Ritchie Brothers Auctioneers - Buyer beware!

[Turbys_1700]

My dad was a tractor and implement salesman for over 25 years...
The used equipment that they purchased at auction was resold at their local dealership...
Typically they only bought at two or three auction lots and knew the auction owners...
For the most part, they would purchased items without warranty but knew the history of most of the tractors, combines, and equipment they bought...
I think that was key in their success...
Sure, sometimes they would get burned...
But this was few and far between...
Anytime you buy at auction it is without warranty...
I don't see the problem in buying if you know the risks but do due diligence with a pre auction-inspection...
Pre-inspection and history is really the only thing you have to go on...

 

[brain55]

So does that mean in Ohio you have to disclose any known defect when selling something, or face a fraud charge?

What about the guys that bid on our Bobcat T300's they had a pick of 4, they picked the one that was going to need drive motors or hydrostat pumps, I did nothing to hide that it was worn out, they just didn't know what to look for in a used piece of equipment. Is that my fault too? It was an open auction with no reserve and nobody holding a gun to anybody's head to purchase anything.

 

[joshuabardwell]

Redlevel,
They received undue compensation for a falsely advertised product. I would have simply expected them to make the deal equitable. That's all. Obviously too much to ask of a multibillion dollar international corporation (or maybe of anyone today?) in the name of good customer service.

Let me ask you this: Let's say you saw a common item listed for auction, but upon inspection you came to realize it was actually a much more valuable item? You know--regular "Antiques Roadshow" kind of thing. You going to bid the "common" price and hope you get a bargain, or you going to bid the "fair" price? And if the auctioneer came to you the next day and said, "That item was mislabeled. You received undue compensation due to false advertising. You owe us the difference." What are you going to tell them?

Caveat emptor was never so true as at an auction.

 

[aczlan]

Back to the original subject:

Dirtworks, to be clear, I did look at it (in the rain). What I meant when I said "inspection was not practical" was I did not attempt to drive it around due to the weather especially since I knew they would drive it to the auction block so I'd know it at least worked (and again warranty). Again, all I knew to verify was the model# and the hours (and of course the fact it appeared like new and had a FEL on it).

If you looked at that, why didn't you look for the HST pedals? Its pretty basic to see if a tractor has HST pedals vs a shifter and you would need to know that to drive it away...

Aaron Z

 

[joshuabardwell]

In my oppion RB auction house is not trustworthy, based on how they treated you. The fact that most of them behave the same way does not justify it. Buyer beware is right!

Yes, but they tell you up front, in plain speech, before the auction starts, "buyer beware"! So what's the problem? There's no justification needed. Everybody involved knows what they're getting into, or ought to. The speech about, "as is, where is," is not just for your entertainment.

 

[greasemonkeyok]

Yes, but isn't there a difference between saying "I make no representations as to the condition" and making an affirmative misrepresentation as to the features? Seems to me that if you speak, you have a duty to speak the truth and you shouldn't be allowed to cover up an outright lie with a general disclaimer.

 

[brain55]

But seriously, if you can't tell the difference between a gear drive and a hydrostat even in the rain with a quick visual, you have no business purchasing at an auction. Regardless of whether RB intentionally or unintentionally misrepresented the machine.

 

[greasemonkeyok]

But seriously, if you can't tell the difference between a gear drive and a hydrostat even in the rain with a quick visual, you have no business purchasing at an auction. Regardless of whether RB intentionally or unintentionally misrepresented the machine.

Valid point if you assume the buyer was knowledgeable of that brand of tractor. Do all hydro's use pedals, or do some use a lever like my Wheelhorse garden tractor?

 

[DavesTractor]

Yes, but isn't there a difference between saying "I make no representations as to the condition" and making an affirmative misrepresentation as to the features? Seems to me that if you speak, you have a duty to speak the truth and you shouldn't be allowed to cover up an outright lie with a general disclaimer.

And to further that thought, let's say you are selling a backhoe and you know the bellhousing or major frame part has been busted in the past and welded, when the correct repair would have been to replace the part. "As-is" to me would still not morally allow that seller to grind the area smooth and bondo the welds and paint it flat black and throw some dirt on it...basically to hide the major flaw. If he left the weld obvious and made no representation he could better say "buyer beware" and still sleep at night. Sins of omission vs sins of comission type of deal. But actively hiding the flaw is probably not against the law in an auction setting and since we all know it is sometimes done, we need to look for it.

For a major landscape company to do things like plugging a vent in a bellhousing to hide a leak may be legal (?), but the owner of that company has a different moral compass than I do. I suppose his mechanic would be in a bind, being told to do that as part of his job. I think I'd look elsewhere for work.

 

[brain55]

Safety issues are obviously a different deal. I didn't do anything unsafe. If the backhoe or loader frame comes off somebody is going to get hurt. Just like I would not do anything in the area of the ROPS that would compromise its integrity. Hiding an oil leak, I'm not going to lose sleep over that in an auction situation. If I was selling to you face to face I could never do it.