National Book Auctions

To Whom it may Concern: I am the complaining party in the above-referenced matterMy complaint was received by your office on November 25, [I have not been informed of any case number orreference number.] Please add the enclosed papers to my case fileSpecifically, these papers
serve to provide additional evidence of my claim that National Book Auctions engages in deceptive business practices on an ongoing basis and acts generally in bad faithShould you wish to contact me you may do so at *** or by regular mail, as may be appropriateMy telephone number is *** *** Thank you*** *** *** Enclosure

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear belowThis is an incomplete response filled with inaccuracies, as follows: The business has never given a date other than the vague " on a periodic basis" response to my question about when I can expect to be paidI never received precise payment information, nor is that information to be found on this business's website"Periodic" is not quantified in the response, as I specifically requestedThe business's response is false. The responder provides a convenient, though totally inaccurate, comment about his payment policies being in alignment with other auction houses The six I checked provided very clear information about payment dates, and these payment dates ranged from days to days after the conclusion of an auctionNot a single one of them has a policy like National Book Auction's policy, that withholds payment arbitrarily until the very last is placed in a catalog, which of course this auction determines as it sees fit. This business has practices that violate several of the Revdex.com's guiding principles, and I am disappointed that it maintains its Revdex.com membership. You have my permission to share this information with any local or state authorities that you chooseI plan to do the sameRegards, *** ***

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below
I was told at the time of pickup on December 17, I would be
compensated (paid) by March I have received zero dollarsThey
admit that they have sold over $12,of my booksThere was nothing in
the agreement that stated I would not be paid after the sale of my
booksOnly that they would keep their commission of 30%. If if
you check the Internet you will see that you, the Better Bisiness Bureau
has published another persons complaint because of the same reason, non
paymenti do not understand how you can allow them to take other people's things, sell them, and not pay the owner. Dear ***, You will see that in
the third sentence of Dan ***' email dated March 30,he states
the " your settlement will be going out with this weeks batchThe only
remaining payment will be for the material sold out March auction, as
that has likely not worked its way through the process". I
have not been paid anything so far and have not been informed what was
sold during the March auction which according to our agreement I
should have been informed by now. *** ***

Thank you for your patience, this account has been paid in full. The erroneous logo on the website had not been updated but will be shortly

This account has now been closed as requested. We respect the opinions of the complainant and his suggestions have been incorporated into our future business strategies and processes. We provide a valuable service that is unique in the country and are eager to ensure that our back office customer service returns to being of a quality to match the value of our services. As a small businesses, we are not immune to challenging times but remain determined to doing our utmost to deliver the best service we are able. Thank you

It is always a great disappointment to us when we learn that a client is not satisfied with our services. We endeavor to be transparent and are always happy to inform potential consigners about any and all aspects of our methods and services as we move towards signing a contract. Our past catalogs with realized prices are posted on our website, going back to January of 2009. We feel that there is no better way to demonstrate how we catalog material of various value levels, and what values the global collecting community is prepared to pay for the broad variety of items we offer in our auctions. Our services are unique in the country in that we are willing to embrace a much broader spectrum of value when it comes to the material we accept for our auctions. No other auction gallery in the country that conducts fully cataloged auctions that also embrace online bidding over Invaluable and eBay, accepts material of the value level that was present in the items in question in this case. This material was not remarkable and was sorted and cataloged according to the same methods we use on a daily basis.We certainly do not dispute the assertion that if a person prefers to sell their items on eBay, individually and with greater detail than we can provide for low value items, the return will likely be greater. Our services are better suited to people who do not wish to take on that effort and recognize that there is a limit to how much we can devote in manpower and other resources, to selling low value material. Again, no other auction gallery in the country even considers accepting material of this value level for cataloged auctions with global bidding incorporated. Unfortunately, cases such as this are making it increasingly difficult for us to work with a broad spectrum of value. We enjoy being useful and try to help as many clients as possible. However, there is only so much that can be accomplished with common material and we prefer to surpass client expectations. With high value material, we routinely set record prices and it may be that in the future, we need to more frequently follow suit of other auction houses and decline material of this value level

I consigned approximately 4,000 items in 154 boxes, plus two Chiam Gross lithos in April. 2018. I watched many of my items being sold. Repeated tries to contact David Hall went unanswered. I have not received any accounting or money. I understand there are others in the same situation as I. I have contacted the BBB and the AG.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.  I still do not understand why it took nearly four months to receive payment for my consigned item, for which no explanation or apology was offered.
Regards,
[redacted]

As we’ve outlined in our previous writing, Mr. [redacted]’s consignment has been handled comfortably within the terms of the contract.  It is not true that he was given any assurance of a completion date before March of 2016.  We are brokers to the transactions we handle and accordingly, cannot control when purchases are fully consummated.  We do not ever provide assurances of completion dates but do at times explain typical processing times.  There is no way for us to guarantee when all sales will successfully complete, which should be apparent from the very nature of our role in the process.  Sales complete when payments are successfully provided and items are delivered.  Mr. [redacted] has been paid and provided with a full report of all his sales, as he was promised and well within the timeline outlined in the contract.  This was a sizable collection and the time needed to complete the work we do was not unusual for a consignment of this size.  We do wish that we had been better able to articulate to Mr. [redacted] the value of what we do, especially in light of the fact that we raised these books from being cast off to delivering a handsome return for Mr. [redacted].  Our services are tremendously effective and are well worth the time required to complete.

