Buyer FAQs
We use an automated bidding system to make things easy for you! Simply enter the maximum amount you are willing to pay for a vehicle. Our bidding platform will automatically bid on your behalf in fixed increments until you are either the highest bidder or your maximum bid has been reached.
If the auction has a reserve, and your maximum bid is the first to meet or exceed the reserve, our bidding platform will use the reserve amount as your first bid. Otherwise, our bidding platform will always place your first bid at one increment above the current bid. Our bidding platform will then increase your bid in fixed increments until you are either the highest bidder or your maximum bid has been reached. If someone outbids your maximum bid, you’ll receive an email to notify you, so that you can increase your maximum bid and stay in the lead.
If you win the auction, you will be charged a 6% + VAT non-refundable buyer’s fee on top of the winning bid, with a minimum of £295 + VAT, up to a maximum of £5,000 + VAT. Keep in mind that all bids are binding and cannot be cancelled. If you fail to pay the Buyer's fee or complete the transaction, you will be in violation of the Auction Terms and Conditions and PistonHeads reserves the right to remove you from the site.
Anyone can bid on PistonHeads auctions, as long as they have a registered account and a saved payment card. We accept all major credit and debit cards, including Visa, MasterCard or AMEX. Click this link to 'Sign in' or select 'Create account', if you don't already have a PH account.
Once you've successfully created an account and signed in, be sure to complete your 'Classifieds profile' with the required information and add a 'Payment Card'. You can see these options by clicking on 'My Account'.
After you've entered your details and saved the changes to your account, you should be able to place a bid on any live Auction.
Rest assured that your information is kept safe and secure in accordance with Stripe’s Privacy Policy, and your card will not be charged unless you win an auction.
Auctions run for 7 days unless otherwise indicated. The timer on the listing shows how long you have left to bid.
We also have a ‘no sniping’ policy. This means that if a bid is placed during the last 2 minutes of an auction on PistonHeads, we extend the auction by another 2 minutes. If a buyer places a bid in the extended 2 minutes, the auction will be extended an additional 2 minutes. This gives all bidders a fair chance to win the auction.
The non-refundable buyer’s fee is 6% of the selling price + VAT, with a minimum of £295 + VAT, up to a maximum of £5,000 + VAT. Keep in mind that all bids are binding and cannot be cancelled. If you fail to pay the Buyer's fee or complete the transaction, you will be in violation of the Auction Terms and Conditions and PistonHeads reserves the right to remove you from the site.
We never disclose a vehicle’s reserve on the PistonHeads site. However, once a reserve is close to being met or has been met, we will make it clear on the auction listing. We also show a badge on auction listings that have no reserve indicating such.
Unless otherwise stated in the listing description, there is no warranty on auction vehicles. This applies to all vehicles listed for sale on PistonHeads auctions, including those being listed by a trade seller. It is the responsibility of the buyer to verify whether any warranty will be provided with the seller directly.
If you have a question about the auction listing, we encourage you to ask the seller by adding a comment to the forum thread associated with the listing, where all questions and answers will be available to the public during the lifetime of the auction. The corresponding forum thread can be found on the Q&A section of the listing.
Sellers are encouraged to reply to your comment in the forum thread. This avoids duplicate questions from other bidders.
Before asking a question, remember to check all the photos and descriptions provided.
We strongly encourage you to view and inspect the vehicle in person before placing a bid.
To arrange a viewing with the seller, simply click on the Q&A section of the listing to be taken to the corresponding forum thread. You’ll then be able to click on the Seller’s profile and send them a direct message with your request. Bidders should aim to only use direct messages to arrange viewings.
If you are unable to view the vehicle during the auction, we encourage you to use the Q&A forum thread to ask for more information.
If the seller is using the concierge service, you can arrange a viewing by contacting our concierge service provider directly. If you are unable to visit the vehicle in person during the concierge service providers regular business hours, as indicated on the auction listing, you can view the walkaround video posted in the Q&A thread.
The listing is written by PistonHeads in conjunction with the seller. We aim to publish comprehensive listings and we pride ourselves on providing transparency to our buyers.
While we do not conduct any inspection, where applicable, our network of photographers document the car’s condition and verify that the vehicle meets the description provided.
As part of the consignment process, a member of the PistonHeads team will speak with each seller to get a description of the vehicle. Any seller that we have deemed to have misrepresented their vehicle is banned from the site. We take our reputation seriously and hold our buyers and sellers to high standards.
We do not conduct any inspections, however, you are able to and are encouraged to view the vehicle in person.
Concierge service is a premium service for sellers where we handle cleaning, viewings, storage and sale administration. Buyers can visit the relevant concierge partner for viewings instead of making arrangements with the seller.
Our bidding platform is automated so that you don’t have to manually enter bids during the auction. When you are ready to place a bid, simply enter the maximum that you are willing to pay for this vehicle (your ‘max bid’).
If the auction has a reserve, and your max bid is the first to meet or exceed the reserve, our bidding platform will use the reserve amount as your first bid. Otherwise, our bidding platform will always place your first bid at one increment above the current bid.
Our bidding platform will then continue to bid on your behalf in fixed increments until you are the highest bidder or your max bid has been met. If someone outbids your max bid, you’ll receive an email to notify you, so that you can increase your max bid and stay in the lead.
