Bonhams Reviews 190

All of their online auctions have a delayed echo….extremely distracting and seems like that would be an easy fix. It has been that way for two years.

Also, the real time online bidding is faulty. I had bid on an item in a jewelry auction today and thought I was the high bidder….but ended up not winning the lot. I realize these things can happen but it seems their software is lacking which is vital.

I called to relate what happened and it was obvious to me nothing was going to happen. And I’ve bought two items over the past several months. Don’t plan on being a return customer!

Nothing positive to say, poor communications, poor advertising, poor service, poor price. I would stay clear of Bonham's, absolutely shocking in everyday. Very, very disappointed.

Utter and complete crooks, never came across bigger lying, twisting and cover up company in my life.

Buying from them not only are you exposing yourself to arrogance and continued belittling but the goods are not as described, fake or its "provenance" not checked by their staff.

If you have fake goods, this is the place to offload them.

Had to recover my money through litigation!

SHOCKING!!!

Long term Bonhams customer, tried to bid in an on-line (only) auction, web site suffered continual denial of service problem. Phoned Bonhams. Was told "we know, sorry." Bonhams should not run on-line bidding without required server capacity and systems configurations.

my experience of dealing with Michael lake was fantastic he obviously treats everyone with respect&politeness whoever they may be.He was so knowledgeable&helpful,gave an honest constructive advice to me credit to him.

ASTONISHINGLY UNPROFESSIONAL
We wanted to sell 2 beautiful bronze statues with an amazingly strong and interesting provenance, gifted to a family member by the wife of the artist (a famous one) in the early 1900s.

We chose Bonhams because of the reach of their marketing, their "prestigious name" and we had our 2 bronze statues shipped from S. Francisco to London, to have them included in their London auction of art works and books from "the age of discovery."
husband and I to the best "fit." They did post the sculptures on their far-reaching websites ("Invaluable," etc) and we were told (I can't verify this) that they contacted some parties (galleries?) that they knew have an interest in art relating to the exploration/colonization of Africa.

We fully realize that Bonham's cannot control the level of interest in any work of art.

What Bonham's SHOULD control is:
1. The quality of the photographs of the pieces -- which were more than substandard. I have many photos I've taken with my 3-yr old Android cellphone (a cheap one) in my living room with no other light but what came in thru the windows -- which are all on one side and no ceiling light. Not great or professional light. Yet the photos I have of the scuptures showed MUCH more detail and the beauty of the bronze and marble bases than the photos that Bonhams took and posted. Theirs looked rather 2-dimensional and as I said, didn't indicate the beautiful detail of the face and body.

They did not even show in their photos the original engraved plaques that the wife of the artist had made and attached to the marble bases of the statues, naming my great-aunt and stating that they were a gift to commemorate their "lasting friendship" (and dated). They also failed to include a photo of the fondeur's mark, so important for proving the originality and authenticity of the work.

2. THE DESCRIPTION: I had sent details that I felt were pertinent and would be likely to increase the sales price -- most notably regarding the provenance.

Yet Bonhams descriptions did NOT t mention that the sculptor had been in Africa with Stanley, (he great explorer of the African interior -- relevant since these bronzes are a bust of a Congolese man's face and a study of a male traditional danger in a leaping pose).
These 2 sculptures were a personal gift from the author's wife to my great-aunt -- who was a member of one of America's prestigious literary families (multiple Pulitzer-prizes awarded).
The descriptions were so lacking that I actually contacted Bonhams and sent my suggested copy -- which they did accept (and seemed happy to include). What did I pay Bonhams huge fees for? Poor photography and copy in their catalogue? (I've been a professional advertising/marketing copywriter for 30+ yrs -- so when I say it was not good copy, I have some experience.)

