Many people love buying watches at auction. For some, it is the thrill of the live bidding. For others, the opportunity for a bargain. Even with limited experience you can get a great deal by bidding carefully. It is a great place to find rare and unusual watches, and a visit to the auction house to view the “Lots”, or items for sale, can be an enjoyable and educational trip.

Auction Houses have a reputation to maintain and this helps protect the quality of the pieces for sale. Most auction houses check and grade the condition of a watch, and try to verify they are authentic. This will not stop problems happening, but is helpful. There are many bargains to be had at auction if you do your research. It is also possible to ask a lot of questions, either in person at a viewing, or online. Auction House staff prepare to receive a lot of questions in the week preceding it and are happy to help.

Buying A Watch At Auction

Whether you buy in person or online, there are a few major points in the process:

• Using the Catalogue

• Placing a Bid

• Paying the Fees and Receiving your timepiece

Using A Catalogue

All auctions publish an official catalogue, and you can use this to find out the details of the “lot”, or items, for sale. There will be photographs and a description provided by the seller and usually checked for accuracy by the auction house. This information should include the name of the model, the year it was produced or sold, and a Condition Report.

Auction houses use standardised Condition Reports and the details are to be found in the back of the catalogue. There may also be some details to try and make the watch stand out, such as if it is in particularly good condition and whether it has an interesting story connected to it. Finally, there is an estimated price range expected at the auction and whether there is a minimum price set by the seller.

The key thing to know: You can use the details to check elsewhere to ensure the watch looks correct and that the estimated price is reasonable

Placing A Bid

To enter the auction, you have to register with the auction house and receive a “Bidder Number” for the auction. As well as allowing you to participate, this registration ensures that the auction house complies with Anti-Money Laundering regulations. You will usually have to provide a piece of legal ID such as a passport to enter an auction, whether you intend to bid online or offline. This is a crucial difference to an online auction website like eBay. You should be wary of any auction house that does not require this step.

Once registered, you can place a bid in numerous ways, including live when the auction is running either in person, on the phone, or online. This is very exciting and is the traditional idea most people have of auction houses.

Many people simply leave a bid amount in advance against the lot of their choice. The auctioneer will have a list of those for each lot as they conduct the auction. This is a time saving measure, and helps prevent you from getting over-excited and spending more than you had hoped!

I bought this 1963 Omega Seamaster at Auction

Paying The Fees And Receiving Your Watch

When the auctioneer can find no further bids for a lot, the “Hammer” falls, and the price is agreed between the auction house and the bidder. The process does not end there. The auction house then adds fees and any taxes on those fees to the hammer price. The bidder must pay the full amount of hammer price plus fees and taxes. These can often be as high as 25-30% extra.

If you attend in person you can usually do this immediately after you have won your lot. If you have been successful with a phone or online bid you will have to inform the auction house how to deliver the watch to you and pay the delivery charges. Make sure that if you are buying at an auction overseas you also include the cost of import taxes in your delivery charge estimation.

These fees taxes and charges are often expensive, so you should take them into account when deciding how much to bid in the auction itself.

Specialist Auctions Vs General Auctions

Some specialist watch auctioneers exist, and large auction houses also have departments dedicated to watches. For the largest range of options and the highest likelihood (but not absolute guarantee) of authenticity and quality, you should enter a specialist auction.

At General, Jewellery, and Estate Sale auctions there will be less expertise and less ability to check something is authentic, so be careful. This means that there are often bargains to be found at this type of sale, but only if you are prepared to do your research. A watch ”consigned” (this is the technical term for sending something to auction) to a small auction house in a mid-week general sale with little fanfare could be a fantastic opportunity for someone willing and able to do the research.

One important difference with auctions is that it is difficult to return an item. You must prove to the auctioneer’s satisfaction it is not what was sold in the description. This is different to most other channels, where there is some right to return, even if it is limited.

I bought this vintage Jaquet-Droz Caribbean at a specialist watch auction

Pros and Cons of Buying at Auction

Pros:

• Opportunity for a bargain if there are few bidders on an item and it has no reserve price.

• Expert staff to answer questions

• Opportunity to view the piece in person before the auction

Cons:

• Potential for high fees

• No guarantees and no automatic right to return

• Easy to get carried away and bid more than you intended

I bought this Jaeger LeCoultre Perpetual Calendar at a generalist auction. You'll notice that the year window (1 o'clock marker) looks mis-aligned

Auction Houses Specialising In Watches

Since buying watches at auction can be fun, and deliver a great bargain or two, we at The Watch Collectors’ Club suggest you start with these reputable auction houses listed below. When you are more confident, move to local and smaller houses in your area for a real chance of a bargain.

• Large auction houses with a specialist watch department based in multiple cities: Sothebys, Christie’s, Phillips, Bonhams

• Specialist Watch Auctioneers: Antiquorum, Watches of Knightsbridge, Watch Collecting

We at the Watch Collectors’ Club have had many hits and some misses buying at auction. We have bid online as well as in person, and enjoyed the thrill of a bidding war and the hammer coming down. We recommend this way of buying watches if you are prepared to be patient and do your research. We hope this guide gives you confidence, and wish you good luck in your efforts. For more informative guides, explanations, and informative articles, make sure you sign up to our mailing list.