I received the copy of your message to Revdex.com regarding my complaint - ID [redacted] I hope to be able to accept your offer so that we can settle this matter. Before I do that, however, I need to know the date by which you will provide me with an accounting statement plus payment for each item sold. This date should not be later than March 7th. In addition, I would like to know what procedures (such as time limit, policies, documentation) you would follow if a sold item for which I have received payment should become “unwound. “  Why is NBA “unconvinced that there will be no further issues with these transactions”? I find it strange that, in six months of “highly protracted discussions about authentication” NBA never once contacted me about these issues, or requested provenances. The Chinese items I consigned were inherited from a naturalized Chinese-American who repeatedly traveled to her birth country, and had been examined by a local expert in Chinese antiques, the late [redacted] I do appreciate the availability and quality of your auction services. I hope to emerge from this experience to also speak positively about your accounting and payment practices. Sincerely, [redacted] Ithaca, NY 14850

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
I will vow to never purchase from them and will gladly share my poor experience with others.This particular book was estimated to go for 70-200$. If expected to go as high as 200$ MISSING pages should have been noted.It does not make good business sense to not stand behind your items. Even [redacted] has buyer protection for items not as described.In the past I've spent thousands of dollars at this auctionhouse and they have now lost my future bids over such a trivial matter so easy for them to rectify.
Regards,
[redacted]

As per the money, they did not provide services as promised and were sloppy. As such, they deserve no reimbursement of expenses. I would like my settlement sums in full--no auction fees, pickup fees, listing fees, or auction house commissions removed. Furthermore, I want an additional 1250.00 USD...

for my items which were listed improperly, slovenly and unprofessionally. (Should the matter go to court, I will add in time cost and court fees as well.) As far as investigation, you are correct. I will be sending a draft to the Attorney General if this is not handled professionally. So that part can be dropped for the moment. Thank you for your time. Pat

This is in regard to my case, #[redacted].  I contacted National Book Auctions and was informed that the items I wanted to auction would bring a fair sum.  As I have had the items appraised previously, I knew this would be the case.  When I went down to have my items appraised for sale...

in the auction I was given estimates that were confirmed in National Book Auctions catalog. I was told the mirror alone would go for $300 or more.  At no point was it ever stated that the mirror would be sold off for a mere $15.  The $300 accordian was also sold for a pitance.  I did check the website and saw the prices for the items I provided were listed for the apprasal values that National Book Auctions and other appraisers had supplied me with.  When the items went to auction they were sold for a pitance.  Mere pennies on the dollar for from the appraisal values.  This was for the November 27, 2016 auction.  Another matter in reguard to these items and this auction is that after they sold for a pitance, the supplied shipping costs seem to make up the disparity in price.  An example would be an item appraised for $200, selling for $15 and National Book Auctions charging $160 for shipping.  This is true for several of my items and appears to be gouging for their own profit margin.  In another matter, I have not been given my monies due from the October 22 book auction in which I had sold books and antique cards.  The lot numbers for this are [redacted], [redacted].  I have recieved no monies from these sales.  As I was informed by him it could take upwards of 4 to 5 weeks and as we enter into the 8th week, I am dubious I ever will see any of the money. I want to withdraw all of the remaining lots for auction and am requesting return of the auction items as I am aware that this is possible.  My lot numbers are:  [redacted], [redacted], [redacted], [redacted],[redacted] and [redacted].  I would also like to immediately recind the other sales and have those lots that have already auctioned ready for pick up with the above listed items. I am attaching the catalog pages highlighting my items.  If you could email me back to let me know you recieved everything I have outlined in this letter, that would be great. My email is [redacted]I am hopeful that what I am providing is suffienct in pursuing my objectives, if more is needed let me know.  I may be contacted at [redacted] or the above listed email.   [redacted] T. [redacted]

We pride ourselves on our customer service and it has been an ongoing source of disappointment for us that we have not been able to please this client.  The client delivered material to our gallery that was not of a remarkable nature, and we researched, cataloged and sold it according to our...

