Buyer guide
How to bid at an auction on Sernelo
Auctions have not opened yet. This guide sets out how bidding, costs and protection will work so you know exactly what to expect when the first catalogues go live.
Bidding online, step by step
1. Create an account
Registration is free. You confirm an email address and add a payment method before your first bid so that a winning bid can be settled without delay.
2. Find the lot and read it properly
Study the photographs at full size, read the condition report rather than the headline, and check where the lot ships from — that drives both carriage and any duty you may owe.
3. Decide your limit before you bid
Work out the most the object is worth to you all-in: hammer price, buyer's premium, shipping and duty. Deciding this in advance is what keeps auction buying disciplined.
4. Leave a maximum bid
Enter that limit as a maximum. The platform bids in increments on your behalf and stops there, so you do not have to be online when the lot closes to stay competitive.
5. Settle and receive the lot
If you win, you pay the hammer price plus fees, shipping and duties. Funds stay protected until the lot arrives and matches its description.
Reading a catalogue entry
Every lot carries a description, a condition report and an estimate range written by the department specialist. The estimate is a considered opinion of value based on comparable results — it is not a starting price and not a guarantee. Where a lot has a reserve, it sits at or below the low estimate and is never disclosed as a figure.
Placing a bid
Bidding is in set increments that grow with the price. Rather than watching the clock, you can leave a maximum: the system bids for you, one increment at a time, and stops at your limit. You are only ever committed to the increment needed to lead, never automatically to your maximum.
Closing time and extensions
Timed lots close at a published time. A bid placed in the final moments extends that lot briefly so other bidders can respond — a fair-warning rule that prevents last-second sniping from deciding a sale.
What you pay
The total is the hammer price plus a buyer's fee, which varies by department, plus shipping and any import duties or taxes due in your country. Sernelo shows an all-in estimate before you confirm a bid, so the final figure holds no surprises.
Delivery and protection
Lots ship insured and tracked, handled by specialist carriers where the object needs them. Payment is held until the lot arrives and matches its description; if it does not, you raise a claim within the inspection window and the funds are not released.
Where to start browsing
The mechanics behind reserves, increments and closing extensions are covered in how online auctions work, and the buyer's premium is set out in full on the fees page. Departments with the deepest specialist coverage today include watches, art, designer handbags and motors. If pictures are your area, the guide to buying art at auction explains catalogue attribution wording and condition reports in detail.