Your maximum bid does not include the non-refundable buyer’s fee. If you win the auction, you will be charged a 6% + VAT non-refundable buyer’s fee on top of the winning bid, with a minimum of £295 + VAT, up to a maximum of £5,000 + VAT. If you fail to pay the Buyer's fee or complete the transaction, you will be in violation of the Auction Terms and Conditions and PistonHeads reserves the right to remove you from the site.
We use the following increments to increase your bid through our automated bidding platform:
For bids between £0 and £9,999, the bid increment is £100
For bids between £10,000 and £49,999, the bid increment is £250
For bids between £50,000 and £99,999, the bid increment is £500
For bids £100,000+, the bid increment is £1,000
If someone else enters the same max bid as you, whoever placed their bid first will continue to be the highest bidder.
Yes, sellers can lower the reserve at any time by written email request to PistonHeads (auctions@pistonheads.com). Sellers also reserve the right to accept the next highest bid at the end of the auction, if the reserve is not met.
All bids are binding and you may still win the auction even if the reserve is not met.
We have a ‘no sniping’ policy. This means that if a bid is placed during the last 2 minutes of an auction on PistonHeads, we extend the auction by another 2 minutes. If a buyer places a bid in the extended 2 minutes, the auction will be extended an additional 2 minutes. This gives all bidders a fair chance to win the auction.
Unfortunately, no - all bids are binding.
By placing a bid, you are committing to purchase the vehicle if you win the auction. At the end of the auction, your credit card will be automatically charged a 6% + VAT non-refundable buyer’s fee, up to a maximum of £5,000 + VAT.
This non-refundable amount is payable to PistonHeads, and does not include the amount payable to the seller.
After the auction ends, your payment card will be automatically charged the applicable non-refundable buyer’s fee of 6% + VAT, with a minimum of £295 + VAT, up to a maximum of £5,000 + VAT.
You will receive an email from PistonHeads with instructions on how to contact the seller to arrange payment and the collection of the car.
If you fail to pay the Buyer's fee or complete the transaction, you will be in violation of the Auction Terms and Conditions and PistonHeads reserves the right to remove you from the site.
If the reserve is not met at the end of the auction, we offer sellers the option to convert their listing to a 'Buy it Now' listing for free.
If the seller elects to convert their listing to a 'Buy it Now' listing, they will be able to set a fixed price for their vehicle and the listing will show alongside the auction listings for an agreed upon period, up to a maximum of 30 days.
A 'Buy it Now' listing gives you a second chance to make an offer on a vehicle that was previously listed at auction.
Sellers will set a fixed price for the vehicle. If you agree to the vehicle's list price, all you have to do is click 'Buy it Now' to make an offer and begin the purchase process. Once an offer has been made, the vehicle will not be available to other buyers.
Similar to our auction listings, once you have made an offer, your credit card will automatically be charged the 6% + VAT non-refundable buyer's fee on top of the fixed price, up to a maximum of £5,000 + VAT.
You will then receive an email from PistonHeads with instructions on how to contact the seller to arrange payment and the collection of the vehicle.
All bids placed are final and therefore we will not refund you the buyer's fee. Before placing a bid, it is your responsibility to conduct research on the vehicle. We do not inspect the vehicle, however, we have done the required checks on the background of the car at the time we listed the vehicle and we do our best to write accurate descriptions based on the information the seller gives us and encourage the seller to provide comprehensive photos that show all parts of the car (including any damage). We also offer the opportunity for bidders to ask questions and arrange a viewing with the seller.
If after all this, you find that the vehicle’s condition has been misrepresented, then we advise that you contact the Seller to negotiate a refund and return. PistonHeads has no responsibility in the transaction between the Buyer and the Seller.
After the auction ends, and your credit card has been automatically charged the applicable non-refundable buyer’s fee, you will receive an email from PistonHeads with instructions on how to contact the seller to arrange payment and the collection of the car.
While it will be up to the Buyer and Seller to determine when and how to best exchange the vehicle and the funds, we recommend that you aim to collect the vehicle and pay the Seller within 7 days after winning the auction. If the Seller is using the Concierge Service, then the vehicle should be collected within 7 days after winning the auction, otherwise you will be responsible for any storage costs incurred after those 7 days.
Yes, you can. Our funding partner Charles & Dean are able to use specialist funders to fund auction purchases. Due to the time sensitive nature of an auction it would be advised to get pre approved in advance of the auction finishing so you know how high you can bid and have confidence in your options. Please speak to a dedicated Finance Specialist at Charles & Dean to find out more.
We accept all major credit and debit cards, including Visa, MasterCard or AMEX for our non-refundable buyer’s fee. You are required to enter your credit card details to place a bid. However, your card will not be charged unless you win an auction.
At the end of the auction, it is up to you to agree upon a suitable payment method with the seller for the amount payable to them.
Adding a payment card before bidding in an auction is a simple yet crucial step that ensures the auction process is safe, transparent, and fair for everyone involved. This requirement helps verify your identity, showing sellers you're a serious bidder, which builds trust. It also protects against fraudulent activities and ensures only genuine bidders participate, making the auction more secure for both buyers and sellers. Moreover, it streamlines the payment process, making it easier for you to quickly secure the auction. Essentially, this step is about creating a trustworthy environment where you can confidently bid on items, knowing that the auction platform is committed to maintaining integrity and transparency throughout the process.
We will use your email address in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
You can view our terms and conditions here.
For any questions or concerns related to PH Auctions, please email auctions@pistonheads.com or call +44 2071 238330.