regular processes.  We are the only book and ephemera auction house in the country that catalogs material of this value, with online bidding tied in.  Including the global online collecting community in our bidding delivers exceptional returns for clients such as this, whose only alternative is to take the material to a local general auction.At the time of delivery, this client gave no indication of his dollar value expectations for the material.  He seemed familiar with our services and hired us to sell his material using our methods.  Had he given us any indication of his wildly unrealistic expectations of value, we would have declined the consignment.  There is no value for us in a contract that ends with a disappointed consigner.After we sold the material, this client demanded that we pay him $1,500.00 or risk his “pursuing the matter.”  This certainly sounds like extortion.  He asserted that his material was worth $2,000.00-$3,000.00.  His material sold in five lots that brought, in total, $125.00 during our auction which had between 2,500 and 3,000 online bidders registered, as well as bids placed directly at our gallery before and during the auction.  It is preposterous to suggest that somehow his material, and only his material, was grossly overlooked by this robust bidding population.  His material simply was not of significant interest nor value.This client’s check was issued and mailed on 10/21/14.  On 11/7/14, the client notified us that his address had changed.  He said that he had mail forwarding in place with the Post Office, so we expected the settlement to ultimately reach him.  It would seem that it has not.  We would have appreciated being notified of his address change in a more timely fashion as perhaps this latest round of confusion could have been avoided.The client’s check came to $81.25.  As we have already consumed far more than we earned from this consignment, on dealing with his complaints and threats, we are eager to close this file.  Accordingly, we are paying the stop payment charge on the original check ourselves, and re-issuing a check for the full amount.  At this point, we are at a loss as to what more we can do for this client and think it best to expedite closing the matter, at our own expense.

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.  Regards,  [redacted]

Our work with these items has been a long journey indeed.  Complications with international buyers and highly protracted discussions about authentication have made it difficult for us to definitively consider these sales completed.  Our expectations of closure dates have been extended...

numerous times.  Unfortunately, the client’s letter asserting the February 1st deadline did not reach us in a timely fashion and thus, we were not aware that this complaint was imminent, nor that we were not responding to this most recent request for an update.  It is certainly a fair point for the client to raise that we have not been diligent in providing regular updates concerning these items.  We provide a unique service in the country and it is a laborious one that sometimes sees manpower devoted to the work, while customer service is not maintained at the excellent level we desire.  As we grow, this becomes easier to consistently address.For the consignment items we handle, we act as a broker.  Accordingly, we are at the mercy of the actions of the true parties to the transactions, in consummating purchases.  Our contracts stipulate that we do, and indeed must, reserve the right to make determination as to when individual transactions can be considered complete and ready to be settled.  The duration involved in reaching completion with these particular items has been much longer than typical and admittedly, we should have done a better job of keeping the client updated.  Our focus on the work of marketing and selling items can be credited with the impressive results we delivered to this client for material that was delivered to us, seemingly without the client or the agent having any sense of the value involved.  We are grateful to the client for acknowledging the quality of our work and apologize for our sub-standard communications.Although we remain unconvinced that there will be no further issues with these transactions, we are going to close these sales and release payment to the client.  We will accept the immediate financial risk of any later ramifications that might unwind these sales in an effort to address the frustration experienced by this client as a result of the spartan quality of our communication.  As brokers, we will need to re-open this matter with the client if the sales are unwound at a future date.

Given that auction galleries do not take title to the property that is consigned, consummation of sale can only be deemed final when all the elements of the contract have been satisfied.  We have a time frame stated in our contract, which is anchored to consummation of the sale, as do all galleries.  No auction gallery can provide proceeds to a client if the sale has not been consummated, regardless of how many days have past since the offer was accepted.  The other galleries provide the same type of terms that we offer which is that provided sales have been finalized, proceeds can be released after a certain number of days have passed since the offer was accepted.  We are unique in the country in that we offer cataloged book sales with online bidding included, for a broad spectrum of value.  The other book auction galleries who perform this service do not embrace the bulk that we accept and accordingly, their reconciling on a small number of high-value is doubtless much easier to track.  We perform a very valuable service that delivers terrific returns for clients such as this one, and it does indeed make good sense to operate on a per-consignment basis in this environment rather than individual items.

Although there was a brief backlog in our shipping department at the time of payment, the significant delay in this package arriving was due to international shipping hurdles, particularly within the Italian postal system.  We would like to have more control over these matters but the reality...

is, international shipping does come with its own inherent and quixotic challenges and these vary in type and intensity, by country.  We appreciate this client's bidding with us but and hope he recognizes that we performed reasonably for him and that the significant delays were not caused by us.

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  I am not satisfied with their response.   I understand that the delays were also in Italy and customs but this does not justify their not responding to my numerous e-mails.  Also  the package was not shipped on time.  I should have received notification from the company that it has not shipped.  Instead I had to call to find out the news....Since I was expecting it to ship on 1/23 and didn't ship till mid Feb, they should have expedited the package paying for a faster service.  For this company to receive a F grade from the Revdex.com just shows how customer oriented they are.  Once they receive their money, the customer is on their own.... Regards,  [redacted]

We are proceeding with this consignment precisely within the stated terms of our contract with the client and wish that we had been able to come to a better understanding through our conversations.  All material is being sold in a timely manner and the account is being processed in a timely...

manner.  We are purely brokers to these transactions and accordingly, sales complete based upon sale consummation with the bidders.  There's no desire on our part to prolong the process and we are in fact, the most expedient of all the book auction galleries in the country who conduct book auctions with fully cataloged sales and online bidding included.  Because we operate on a rolling cataloging schedule, we are able to deliver turn-around times that are much faster overall because we do not delay items being sold until a themed auction is scheduled.  Our settlement policy is clearly stated in our contract and is also usually discussed prior to consignment.  We have not strayed from what was agreed and will release an early advance payment to this client.  Our services generate excellent returns for our clients and are well worth waiting for the process of selling to a global audience, to complete.