Beware of auction scam... Here is my story
In May I called Auction Warehouse of Boca Raton for information about their company's terms and policies and if they were interested in auctioning my *furniture & house wares.
I spoke to owner & employees on three occasions. I described my items and they assured me that I would get good money for my furniture. I stated my items were worth approximately $7000 and I was looking for an auction house that would get top dollar. I told them that I didn't want to walk away with only a few hundred dollars as instead I would donate the items to a women's shelter and get a tax donation receipt. They told me that they wanted my items as they were high end and would get top dollar. They told me if they picked up the merchandise, it would be a 60/40 split. When Ray came to see my furniture, he said that in the worst case scenario, I would get around $1000. I agreed to let him try.
i told him that if any items didn't sell within 90 days that they were to call me and i would arrange to pick up those items. He agreed. He said they would call me in 2 weeks to tell me when my auction would be. They never called me back and I hadn't been able to make contact with anyone but the receptionist (Lily) in over 7 months. (She had no answers & blew me off every time I called).
I tried calling, writing & visiting Boca Auction Warehouse over 12 times throughout this period. During several visits to the auction I asked for the status of my belongings, wanting the names of the buyers and what was paid for the items. They never complied and ignored any of my contact attempts. Within that 7 month timeline, they apparently sold (or gave away) my 13 items. They never told me that my auction was over & it was only due to my perseverance that they finally sent me a check for only $61.20 in January. (This was only after I threatened to report them to the state licensing board). I have copies of correspondences and recorded a timeline of every action I took at attempts to communicate with them.
I think the public has the right to know beforehand what they will be getting into if they do business with this scam company. I wish I had known. I checked with the BBB and there was nothing derogatory about them at the time. (So much for their warning the public...)
This company's business practices are unethical, criminal and deceitful. I feel they are scamming the public. The owners Bob & Mary should not be allowed to be in the auction business, and I feel their actions are comparable to thievery.
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