Auctions

Robert Murray Stamp Shop
5 & 6 Inverleith Gardens
Ferry Road
Edinburgh
EH3 5PU
United Kingdom
Telephone(s):
0131 552 1220
0131 478 7021

Email:
[email protected]

Website:
stamp-shop.com

Robert Murray Stamp Shop opened in January 1977 and has been in the same location and under the same ownership ever since.

Robert (Bob) Murray started trading in stamps while at school, went on to work for Edinburgh's biggest auction house (Dowell's, part of the Phillips group), then decided to go his own way.

The retail shop is situated on the north side of Edinburgh and has always been a general philatelic business, proud to cater for collectors of all standards. In 1981 the shop was doubled in size by taking over the premises next door. Initially only handling philatelic material (stamps, covers, accessories and books), customer demand saw the range extended to also cover postcards, cigarette cards, coins, medals, and banknotes.

His first public auction was held in March 1977, and they have been held continuously since, at a frequency of between six and ten each year. Hundreds of tons of lots have been handled over the years, from single rarities to massive accumulations, and that has included some important individual collections. Robert Murray's policy has always been to strive for good quality descriptions, and to decline material where he thought vendors' reserves were too high.

Robert Murray is a well-known and experienced speaker, mainly on philatelic subjects. He has spoken on very varied subjects to specialist societies and general interest groups alike. For a number of years he was a regular guest on local radio while they had their "Phone the Expert" feature, and he has written numerous general and specialist articles in the philatelic press.

In recent years he has - time permitting - run series of workshops on various philatelic subjects. Bob says "I think it is important that collectors should have the opportunity to learn more about their hobby, to get inspiration to help them enjoy their hobby even more, and to get some of the tools which will stop them from becoming victim to pitfalls. It is also a great way for me to keep my thinking sharp, and you never know what interesting questions are going to come up."

Business changed dramatically in March 2020 due to the effect of Coronavirus, but activities have been restructured to take account of the current situation, with the auctions now being run online.

Robert Murray Stamp Shop, Edinburgh
Auction House Terms and Conditions

Definitions
1. Throughout these Terms and Conditions, the use of "auctioneer", "we", "us", "Robert Murray", or similar terms, refers to Robert Murray trading as Robert Murray Stamp Shop.
2. All transactions are carried out in Pounds Sterling ("£", GBP).
3. We operate under Scottish Law.
4. This auction is conducted according to the "Philatelic Auctioneers Standard Terms and Conditions of Sale" (available on our website at www.stamp-shop.com/pastacos.html ) with the exception of {a} Clause 6, where "Scottish" should be substituted for "English", and {b} any points which are superseded in these present Terms and Conditions.

Descriptions
Each lot is sold as described in the lot listing. Any illustrations provided are taken as being part of the description. No lot can therefore be rejected on the grounds of any fault which is either noted in the descriptive text, or can be seen from the accompanying illustration/s.
If there is any dispute, it should be raised first directly with the auctioneer. If a satisfactory resolu-tion cannot be agreed, it should be put before a mutually agreed person or body, such as the Scottish Philatelic Trade Association, or Philatelic Traders Society, for decision (and if this cannot be mutually agreed, the Philatelic Traders Society shall be asked to arbitrate).
Any description of quality or grading is subjective, and is the auctioneer's honest assessment of the item. No lot can be returned on the basis of a difference in opinion. If a bidder has concerns about quality they should satisfy themselves in good time before the auction commences.

Bidding
Any person entering bids, whether online or directly with ourselves, is entering into a contract to purchase any lots sold to them in the auction, and agrees to the terms and conditions of Robert Murray Stamp Shop and easyliveAuction.

During live auctions, the auctioneer shall control the process of the auction, including deciding the selling point of each lot, which will be marked by the fall of the hammer. Timed auctions will be entirely managed by Easy Live Auction's software systems. Clients should bid as early and as quickly as possible. If any bidder misses a lot for any reason, including delays in online connections, or not understanding the system, they shall have no recourse.
Any lots purchased via easyliveauction.com live auction service will be subject to a 3% commission charge + VAT in addition to the auction sale price, unless the bidder has chosen in advance to pay their flat fee of £3 per auction.
Lots purchased via easyliveauction.com timed auctions are subject to a 3% commission charge + v.a.t., and this applies to all lots.

Bids should be made online, but any client who does not have online access can make bids directly to us by email or by post. We will then transfer their bids onto the online system in advance of the sale. We are not to be held responsible for any errors or omissions in this process, and the time these bids are registered on the system will be the time at which we transfer them, which could be delayed from the time we receive them.
Open Bids (“Buy Bids”) are not normally accepted. If such bids are made, they will be taken to mean a bid of ten times the stated estimate.

Buyer's Premium
A buyer's premium of 12% (plus v.a.t.) will be added to all hammer prices.

Payment
The commonest method of payment is by bank transfer, normally made after the buyer has received their updated invoice including postal/carriage costs.
Payment can also be accepted by debit card or credit card (with no extra charges), but note that non-UK credit cards will be charged 1% extra towards extra transaction charges we have to pay. Visitors to our shop can pay by cash in GBP, and we also accept cheques.

Extensions
A buyer may request an extension on any lot as long as they intimate to the auctioneer, at least two working days before the auction, that they intend to take this course of action.
The auctioneer would in this case refer the item to an established expert or expert committee, agreed by the buyer. Should the expert opinion be that the lot is genuine, the buyer shall accept the item, pay for it, and pay the cost of expertisation. If the expert's opinion is that the item is not genuine (or declines to give an opinion), the sale will be cancelled, and the expertisation costs paid by the vendor.
After an auction concludes, each online buyer will be sent an invoice. At this point the buyer should decide whether to collect their lots from our premises (5 & 6 Inverleith Gardens, Edinburgh, Scotland, EH3 5PU, by arrangement) or have us send them out. We can give you an estimate of the shipping costs if that is required to help you decide. If the buyer wants their purchases sent out, we will then provide a quotation of the shipping cost so that the full invoice can be paid.

Some of our regular customers give us standing instructions so that we know what they want done.

Our default method of delivery is the most appropriate Royal Mail service, for which we pass on the actual cost.

If a customer wants packages sent by another carrier, we will provide measurements (size and weight), and this is then subject to two requirements;
{a} the customer has to arrange the pick-up by the carrier, at a time that is suitable to us, and
{b} we will charge a packing fee of £5 for the first parcel, and £3 per additional parcel.