2. misc-audio
  3. 1376830302

Questionable Estate Auction practice

Yesterday I attended an auction with high end equipment.
I won a pair of speakers but after all the items in the setup, (turntable, amp, pre-amp, cassette deck, cd player), were sold as individual pieces, the auctioneer restarted the bidding as a set. This starts the bidding at the total price bid for all the items. As a result someone bid on 'the set' so all the individual bidders were SOL. I was not willing to go that high to get the speakers, (I didn't want the other items). So I lost the speakers even though I bid the highest. I was upset and I'm not sure if this practice was even legal. Anyone ever here of this? BTW-Speakers where Apogee Duetta II's.
fse

Showing 2 responses by dougmc

dougmc
105 posts
 
Swampwalker,

A buyer's usual damages when a seller fails to deliver a good for which an enforceable contract exists is the difference between the reasonable cost the buyer incurs acquiring a replacement and the agreed upon contract price. Of course, the buyer has to prove all the necessary elements (existence of a contract, evidence of the contract price, acquisition of a replacement and the reasonableness of the replacement cost), all without the benefit of a written contract, but a damage remedy does exist.

Sometimes a buyer can recover damages for a profit the buyer lost as a result of the seller's default. In this case, the buyer would have to demonstrate that he had the ability to resell the equipment and its likely resale price (Audiogon blue book anyone?)

The fact that the original poster didn't come out of pocket at the auction doesn't affect his right to damages. You don't have to perform your end of a contract when the other party has already defaulted. You just have to be careful not to indicate that your treating the contract as rescinded.

I'm not saying that the OP should have pursued the auctioneer, just that he could have if he wanted to go to the trouble.

One little caveat. As someone else mentioned, the OP may have agreed to the strange way this auction was conducted when he registered.
dougmc
105 posts
 
Swampwalker

I agree that, as a practical matter, there's no use pursuing the auctioneer. I just want to refute the suggestion that, just because you're not out of pocket any money, you don't have legal recourse when someone refuses to sell you an item he agreed to.

It would be more effective to write a letter of complaint to the Better Business Bureau or, if one exists, to a professional association of auctioneers.

Al

Agreed. Very amateurish (or deceptive, depending on your point of view) not to explain out loud to everyone in attendance the unusual ground rules of this auction, before the bidding started. A lot of resentment could have been avoided - evidently the OP wasn't the only disappointed "winning bidder" of an individual piece of equipment.
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