Guide for Buyers and Sellers
At Bruun Rasmussen we have two different types of auctions: Live Auction and Online Auction. Here you can find everything you need to know about buying and selling at these auctions.
Auction types
At a Live Auction, the auctioneer oversees the sale of the most expensive artwork, design classics, antiques, jewellery pieces, wristwatches and rare collectables. Before each auction, all the items are placed on display at our previews, but they can also be viewed online at bruun-rasmussen.dk and in the richly illustrated auction catalogues.
At Online Auctions, you can find items within the same categories as in the Live Auctions, but most often the items are at a more affordable price level. Every week of the year, more than 1,500 items are auctioned off via Online Auction. All the items can be viewed, tested and examined in our showrooms in Copenhagen or Aarhus during the weeks leading up to the sale.
Before the Auction
At the auctions, you can find a large selection of art, design, antiques, jewellery, wristwatches and collector’s items. View all categories.
You can keep an eye on what is being sold at auction here at bruun-rasmussen.dk, via our newsletters, catalogues, on social media or by creating a search agent
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All the items up for sale at a Live Auction or an Online Auction will be exhibited before the auction at the so-called previews. Here you have the opportunity to examine the auction lots more closely. The physical location of an auction lot can be seen in the lot’s description on bruun-rasmussen.dk
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For certain auction lots, we offer to send you a condition report if you do not have the opportunity to visit the preview in person. Read more about this in the conditions of purchase 3.2
At the entrance to the salesroom, you need to register a series of personal information and receive a bidding sign.
Before you place a bid at an Online Auction for the first time, you must register as a customer and for security reasons register your payment/credit card here at bruun-rasmussen.dk. It takes a few minutes, so be sure to do it well in advance of the auction.
During the Auction
Everyone is welcome at our Live Auctions. It does not cost anything, there is no dress code and you can come and go as you please during the auction. You have four different ways to bid:
- Show up in the salesroom: When you want to bid on an item, you signal the auctioneer by raising your assigned bidding sign. There always has to be eye contact between the auctioneer and the bidder, so you do not have to be afraid of bidding on something by accident.
- Commission bid: You can submit your bid here at bruun-rasmussen.dk until the start of the auction or 24 hours prior to the auction via e-mail, fax or phone. An employee of Bruun Rasmussen will bid on your behalf during the auction.
- Telephone bid: For certain items, you can request a telephone appointment during the auction with an employee from Bruun Rasmussen who will bid on your behalf. The service can be requested here at bruun-rasmussen.dk up until three hours before the start of the auction.
- Live bidding: You can live stream the auction and bid here at bruun-rasmussen.dk. If it is the first time that you submit a live bid, you have to sign up as a customer here at bruun-rasmussen.dk and register your debit/credit card. It takes a few minutes, so be sure to do it well in advance of the auction. Read more about Live Bidding.
Find the item of your choice here at bruun-rasmussen.dk. You can choose either to submit your bids individually during the auction or to submit a maximum bid. If you choose to submit a maximum bid, we will make sure to bid for you until you achieve the highest bid or your maximum bid has been reached. You can follow your bids next to your customer number in the list of bids for the item in question.
If your bid is surpassed, we will notify you via e-mail/text message.
As a bidder, your bid may match someone else's maximum bid. If two bids are the same, it is always the person who submitted the bid first, who has the bid.
After the Auction
A purchase at a Live Auction has to be paid no later than eight days after the sale. You have three options for payment:
- At one of our locations with a debit/credit card:
Dankort, Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, Diners Club, JCB and China UnionPay or in cash up to DKK 14,999 - Here at bruun-rasmussen.dk with a debit/credit card:
Dankort, Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, Diners Club og JCB - Via bank transfer to our account at Danske Bank:
Account number: 4183 4310970638 · Swift/BIC: DABADKKK · IBAN: DK4130004310970638
When you have purchased an item at an Online Auction, the money will automatically be withdrawn after the end of the bidding round from the debit/credit card that you have registered with us prior to the auction.
We require a buyer’s premium for all purchases at our auctions.
- Live Auctions: 32% is added to the hammer price, which covers the buyer’s premium of 25,6% and VAT on the premium. For coins, 25% is added to the hammer price, which covers the buyer’s premium of 20% and VAT on the premium.
- Online Auctions: 28% is added to the hammer price, which covers the buyer’s premium of 22,4% as well as VAT on the buyer’s premium.
Certain items are sold according to special rules for full VAT. In these cases, a VAT of 25% is calculated on both the hammer price and the buyer’s premium.
For works by recent Danish and certain international artists, an artist's resale royalty must be paid to the VISDA Association, which manages copyright issues for artists. This is the case when the artist is either alive, or has died within the last 70 years. The artist's royalty is calculated according to the hammer price.
- If you buy an item at a Live Auction, you have no right of withdrawal.
- At an Online Auction, you have 14 days right of withdrawal if you are a private buyer.
- After a Live Auction and an Online Auction, you can pick up your purchase at the address stated in the email sent to you in connection with the purchase. Purchased items at a Live Auction must be picked up no later than eight business days after the auction has taken place. Purchased items at an Online Auction must be picked up no later than the Thursday of the following week after the auction has taken place. After this deadline, a transportation and storage fee will be added to the price. Immediately after the purchase, we will send you an e-mail with the specific deadline for the pickup. Read more about picking up your items. In accordance with current anti-money laundering rules, you will in certain cases be asked to submit personal information and present a photo ID before you can be given the purchased item.
If you cannot pick up your purchase yourself after a Live Auction or an Online Auction, you have several options. You can send another person or a carrier, who can pick up your purchase with a power of attorney from you.
You can also request an offer on transportation via your personal page here at bruun-rasmussen.dk or contact one of the transportation companies we collaborate with.
For smaller items, you can request shipment. The price for this is stated on bruun-rasmussen.dk when you bid on an item. Read more about transportation and shipping.
If your purchase is not picked up on time, it will be transported at your expense and risk to one of our storage facilities. The transport to the warehouse costs DKK 150 per item, and the storage costs DKK 150 per item per commenced week.
If you live abroad, you can request a transport offer via your personal page here at bruun-rasmussen.dk. You also have the opportunity to use our offer of free transportation of wine to Hong Kong. We also offer consolidated transport to New York and Los Angeles.
For transportation to other parts of the world, view the list of transportation companies we are working with.