Losing my Judy was bad enough. Then James J. Bates II (aka Jamie Bates) and Julie Smith of Thompson & Riley, Ltd., Auctioneers Appraisers Realtors lied repeatedly and extensively to get my signature on their auction contract. They were so reassuring about how I should stop what I was doing (working on the house and contents) because they would take care of everything and they were much better at it. Under the heading of consumer free speech, I'm here to tell you these people were less than honest from the start and you'll be well advised to consider doing business with a different auctioneer, appraiser or Realtor.
My original complaint to the Kentucky Board of Auctioneers was five pages but, for the sake of space and time, let's begin here with these:
1. Jamie promised to "inventory and catalogue" the contents of the house and provide me with said inventory. No such inventory was received. The only list of contents ever received was at settlement time MONTHS after the auctions and the list received was quite small compared to the actual contents of the house. To my understanding, not providing receipts for contents and providing settlement results and disbursement months after the auctions occurred are violations. These things, taken individually, could be considered oversights (although still inexcusable) but, viewed collectively, each of the points contained in my complaint show a pattern of deception.
2. Jamie promised to utilize Ebay for the dolls, accessories and finer collectibles to get a wider market. We talked at length prior to the signing of the contract. It appears that NOT ONE item made it to Ebay.in his response to my Board of Auctioneers complaint, Jamie stated he's used Ebay for years. First, responding to that claim as he did, it shows there was merit to my raising the point and, secondly, he offered no factual defense (showing what items went to Ebay and the supporting paperwork that would have been created). Numerous promises made but not carried out.
3. Over the course of months after the auctions, numerous attempts to contact Jamie Bates and Julie Smith by phone, fax and email were met with silence. Even the published fax numbers were either disconnected or simply not answered. I wanted to know what was going on with the auctions. They had the money and simply were not disbursing. Not until I sent a registered letter demanding response and disbursement did I receive a response. Within about four days, Julie Smith called my friend Julie and opened with "You really must hate me" to which Julie responded that she "was very disappointed in their failure to follow through on what they had promised". Julie Smith said she had asked Jamie, repeatedly, to make that phone call and when she decided that he obviously wasn't going to make the call, she said she "decided to bite the bullet and make the call". Bottom line: $14 was owed to me. She said they were scaling down the cost of work performed (at contract signing, original quote from Jamie for my costs were $300-$400) and that made my net just under $1,400. Twenty-seven hundred square feet of treasures (Jamie's word) for $1,400. What a bargain!
Do you believe the KY Board of Auctioneers protects the public? One would think so... And they claim that's their primary mandate on their site (http://auctioneers. Ky. Gov/) but that's not the case here. I filed five pages of wrongdoing perpetrated by Thompson & Riley, Ltd. Auctioneers / Realtors. The Kentucky Board of Auctioneers "investigated" and then dismissed my complaint. No hearing, no witness testimony... They turned a blind eye to each and every portion of my complaint. Any one of the basic points about which I complained required action by the Board. The more complicated points of my complaint that, with thorough investigation and witness testimony, would have proven fraud and a systematic approach of wrongdoing by Thompson & Riley, Ltd., Auctioneers and Realtors... Were also ignored. The Kentucky Board of Auctioneers wouldn't even let it get to the next step of a hearing. Do not, even for a second, believe there is any protection of the public by the Kentucky Board of Auctioneers. Oops... I stand corrected by the annual report of the Board: Between June and May of there were (presumably) at least 1,149 complaints filed (mine was numbered 07-1149) yet only one... ONE auctioneer lost his license!!! Need I say more?
In short, watch out if you are dealing with a Kentucky auctioneer. Want another tidbit? Did you know that, according to the Kentucky Revised Statutes, an auctioneer involved with shill bidding can be fined $10??? You read that right... Ten dollars. An auctioneer getting caught shill bidding (which goes to the very core on the question of honesty within the auction industry) can be fined ten dollars. Do YOU see a reason to trust a Kentucky auctioneer?
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