East Midlands auction firm, SDL Auctions will go ahead behind closed doors for its forthcoming sales.
But don’t panic you can still make a bid and watch the auction live on your device.
Following the government’s advice to limit social contact, the three March auctions scheduled to take place in Birmingham, Derby and Leicester will go ahead behind closed doors, with several remote bidding options available to buyers.
The Nottingham sale is scheduled for Friday, April 24, 2020.
Andrew Parker, managing director and auctioneer, said: “We have not taken this decision lightly but the safety and health of our customers, partners and staff are our primary focus and we felt this was the most appropriate course of action in these unprecedented times.
“At the moment, we are planning to run our April auctions in Nottingham and Manchester as normal at Nottingham Racecourse and the AJ Bell Stadium in Salford. We will be keeping a close eye on the government’s advice and should we wish to change these auctions to be run online only we will announce this in due course. We do not currently anticipate any interruptions to the service our customers receive whether we hold our auctions live in the auction room or via video link.”
Bidders for the March auctions are now required to submit a telephone, proxy or internet bid and you can watch Andrew conducting the auction in real time by clicking the “watch auction live” link on the firm’s website.
Property viewings will continue to take place as normal but potential buyers are urged to let the team know if they cannot attend.
Andrew added: “We are very fortunate that we already use all of this technology for each and every auction and our remote bidding service is already used by many of our regular buyers. Our auctions are already filmed for our live video feed and we take multiple remote bids each auction day, in fact last year we sold in excess of £80m of property online.”
He said: “Our entire team is able to work remotely so can continue to provide all our customers and partners with the level of service they expect from our business.
“The only difference is that our usual auction venues will be closed to visitors and all bids will be taken remotely. As we have been taking remote bids from buyers for many years, we are confident that the auctions will run smoothly, albeit a little more quietly.”
Andrew said: “In times of uncertainty we’re pleased to be able to offer our customers certainty and security in their property sales and purchases and would like to thank them for their continued support and understanding. Our thoughts are with all those affected by coronavirus in the UK and around the world..”
