Consumer Protection Act, 2008 (Act No. 68 of 2008)RegulationsConsumer Protection Act Regulations22. Auctioneer and auction house to hold and account for consumers property |
| 1) | An auctioneer and auction house must at all times strictly comply with section 65(2) of the Act. |
| 2) | Unless the auctioneer is also the owner or rightful holder (who has the right to sell) of the goods to be auctioned, no auctioneer may sell goods on auction until he or she has first entered into a written agreement with the owner or rightful holder (who has the right to sell) of such goods to be sold, whether for a specific auction or auctions on general, which agreement contains the terms and conditions upon which that auctioneer accepts the goods for sale. |
| 3) | An agreement contemplated in subregulation (2) must as a minimum contain— |
| a) | the name and physical address of owner of the goods to be sold or the owner's agent or the rightful holder (who has the right to sell) thereof; |
| b) | if the goods are to be sold at a specific auction, the date of the auction or if the goods are to be sold at a number of auctions, a termination date of the agreement; |
| c) | the address of the premises where the auction is to be held; |
| d) | the rules of auction; |
| e) | a description of all of the fees to be charged by the auctioneer or the auction house, which must include commissions, storage, advertising and labour, or a method by which such fees will be determined; |
| f) | an explanation of the settlement of the auction that includes the disbursement of interest money, if applicable; |
| g) | a statement indicating whether the auction is an auction without reserve or not; |
| h) | a brief description of the goods to be sold; |
| i) | if the sale is of goods at auction without reserve, a statement affirming that the seller of the goods has a bona fide intention to transfer ownership of the property to the highest bidder; |
| j) | an exact copy of section 65(2) of the Act; |
| k) | an exact copy of subsections (1) to (5) of section 45 of the Act. |
| 4) | An auctioneer must retain a copy of every agreement contemplated in subregulation (2) signed by the owner or rightful holder of the goods to be auctioned for a period of at least three years from the date of the auction. |
| 5) | In performing the duties of an auctioneer, every auctioneer— |
| a) | is the agent of the owner or rightful holder (who has the right to sell) of the goods for all aspects of an auction; |
| b) | must follow all lawful and reasonable requests of the owner or rightful holder of the goods or immovable property sold at auction; |
| c) | must perform his or her duties so that the highest or most favourable offer made by a bidder is accepted; and |
| d) | must otherwise perform his or her duties in accordance with the highest standards applicable to auctions. |
| 6) | An auctioneer must keep abreast of current market conditions of goods at all times in order to be in a position to advise and perform services for his or her clients to the best of his or her ability. |
| 7) | An auctioneer— |
| a) | owes a duty of care towards his or her client; |
| b) | must protect and secure the goods whilst under his or her control or in his or her possession; |
| c) | must at all times preserve a professional, confidential relationship with his or her client; |
| d) | must timeously reveal estimated costs and services for conducting the auction; and |
| e) | if he or she is aware or ought reasonably to be aware of any risks associated with the auction of particular goods, must forthwith disclose such risks to the client. |
| 8) | All unsold property must be returned to the owner or rightful holder immediately upon the completion of an auction unless otherwise agreed. |
| 9) | The owner or rightful holder (who has the right to sell) must be provided with an itemised account of all goods sold immediately upon completion of the auction unless otherwise agreed, which as a minimum must contain— |
| a) | the item or lot sold, |
| b) | amount received for the sold item or lot; and |
| c) | the name of the buyers of every item or lot. |