3. 40 DAYS SINCE AUCTION CLOSED -- AND WE STILL HAVEN"T RECEIVE PROCEEDS! I was appalled that they keep the funds for 30 days -- as if they don't have a huge bank account and couldn't send 10k to us -- but have to wait till it "settles"? Okay, maybe this is industry standard. We have a letter saying we'll receive funds on July 13th. Today is July 20th -- and we STILL do not have the funds in our account. NO proactive communication about this --we have had to call 3x. Given NO explanation for this delay. When we asked just now, we were told that there was a problem with the buyer submitting payment. I fail to understand how this is our problem or should affect when we are paid. Our contract is not with the buyer -- it is with BONHAM'S, who gave us written assurance of when and how we would be paid. That is a contract -- yet 5 days after that date, there had been no effort made to contact us to inform us there would be a delay -- we had to contact THEM? iCan you imagine any other international and "reputable" business the size of Bonham's conducting itself in this manner?

All-in-all a very unprofessional, frustrating and poor experience. NOT at all the "first rate," or "premier" experience that we had expected.

The hot garbage of auction houses. You can sell anywhere and get better prices and better returns for your time and effort.

These people have no true experts that cant be rivaled or excelled by any other auction house, and they keep 38% of the sales price? How is the input and effort from a bunch of clowns worth 38% (i.e 40%).

I wish I had never used them a waste of 6 months of effort to be placed on a sad tuesday afternoon auction.

Avoid at all costs. You can do better.

I consigned 4 lots of ceramics with each lot estimates at between £400 and £600. Their estimates, which I agreed to because they are the experts and know the current market. Reserves set at lower end of the estimates. Only one lot sold at the reserve of £400, the other 3 failing to meet the reserve. A month later and I receive my sales advice -- £73!! They pocketed £327 of £400. Never again. My advice is to avoid at all costs.

I shouldn't think it's possible to find a less professional and competent set of people. They all look the part, sound polite but are ineffectual and useless at their jobs. Put 2 items in for sale - one didn't sell because they didn't do the certification I agreed prior and they didn't admit this until I asked. The other sold at the min. reserve (shocker) but the buyer didn't pay them. I asked for the piece back and they suddenly got busy, chased it and got paid. Their fees are high, their service and professionalism are non-existent. Go somewhere else, anywhere.

Is there any way to go below the one star rating? Bonhams does not deserve even that single star. I am shocked at what happened to me. I bought a Rolex 116660 at an auction in Hong Kong last April. Bonhams pocketed an outrageous 25% fee and when it came to shipping the watch I realized it would have been cheaper to fly to HK to pick it up. Once I got it I manually wound it up, put it on my wrist and flew back to Bangkok. After 48 hours from winding, it stopped working. I thought it might have been me not moving enough my arm but no, it keeps stopping after more or less 48 hours notwithstanding the fact that I wore it all the time. Of course I wrote to Bonhams but all they did is give me the address of a watch repair shop in UK, saying that the watch is 13 years old and it is normal that it will need servicing!! So basically when you buy from Bonhams it is normal the object is not working; it is a given that on top of their fees you will have to pay also for the repairs, even though you have paid above market price and it said in the description that it was in good working order. Conclusion: stay away from Bonhams, they are not reliable, cannot trust what is written on their site and their customer service is non-existent. Read the many 1-star reviews, they all sing the same song. Legal proceedings will follow.

An excellent hotel. Staff took care of us with utmost curtesy. The service was amazing with little touches to make us feel comfortable & welcomed. Room was absolutely comfortable and equipped with everything one would wish for. Also special thank you to the man with the beard who welcomed us. 🙏😊

I bought a Corvette 1963 fuel injection on bonhams auction in paris. The car was clailed sold with its official documents including the french " carte grise". Without this document the can can't be driven on public road and furthermore the official owner can not be changed. After two months, bonhams still do not provide this mandatory document. The car is grounded in my garage. Bonhams does not answer to any letters or e mail. Legal action is ongoing. I can not understand how companies can charge 30000€ commission and literally split in their clients face.

A huge thank you to Bonhams for achieving a successful sale on our rare 1917 Lancia motor car. The process, from valuation through photography, cataloguing and press coverage to the actual sale day was hugely professional. The price achieved at the Golden Age of Motoring auction sale on November 4th was exactly in line with your guidance. Thank you.

Customer Service from here is terrible. I have asked 5 times to be taken off their mailing list as their on line request does not work, and now just being ignored when i emailed them. I am being spammed. I would not trust them with any items to sell or processing anything that has been bought.

