory regulations obviously remain unaffected by these Terms of Conditions of Auction. Information on the location, medium and time and of the auction, and on the possibility of in-person viewing, can be found in the published catalogue for the relevant auction, which can also be viewed online on the auctioneer’s website. Registering or making a bid implies recognising the Terms and Conditions of Auction. These Terms and Conditions of Auction apply to auctions since 1 March 2021.

Description
Basically, all auction items are offered for sale as genuine and as per the description. The description in the catalogue and the coin gradings have been prepared with the utmost care. The illustrations of the auction items are an integral part of the description, but in doubtful cases the text has priority. Any errors in description do not constitute grounds for legal liability or liability for material defects. The details of the description do not represent any guarantee of a specific property or value, and the auctioneer assumes no liability for information in this connection. Such damage or defects as can obviously be determined (i.e. by mere visual inspection) are indicated in the description. Basically, all bidders attending the auction buy items ‘as seen’ and cannot assert any complaints regarding quality and description after a bid has been accepted. Concealed defects are excepted.

Attendance
Before entering the auction room, bidders must acquire a bidder number and register themselves personally. Registration must be completed 12 hours before the start of the auction, otherwise attendance is not possible. Bids can be entered until 24 hours before the auction starts, and also in writing or by telephone. Telephone bidding must be agreed with the auction house before the day of the auction. Pre-auction bids by telephone require written confirmation. The lot numbers desired by the customer and a telephone number valid at the time must be notified at least 48 hours before the auction starts. If a telephone connection cannot be established in time, the auction house cannot be made responsible for this. Additionally, the (online) catalogue of the relevant auction must be consulted for details of the (external) digital platform on which it is possible to digitally attend in-person auctions conducted by the auctioneer (‘live bidding’). There is no legal claim to activation of digital attendance, nor does the auctioneer assume any responsibility for whether live bidding offers will reach them or they will be able to execute them. The auctioneer assumes no liability for non-execution of a live bidding offer, nor for malfunctions or omissions in connection with this service. The auctioneer reserves the right to exclude persons from the auction without giving reasons or decline bids without giving reasons. Customers not yet known to the auctioneer must establish their legitimacy for the auction, giving the names of potential referees, at least 2 working days prior to the day of the auction. In addition to this, the auctioneer can demand a deposit of 25% of the bidding amount as an advance payment for guarantee purposes. If the purchase transaction takes place, this amount is offset accordingly.

Pricing
The bidding prices indicated in euros (€) in the catalogue are minimum prices and it is not possible to bid lower than them. If the minimum price is not achieved, no sale is made. The incremental steps usually amount to 5–10% of the previous offer. If there is a tie between in-person bidders and telephone or internet bidders, the in-person bid generally has priority. If several written orders for the same amount are received, the first to arrive is accepted. The hammer falls after the auctioneer has established the highest bid, and acceptance and payment are then mandatory. The hammer price is one incremental step higher than the previous bid. Unless otherwise stipulated by the auctioneer, the lots are offered in the numerical sequence shown in the catalogue. The auctioneer has the right not to accept bids, to divide lots, and to amalgamate lots. In the event of misunderstandings during the auction, the auctioneer is entitled to reopen the auction. The auctioneer is entitled to annul acceptance conferred in the auction room if a bid arrives via a delayed internet connection. In the event of an error in the catalogue, the auctioneer shall announce the correction and sell the lot according to the alteration, meaning that written bids cannot be taken into consideration unless the bidder, when entering the bid, has alerted us in writing to the fact that they have noticed the error. All sales transacted in the auction room are irrevocable.

The hammer price (highest bid) is a net price in the meaning of the Austrian Value Added Tax Act (UStG). Using this as the basis of calculation, the buyer is additionally liable for the surcharge (commission). Depending on the applicable tax rate, value added tax and, if need be, additional public taxes plus other despatch and money transaction fees accrue. The auction costs to be paid by the buyer are based on the following scheme (see also the indications in the catalogue and on the auctioneer’s website):

D = differential taxation in the meaning of § 24 UStG: the buyer pays a gross commission of 23% on the hammer price, which includes statutory value added tax (at present 20%)

B = tax exemption for investment gold: the list of gold coins that fulfil the special regulation (Article 344, paragraph 1 point 2 Council Directive 2006/112/EC) is published annually by the European Commission in the Official Journal of the European Union. In these cases, value added tax is not payable, and the commission to be paid equals 23% of the hammer price.

V = fully taxed items: the commission to be paid is equal to 15% of the hammer price; statutory value added tax (at present 20%) is calculated based on the sum of hammer price and commission, and added to these.

Domestic dealers are charged a reduced commission of 18% in addition to statutory value added tax (currently 20%) upon submission of a valid VAT identification number (§27 a UStG -ATU)

Overseas dealers from countries of the European Union are not charged any value added tax (‘intracommunity tax-free delivery’) upon submission of a valid VAT identification number (§27 a UStG) and the other requirements set out in § 4 Nr. 1b UStG in conjunction with § 6 a UstG. The commission is equivalent to 18%.
Overseas buyers from third countries pay a commission of 18% for all items purchased at the auction plus despatch costs to the extent that the goods acquired are exported by us.

