I bet the appraiser is embarrassed. The chronometre last sold for roughly $3,000 a few years ago. http://chrono24.auctionata.com/en/o/48896/longines-2-pocket-watches-switzerland-around-1970
We will see if they are getting paid. I have lately seen other auctions end up in "silly land" (no idea if this one is since I do not know s.. about these watches), but some people are having fun bidding wo intending to pay......
Auctionata is not eBay. They have the bidders info, including credit card number. Out of curiosity, what happens at a regular auction house when a buyer renegs?
I don't believe that's how this particular auction house works. All you need a username, password, and e-mail address to bid.
An auction is just a sales contract by a different name. In theory, if a buyer renegs, the seller (let's forget the auction house for a minute), could sue for the bid price, in theory. More likely, they would sell to the next lowest bidder and sue the renegging bidder for the difference. A couple caveats: 1. I am pretty sure no seller would go through the above hassle unless the item sold as very valuable and finding buyers was very difficult. Are you really going to sue because somebody backed out of an auction for a recent vintage Submariner? Probably not. Buzz Aldrin's Speedy, however.... 2. The auction house is definitely the bookie and when you sign up to get your paddle, you best believe you are signing a contract to follow through on the buyer's premium, if nothing else. If you really get bored, check out the Uniform Commercial Code Section 2-328. It governs other auction issues, particularly what to do about shills
That's an important and rare watch. The "expert" associated with this auction was woefully ill-equipt for the role. I'm not complaining, mind you, as I probably benefitted from his questionable estimates.