MPHS Auction Bidding Rules (as of 2018)
For sellers, please see the Sellers’ Rules below.
The Auction specializes in war covers and collateral material. Items not eligible under this definition will be accepted by the Auction Manager in limited cases e.g. part of member’s estate, part of larger accumulation, club donation.
- Everyone is eligible to participate in the MPHS Mail Auction.
- Bids may be submitted on paper by mail, using the bid sheet on our website, or by e-mail. Bids must include bidder’s name, mailing address, membership number, and maximum bid. “Buy” bids cannot be accepted. Written bids must be legible and clear.
- No bids for less than $2.50 will be accepted.
- All lots shall be sold to the highest bidder at a slight advance over the second highest bid in accordance with the following scale: Up to $10.00 by 50 cents; up to $20.00 by $1.00; up to $50.00 by $2.00; and over $50.00 by $5.00. Bids shall be submitted in 25c increments. Bids not properly incremented will be reduced to the next lowest proper number e.g. a bid of $8.40 will be entered as $8.25.
- In case of tie bids, the earliest date of mailing as determined from the postmark or date/time on the e-mail shall determine the winner.
- The Auction Manager reserves the right to withdraw any lot prior to sale.
- The Auction Manager will answer reasonable questions about lots if a stamped self addressed envelope and copying costs are enclosed with the inquiry. A reasonable amount of scans (up to 5) can also be requested by e-mail.
- An invoice shall be sent to all successful bidders before the lots are mailed. A 10% Seller’s commission will be added to the total (excluding shipping) on the invoice. Payment shall be made within 5 days of receipt of invoice, by personal check, money order or PayPal in US currency. Lots shall be forwarded upon receipt of payment with an allowance for personal checks processing period.
- For domestic shipments, all Lots under $20.00 in value shall be mailed regular First Class uninsured at buyer’s risk unless other direction is received from the buyer. Similarly, all lots between $20.00 and $50.00 will be sent First Class Parcel with USPS Insurance (unless other direction is received from the buyer). All lots between $50.00 and $200.00 in value shall be mailed First Class Parcel with Delivery Confirmation. All lots over $200.00 in value shall be mailed First Class Certified Mail. For larger packages, Parcel Post or Priority Mail may be used. All shipments of $50.00 and more in value will be insured by the MPHS insurance. Postage and fees are paid for by the buyer.
- For international shipments to most countries, Lots under $50.00 in value shall be mailed regular First Class International uninsured at buyer’s risk unless other direction is received from the buyer. Lots between $50.00 and $200.00 in value shall be mailed First Class International. All lots over $200.00 in value shall be mailed Registered First Class International. For larger packages, Priority Mail International may be used. All shipments of $50.00 and more in value will be insured by the MPHS insurance. Postage and fees are paid for by the buyer.
- Bidders may return items for other than described faults or inaccurate descriptions within 10 days of receipt. All returned lots must be in the condition received. Lots described as “as is” or large lots of more than 10 covers, may not be returned for faults or bad condition. The condition described for large lots refers to the average condition of most covers and may not reflect the condition of any specific item in that lot.
- The bidder may indicate a desire to verify authenticity of an item after receipt. In such cases the payment will be held by the auctioneer for up to 2 months. Expertization fees are borne by the buyer. All requests for expertization shall be sent to the Auction Manager within 10 days after the lot has been shipped. In the absence of written notification received by the Auction Manager within the 2 months after submission that the lot has been found to not be genuine or not as described, it will be conclusively assumed that it is genuine and payment will be sent to the seller.
- Title shall remain with the Military Postal History Society, acting on behalf of the seller, until full payment is received. The Auction Manager shall regulate the bidding and reserve the right to reject any bid not considered to be in good faith.
- Prices realized shall be provided to each buyer and seller at time of settlement. They will also be sent to unsuccessful bidders who include a self addressed stamped envelope with their bids.
- All correspondence regarding the MPHS auctions shall be directed to the Auction Manager:
(up to and including Auction 216) Roger Santala, Email: rogrmt@gmail.com
(Auction 217 and on) Kelly Horn, Email: kfhorn@bellsouth.net
MPHS Auction Selling Rules (as of 2018)
For bidders, please see the Bidders’ Rules above.
- Everyone is eligible to participate in the MPHS Mail Auction.
- Lots of at least $2.50 Estimated Cash Value (ECV) are encouraged. The Auction Manager reserves the right to break down or combine lots unless specific directions are received.
- Realistic valuations are encouraged for better lots. All lots will have a minimum bid of $2.50 unless a specific Minimum Bid (MB) is specified by the seller. Such MB should only be used for better lots and need to be a realistic amount.
- To minimize unrealistic use of the Minimum Bid feature, the Auction Manager reserves the right to levy a 25 cent lotting fee for unsold lots with MB. This lotting fee will be levied at the discretion of the Auction Manager.
- It is in the best interest of the seller to describe his or her lots, especially for better, very specialized or unusual lots. The Auction Manager will supplement the owner’s description in areas that he has sufficient knowledge.
- For lots not described, the Auction Manager will describe the lot to the best of his knowledge and is not responsible for possible errors in the description.
- The Auction Manager will monitor the seller’s descriptions so as to minimize returns. The descriptions should indicate any pertinent information such as country of origin, postmark, markings, condition and any other relevant information.
- Seller should include a self-addressed postcard or SASE with shipment. This is used to acknowledge receipt of shipment, state probable sale date, and provide seller’s number to new sellers.
- Every seller shall be supplied a seller’s number. This number will be indicated at the end of each description and shall help seller identify own lots in sale e.g. (1111). This number will be treated confidentially.
- Sellers shall receive payment either a few weeks after every sale for amounts over $100.00 or after every other sales for amounts under $100.00 (unless requested otherwise). The amount of time to receive a payment will depend on how quickly all the lots for any given sale are paid, on the availability of the Auction Manager and whether an expert opinion is requested.
- A commission charge of 15% is charged on all lots. The amount will be deducted at the time of payment. A detailed statement will be received with each payment.
- If a particular lot is requested to be expertise by the buyer, the seller shall be notified that the payment is being withheld. (See bidding rules.)
- If no specific instructions are received with the lots, unsold lots will be put back in either the following auction (if time permits) or most likely, the auction after that. In no case will lots be offered in more than 4 auctions and the Auction Manager reserves the right to combine certain unsold lots after 2-3 unsuccessful attempts.
- After 4 unsuccessful attempts, unsold lots can either be donated to the MPHs or returned to the seller at the seller’s expense.
- All lots and correspondence regarding the MPHS auctions shall be directed to the Auction Manager:
(up to and including Auction 216) Roger Santala, Email: rogrmt@gmail.com
(Auction 217 and on) Kelly Horn, Email: kfhorn@bellsouth.net