Conditions of Sale

REGISTRATION

To bid at an auction, you must register. It's fast, easy, free and without any obligation. By registering, you are representing that you have read and agree to all Shipping and Sales Conditions, including that you are at least 21 years of age and are registering with true and correct information.


RIGHT TO DETERMINE ELIGIBILITY TO BID

Brentwood Wine Company reserves the right to utilize reasonable means to determine that you are eligible to bid and will follow the rules of this auction. Brentwood Wine Company will likewise endeavor to protect members' privacy, and to ensure auctions are conducted in a fair, impartial manner.


COMMITMENT TO BUY

A bid is considered your commitment to buy. If you win an auction, you have agreed to buy the wine. If you feel your bid was accepted accidentally, contact us immediately! If you submit a bid, this is considered your acceptance of all auction rules, including your understanding of the Buyer's Premium.

A request to cancel your bid following the auction close due to a lack of awareness or understanding of all auction rules may warrant the forfeiture of future bidding capabilities.


RESERVE NOT MET

If you see "Reserve Not Met" on a Lot:

A reserve price is a minimum price that is set on a Lot that a seller would be willing to accept from a buyer.


HOW TO MAKE YOUR AUCTION INVOICE PAYMENT

If you are a first-time bidder with us, please know that your registered credit card on your Brentwood Auctions account is SOLEY used for bidding purposes in our auctions.

We currently host our Weekly/ Weekend Wine auctions from our fellow sister companies; Benchmark Wine Group (located in Napa, CA), as well as our East Coast Auctions with Benchmark Wine & Spirits (located in Washington, DC).

Once you win at auction, every winning bidder will receive an email notification to your registered email address. This email includes the name of the company which will be invoicing you for your auction winnings, as well as instructions for how to provide payment.  And in a separate email, you will receive an invoice directly from them confirming your auction winnings and will provide you with your total amount due.

Please note that ALL Shipping is handled separately and directly with the company that invoices you for your auction winnings after the auction has closed. See our Shipping Information page for more details and contact information.  


If you win at auction from Benchmark Wine Group (Napa, CA) – 

If you are a new bidder with Benchmark Wine Group, a new customer account with them will be created for you after the auction has closed. Your new Benchmark Wine Group account will be the same login and password information that you use for your Brentwood Auctions account.

It is the new winning bidder’s responsibility to add your preferred credit card details over to your new created Benchmark Wine Group account. This step is required in order to make a payment for your auction invoice and winnings.

If you are a returning bidder with Benchmark Wine Group and have a default credit card set separately on your account with them, your default credit card will automatically be charged (every time) for your Benchmark Wine Group auction invoice payment. 

If you do not want your default credit card to be charged for your Benchmark Wine Group auction invoice payment, and have another form of payment you would like to provide, please alert us ASAP BEFORE the auction has closed, so we can prevent your default credit card from being charged.

If you have multiple cards listed on your account with Benchmark Wine Group, and no default credit card has been set, our Accounting team will reach out to you to request that you provide payment for your auction invoice.

If your credit card on your Benchmark Wine Group account declines payment for your auction invoice, our Accounting team will reach out to you to request that you provide another option for payment.

If you win at auction from Benchmark Wine & Spirits (Washington, DC) AKA “EAST COAST AUCTION” – 

For all East Coast Auction invoices that are received in your email from Benchmark Wine & Spirits (dcinfo@benchmarkwine.com), after the auction has closed, you will be prompted on your winning invoice with a “Pay Now” link which will direct you to a new page to fill out your credit card information for payment.

Please be advised that Benchmark Wine & Spirit’s Shopify website and system does not store or save any credit cards on your account. And the only other option for payment is using the SHOP PAY app, in which you are able to store and save your credit card information separately on your account with them, which you can then use for all your DC auction and retail invoices.

Please note that we do not have any access on the back end to your SHOP PAY account, and using The SHOP PAY app is the only way online automatic payments can be processed.

All auction invoice payments are to be received within 48 hours after the auction has closed. Failure to not respond, or pay your invoice within 30 days, your auction winnings and invoice may result in cancellation and potential revocation of bidding privileges.

For any further assistance needed to make your auction invoice payment, please contact us at Brentwood Auctions, via email at info@brentwoodwine.com, or by phone at 503-638-9463


BUYER'S PREMIUM

The buyer’s premium is the amount added to the winning bid on auction items. Unless otherwise specified in the current auction description, our buyer’s premium is as follows:

Wine Auctions presented by Benchmark Wine Group (Napa, CA):  20% (Starting 1/1/2024)

Spirits & Wine Auctions presented by Benchmark Wine & Spirits:  20%

Be sure to review each auction description before bidding for confirmation of the buyer’s premium that will be applied to all lots sold in that auction event.


SHIPPING INFORMATION 

Benchmark Wine Group's shipping policies and information can be reviewed on their website. 

Benchmark Wine & Spirits shipping policies and information can be reviewed on their website. 


ERRORS & PRODUCT NON-AVAILABILITY

Brentwood Wine Company endeavors to accurately represent each item it offers and to deliver all such items to winning bidders. Occasionally, however, we may learn that an item is not available or that information that we have received is inaccurate. We may therefore infrequently be forced to remove an item from auction or modify its description during an auction. In this case, we will notify the current winning bidder(s). Likewise, where we learn of this after the close of auction, we will notify winners and of course refund any purchase price if an item is not available or not desired. In the rare instances where the item received by the winner has not been correctly described in some substantial way, we will work to reach a mutually satisfactory resolution or pay to have the item returned to us and refund charges.


RIGHT TO CHANGE AUCTIONS & RULES

Brentwood Wine Company reserves the right to modify the specifics of any auction, including end date and items offered. In some cases, we may withdraw an item before the auction closes. During the final hours of each auction, we will execute absentee bid submissions from bidders and the auction system will enforce reserves set by sellers.

Brentwood Wine Company reserves the right to modify the Auction Rules at any time without notice. Such changes will be clearly posted in this section and the one listed above.

Tip: We are involved with wine due to the joy it brings us. While we strive to provide perfect service, occasionally human (or computer!) error creeps in. In such cases, we will do everything possible to address the problem. We thank you in advance for your understanding if you are ever involved in such a situation. We promise to make it right!

Spirits

Spirits sales are transacted by Benchmark Wine & Spirits using license #ABRA-118102.  Title will pass in the District of Columbia. Arrangements can be made to store on the premises for pick up or at other DC storage locations or to act as your agent to have product shipped.