Car auction with no reserve is fixed... no reserve means no reserve end of auction means end of auction but this does not apply to Bonhams. If the car doesn't reach close to the estimated price with no reserve at the end of the bidding time, Bonhams extends the time by doubling the bidding time. So in other words if you win the bid at the end of the bidding time on no reserve if they are unhappy with the price they extend the time I'm so more bidders can come in hope that the price goes higher good for them but not good for that last winning bidder . At no reserve should mean the last bidder win

Refused to value my property, which was previously valued at over £900 in 1997, as they claim it is below their "minimum threshold".
Nowhere do they explain what their minimum threshold is.

In late July 2022, in advance of Bonham's 1 August rare book auction, I registered with the auction house, an experience needlessly complicated due to problems on the company's website with regard to accepting required data. After several emails, those issues were solved, and Bonhams reminded me in several follow-up emails about its professionalism and commitment to customer service. On 1 August, I purchased two lots in the auction, totaling $574.39 with the buyer's premium and sales tax. Despite the 27.5% buyer's premium, I figured that I got a decent deal on the two books I purchased.

Both books could have been put in a USPS Priority Mail Flat Rate box and mailed for well under $20, fully insured for about $25. However, the original quote I received from Bonham's shipping department was $252.13. When I questioned Bonham's as to why its shipping quote was ten times the actual cost of mailing, I received no explanation, only a terse statement that "Unfortunately, this is the lowest shipping quote that our shippers were able to provide." For a more affordable alternative, Bonham's directed me to its list of approved third-party shippers, which, as it turned out, are almost all high-end shippers specializing in artwork and fragile antiques, so their quotes were not actually more affordable at all.

Finally, I tried the UPS Store on Sunset Blvd. (the last of Bonham's "approved third-party shippers"), which, almost two weeks after I initiated contact, provided a quote of "Estimated $97 (UPS Ground with declared value of $600) for collection, packing, and shipping," which, while four times the actual cost, seemed reasonable given the service provided. I promptly authorized payment on 24 August.

And then I heard nothing for a month. I finally emailed the UPS Store regarding shipment on 22 September and received a casual "Apologies for the oversight" response. When the parcel was finally shipped on 30 September, the actual cost was $99.03. I received it on 6 October, 67 days after I placed my winning bids.

As much as Bonham's might advertise the professionalism of its services, clearly, at least from my experience, it cares absolutely nothing about what happens after its clients actually place bids on auction items.

My experience mirrors that of the person who recently left a review regarding valuation of a painting. I was asked to send photos by Giulia Resti (which I did the same day) and that they would be passed to the "relevant department". Two weeks later still no response so I emailed again. This time Ballad Liao asked the same thing - so AGAIN I sent photos. Another two weeks passed and I tried AGAIN. This time Kim Murphy asked me to send photos AGAIN, which I did, explaining about the two emails already sent which had received no response. Now another two weeks have elapsed - and Guess What??? NO RESPONSE. The lack of professionalism and plain old courtesy shown by Bonhams staff is STAGGERING!! There are over 500 auction houses on line in GB. I would advise anyone considering selling to contact one of them - but if you actually want an answer don't bother with Bonhams - you will be wasting your time!!!

Impossible to sign up. Fields do not take your information. Uploads respond as if nothing was sent. Not user friendly at all. And they want me to send them money? Not a chance.

I've used Bonham's and Christies for wine auctions quite a few times over the years but recently stopped using Bonham's after I purchased a mixed case that included a fake bottle. This was supposedly a 1996 Pingus but the wine inside was pale with no deposit, had a new shiny cork with no wine ingress, and the capsule was loose and looked tampered with. A quick Google showed this had been a widely faked wine and that police had shut down a Belgian distributor, so I would have hoped for a quick refund. Instead I was told that no refund could be provided as the bottle was not in it's original condition. Very disappointing, and if buying anything above £100 a bottle from there I would strongly recommend viewing before purchase. Christies on the other hand have been excellent. A couple of times over the last decade I've purchased wines that were slightly mislabelled, and in both cases they quickly resolved the issues with an appropriate refund.