Unfamiliar with the car auction jargon? Find below the definitions of specific terms you might be looking for.

• Auction in hall: physical auction at one of our branches.
• Bid Now: open online auction for a given period (see point: xBid).
• Buy Now: Fixed Price auctions.
• Buyer’s fee: the fee payable on each vehicle (or lot) purchased.
• Catalogue: the listing of all vehicles to be offered for sale at a given auction.
• Closed auction: the sale can only be attended by invited buyers (usually trade).
• Fall of the hammer: signifies that the vehicle has been sold.  No further bids will be accepted after this time.
• Hammer price: the price the vehicle is sold for, when the auctioneer states the vehicle is “sold” and brings down the hammer.
• LiveBid: Webcast to online auction run by an auctioneer live.
• Lot number: the number allocated to the vehicle (and marked on the vehicle) going through auction, listed in the catalogue.
• Non-runner: a vehicle that won’t start.
• Open auction: a sale that can be attended by all buyers.
• Provisional sale:  if a vehicle has not met the reserve price, we contact the seller to ask if they are willing to accept the highest bid. The vendor may accept the provisional price, or may request a further increase in price. Only if both parties reach agreement on the price negotiated, will the sale be binding (see point: Reserve price).
• Remarketing: the sale of used vehicles at auction.
• Reserve price: the minimum price specified by the seller for which they are willing to sell the vehicle.  This information is confidential to the auction.  If the reserve price is not met, the vehicle will be put forward for provisional sale or on sell during the next auction (see point: Provisional sale).
• Sealed Auction: a type of auction in which all bidders simultaneously submit sealer bids to the auctioneer. Highest bid wins.  
• Sold as seen: applies when a vehicle is offered without a guarantee.
• The sale: the auction.
• Vendor: people or companies who are selling vehicles at auction.
• xBid: Extra window of time to bid at each vehicle at the end of certain Bid Now auctions (see point: Bid Now).