■ Zhong Cheng as the agent The Company acts as the agent of the Seller at a public auction.The Closing Agreement of the Lots is the agreement by and between the Buyer and the Seller.
■ Expenses 1.The Seller shall bear costs relating to the following:
a.Packing if the Lot and shipping to the Company for the action.
b.Any applicable shipping insurance.
c.The packaging and shipping if the item is delivered back to the Seller.
d.Insured under the Company art relic insurance policy (explained in detail later) indicate cohere (we point below).
e.Any applicable custom duties.
f.Catalogue illustrations.
g.Any repairs made to the Lot as per prior agreement with the Seller.
h.Framing and mounting.
i.Authentication made by independent professionals which the Company believes to be necessary in preparing the catalogue explanations.
j.Any independent professional opinions which the Company deems proper.
k.Collect 50% of the insured amount as part of the general expenses of the Company in the event the Lot is not successfully auctioned.
l.The storage of the Lot after the auction (if applicable).
m.The administration cost of the Company reaches 10% of all the expenses incurred as a result of client services provided.
n.Any marketing and promotional expenses.
■ Insurance coverage to be arranged by the Company a.Unless otherwise agreed by the Company, the Lot will be automatically insured under the Company art relic policy in the amount as deemed appropriate by the Company undertakes to be successfully during the auction.
b.The Company will collect 1% of the hammer price from the seller or 1% of the reserve price if the Lot is not successfully auctioned. If the shipping is arranged by the Company, an additional amount will be collected by the Company from the Seller as the shipping insurance. Such amount varies depending on the individual condition of each auction item. The Company will refer a freight forwarder any legal responsible for any legal responsibilities incurred therefrom.
c.The Lot will remain insured up to 7 days after the sale. If the Lot has not been sold, it will be at the Seller's risk upon the expiry of 7 days.
d.We are unable to accept responsibility for damage caused by woodworm or changes in atmospheric conditions or weather.
■ No insurance purchased by the Seller and risk transfer If the Seller inform the Company specifically that it is unnecessary to purchase insurance for the Lot, the risks shall be borne entirely by the Seller until the Buyer makes all the payments. The Seller must indemnify the Company, the employees and agents of the Company and the Buyer (if applicable) any claims in connection with the auction against the Company, the employees and agents of the Company and the Buyer, regardless of the cause of such claim.
■ Commitments made by the Seller with respect to the Lot a.The Seller is the only owner of the Lot and has the unlimited right to assign his ownership to the Buyer which should not concern any third party right or claim (including copyright claims).
b.The Seller complies with all the laws in connection with the import and export of auction items and any other laws and has notified the Company in writing any failure to comply with such rules in the past.
c.The Seller has notified the Company in writing of any major modifications in the Lot to the best of his knowledge and any concern the third party has raised with respect to the ownership of the Lot and the condition. In the event of any inaccuracy of the above mentioned, the Seller must guarantee, if requested, to identify fully the Company and/or the Buyer all the claims, costs and expenses arising herefrom, whether caused by the Lot or the auction proceeds.
■ Auction arrangements a.The Company has its discretion over the description of the auction in the catalogue, display layouts, authentication opinions, location and method of the auction, who will be allowed to bid and the acceptance of the bid price, whether to seek professional opinion and whether to combine or separate the Lots. The Company reserves the right to withdraw the lot without obtaining the consent of the Seller.
b.If the Company or the Seller withdraws the Lot, the Company may charge 40% of the Reserve set by the Seller.
■ Auction rules a.The Company will auction the item according to the Reserve. The Reserve may not be higher than the minimum of the estimates set in the catalogue. The Company is entitled to auction the item at a price lower than the Reserve, If the lot is sold according to the above principle, the Company is responsible to pay the Seller the difference between the closing price and the Reserve.
b.The seller may not increase the price of sale without fair reasons, nor participate in the bidding of his/her/its auction item(s), however, Zhong Cheng is authorized to bid on behalf of the Seller at the price not higher than the Reserve Price.
■ After the auction a. Settlement
After the payment is made by the Buyer, unless the Company receives a notice claiming such auction item is a forgery (as defined in the Agreement), the Company will pay the Seller within 45 days following the successful auction day an amount equal to the closing price taking away all the expenses payable by the Seller. If the Buyer delays the payment, the Company will pay the Seller within 7 days following the payment by the Buyer. The Company pays the Seller before the Buyer makes the payment, the Company acquires the full ownership of the item for any reason. However, if the Company is forced to reclaim the Lot from the Buyer because such item is a counterfeit, the Seller must return the auction proceeds to the Company. Unless otherwise instructed by the Seller in writing, the Company will make its payment in NT dollars. If the Seller requests to pay in currencies other than NT dollars, the Company will collect from the Seller any foreign exchange expenses arising there from.
b. Non-payment by the Buyer
If the Buyer fails to make all the payments due within 35 days following the auction day, the Company is entitled to negotiate special terms in connection with the payments, storage, and insurance on behalf of the Seller and act deemed necessary by the Company to collect payments payable for making remittance to the Seller nor for bringing any legal actions on behalf of the Seller. The Company will discuss with the Seller to adopt appropriate actions to claim auction payments from the Buyer.
c. Forgery
If the Buyer convinces the Company that the Lot is a forgery (as defined in the Agreement) within 10 days following the auction day, then
a.If the Buyer has not paid all or part of the payment, the Company is entitled to call of the transaction and/or
b.If the Company at that time has paid all or part of the payments payable to the Seller, the Seller must return all the payments made to the Company if requested. The Company will exercise lien for the latter. Any items belonging to the Seller under control of the Company will be kept as security of the payments to be returned.
d. Unsuccessfully auctioned items
Any item is not auctioned successfully, not included in the auction or withdrawn from the auction for any reason must be collected by the Seller within 35 days upon notification by the Company to the Seller. The storage fee of NT$1,000 per day will be charged on each item not collected after such 35 day period together with an additional charge for purchasing insurance coverage. The Company may dispose the Lot, if such item is not collected within 60 days following the auction date or the notice date (whichever is the earlier). Such disposal includes removing the item to a third party warehouse with the associated expenses borne by the Seller and to auction such items under terms deemed appropriate by the Company (including the terms of estimates and the Reserve). The Company will pay the Seller the related expense after payments owed are offset.
The Company is authorized to act as the sole agent of the Seller within 2 months following the auction for any auction item with-drawn from the auction or not sold. The Company may auction in private the item based on the net amount the Seller may receive (the amount after deducting all the expenses payable by the Seller) or sell such item in private at a lower price agreed upon by the Company and the Seller. Under such circumstances, the Seller's responsibilities and liabilities to the Company are the same as during an auction.
■ Photographs and display The Company owns the copyright in all images, illustration and written material produced by or for the Company's relating to a lot including he contents of this catalogue, is and shall remain at all times the property of the Company and shall it be used by the Buyer, nor by anyone else, without the Company's prior consent.
■ Tax The payments payable by the Seller to the Company does not include any commodity or service tax or any other value added tax (whether imposed in the Taiwan or elsewhere). The Buyer should be responsible for paying such taxes pursuant to the tax rates and time provided by the law if there is any such applicable tax.
If the Company is commissioned by the Seller to auction in Taiwan, the Company must pay the income tax for the Seller pursuant to the R.O.C. laws.