Transport and insurance costs – according to distance, size and properties – are incurred if the item is despatched, and must be borne by the buyer. If payment is made by credit card, PayPal or other payment services, the buyer is responsible for money transaction fees charged by the credit institution, which amount to 4% of the invoice total, and which will be passed on to the customer.

Payment
The invoice is presented immediately after, or from the first working day following, the auction and is payable at once. Payments must be made exclusively by bank transfer to the business account of Numismatik-Auktionen GmbH – IBAN AT70 3500 0000 2604 1806 – at the Parsch branch of the Raiffeisen Association, Salzburg (BIC RVSAAT2S). Cash payments cannot be accepted. The sale item or goods remain in our possession until the purchase price, all auction costs connected with it, duty and other fees have been paid in full (retention of title).

Delay
If the value date of the invoice amount, free of any deductions or fees, has not been traced in the auctioneer’s account within 8 days, then (i) in the case of dealers, the commission discount no longer applies; (ii) in the case of private persons, a penalty amounting to 5% of the purchase price is deemed to have been agreed. In addition to this, interest arrears amounting to 1% per month accrue. If the buyer does not fulfil their obligations within the period granted, or does not completely fulfil them, the auctioneer – without prejudice to any other rights – is entitled, in their own right and/or for the consignor, either (i) to continue to insist on performance of the purchase contract and demand from the buyer, in addition to the payment of the purchase price, payment of all taxes, costs and expenditures, including the costs of legal representation for the purposes of enforcing the performance of the purchase contract; or (ii) to withdraw from the contract. In the latter case, the auctioneer, in their own right and/or for the consignor, reserves the right (i) to demand from the buyer compensation for the entire damage caused to them which, following a substitute sale, may arise from charges, fees, expenditures and shortfalls of lower purchase prices, including all costs and expenses and the costs of legal representation etc., or (ii) to reauction the item at the buyer’s expense.

Complaints
The goods may be transferred at the auctioneer’s business premises in the Raiffeisen Building, no. 18 Gaisbergstrasse, 5020 Salzburg. If the goods are received in person, any complaints with regard to quality and defective description should be asserted at once, otherwise the opportunity to complain lapses. If the goods are despatched, the formalities are discharged by the auctioneer. If the consignment does not arrive within one month, or arrives damaged, the buyer must inform the auctioneer at once, so that they can initiate a postal investigation or communicate this to the insurance provider. If the buyer does not comply with this obligation to inform, or does not do so promptly, they have no right to compensation. In the case of despatch, complaints must be communicated within 7 days at the latest and basically can only be recognised as legitimate, if the items complained about are still in the same condition as when delivered by the auctioneer. In the event of differences of opinion, the auctioneer can call in experts of their choice; the costs of the expert appraisal and report are borne by the unsuccessful party. The buyer can or may only offset their own counterclaims if these are legally established or explicitly recognised by the auctioneer in writing.

Numismatik Auktionen GmbH assumes no responsibility for whether goods sold by us are accepted by so-called grading companies or their condition is assessed in a similar way to ours. Complaints arising from the fact that a grading firm has arrived at a different assessment of quality do not constitute an entitlement to rescission of the sale. In the case of items in so-called ‘slabs’ (coins are shrink-wrapped in the plastic holder issued by grading companies), we assume no liability for concealed defects, e.g. edge defects, traces of mounting or grinding, etc., which are concealed by the plastic holder. The object of the sales agreement in this case is the holder provided by the grading firm; as a result, all claims must be asserted directly against the grading firm.

At online auctions (in the sense of purchases made solely online) at which the contract is concluded with a consumer who has entered the highest bid when the time limit set by the auctioneer expires, the consumer has an exercisable but time-limited right to withdraw from the contract without giving reasons. The cancellation policy and cancellation form can be viewed or accessed via this link on the auctioneer’s website. ‘Live bidding’ is not subject to distance selling law, and the right of withdrawal under distance selling law is therefore not applicable.

Applicable law, place of jurisdiction, miscellaneous
The place of fulfilment is: 5020 Salzuburg, Gaisbergstrasse 18 (business premises of auctioneer in Raiffeisen Building, Parsch). Austrian law applies exclusively; the UN Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG) shall not apply. It is agreed that the place of jurisdiction for all disputes arising directly or indirectly from an auction shall be exclusively the Austrian court responsible for 5020 Salzburg, both geographically and with respect to the matter of dispute. For consumers in the meaning of consumer protection laws, this agreement shall only be valid to the extent that they neither have a place of residence nor are habitually domiciled in Austria, that they are not employed in Austria either, and that no other conflicting regulations apply.

To the extent that the Terms and Conditions of Auctions, catalogue texts and other information are written in languages other than German, they are provided only as non-binding translations for the sake of convenience. For purposes of interpreting any differences of opinion, only the Terms and Conditions of Auction, catalogue texts and other information in German are authoritative and binding. Detailed data protection information can be viewed on the auctioneer’s website. Bidders and buyers must communicate their personal contact details for the purposes of processing the contract, and any changes must be notified at once. Deliveries and communications to the most recent contact options notified to the auctioneer are also deemed to have been performed effectively if the consignee should not or should no longer reside at this address or should have changed this contact option and the bidder or purchaser has, contrary to agreement, omitted to communicate their new contact details.