Buying on ZOO

Q: How much does it cost to buy an auction lot on the ZOO site?

The total amount of the winning bid will be paid directly to the seller of the auction lot.

When you are the highest bidder in a ZOO online auction, and the auction lot has met or exceeded the reserve, we charge you a 6% premium (minimum of £600 for cars and £300 for number plates with a cap at £6,000).

There are no additional Fees at all.

Q: How do I know whether the auction lot has a reserve price?

Unless being sold at ‘No Reserve’, all auction lots have a reserve.

Q: Can I see the auction lot in person during the auction?

Buyers can always request a viewing to see an auction lot in person.

We ask that sellers make auction lots available at convenient times.

Buyers and sellers shall not engage in any activity designed to complete or facilitate a transaction for the sale or purchase of an auction outside of the site.

Q: Is it ok to contact the seller during the auction?

If you have a specific question about the auction lot, post it in the questions section on the listing. The seller or we will then reply. This avoids duplicated questions from other bidders.

Q: Can other bidders 'snipe' at the end of an auction to outbid me?

Our platform prevents sniping by automatically adding more time. Any bid received within the last two minutes will automatically trigger an extra two minutes to be added. After this point, only once there are no further bids within a two-minute window will the auction end.

Q: What is a Proxy Bid (Automatic Bid)?

When bidding we have 2 types of bid.

1. Normal Bid, this is the amount you wish to bid on the lot. This will bid the exact amount that you have have put in irrespective of how much has already been bid on the Auction.

2. Proxy Bid (Automatic Bid), this will bid your maximum bid amount for you but it will not initially increase to that amount unless anyone bids against you. The amount will increase gradually by the set bid amount until it has reached your maximum proxy bid (Automatic Bid) amount.

Q: Can I withdraw a bid?

Once a bid has been placed, you cannot withdraw it. If you as the successful Buyer fail to complete the purchase of an auction for any reason other than the default of the Seller, you will be obliged to pay the 6% premium (minimum of £600 for cars and £300 for number plates with a cap at £6,000) of your high bid.

Q: If I have the winning bid what happens next?

When an auction lot sells on our platform, a 6% premium is charged (£600 minimum for cars and £300 for number plates with a £6,000 maximum) an email will be sent to you to you to pay our fee for hosting the auction.

This is a fee for using the platform and not a down payment on the auction lot. You are then ‘introduced’ to the seller to complete the transaction.

There are NO refunds on the buyer’s premium.

Q: Can I follow up with the seller after the auction ends if it failed to meet reserve and I am still interested?

If the auction lot fails to meet its reserve price but the final bid was close to the reserve, we offer sellers the option to offer for sale to the highest bidder. This will offer the chance to do a post auction deal.

Q: What happens if the auction lot has some defects that were not mentioned in the auction listing?

ZOO Auctions hosts auction listings, but the seller is responsible for confirming the accuracy of the listing. As a bidder, it is your responsibility to satisfy yourself of the details and condition of the auction lot before placing a bid.

All sales by traders made to consumers, whether sold by an individual or a business, do fall under the Consumer Rights Act 2015. The Act provides that wherever goods are purchased by a consumer, they must meet certain minimum standards.

If purchased from a trader, the sale item must be of “satisfactory quality”, be “as described” and be “fit for purpose”. Therefore, items sold by traders must not be inherently faulty at the time of sale, allowing for the fact that they are second-hand, must match the description and, allowing for factors like price, must be fit for their purpose.

For more information on your consumer rights please see the Citizens Advice website.

Buying cars from outside the UK

For UK residents, you can find more information on the documentation you will need to import your car at www.gov.uk/importing-vehicles-into-the-uk.

Buyers from outside the Uk will need to check their own countries import laws and what documentation would be needed to import a car.

Q: Does the buyer's premium include transport or storage?

No, the buyer’s premium is a fee for using the site. ZOO Auctions is not responsible for the storage and or transportation of any auction lots. Any costs relative to this are the responsibility of the buyer.

Bid increments

The increments will be as below and will work in this way when opting for absentee bidding.

£100 increments up to £10,000

£250 increments from £10,000 to £50,000

£500 increments from £50,000 upwards

VAT, duties and taxes

For UK residents, you can find more information on the VAT, duties and taxes associated with purchasing a vehicle at www.gov.uk/importing-vehicles-into-the-uk/paying-vat-and-duty.

For buyers outside the UK, please check your country’s laws on VAT, duties and taxes for imported cars.

Q: Can you remove the auction listing after it’s been listed on the ZOO platform?

We do not remove an auction listing. If there is a genuine and valid reason we may consider this, but it would be done at Zoo Auctions own discretion.