Information, Please Information on these sales is available through a subscription service. Flyers are mailed about three weeks prior to a sale. Each flyer lists the following: * Sale location and date * Viewing, inspection, and registration times * General description of the merchandise * Terms of sale For larger sales, abbreviated catalogs are mailed. How do you subscribe to this service? Write EG&G Dynatrend, U.S. Customs Service Support Division, 2300 Clarendon Blvd., Suite 705, Arlington VA 22201 and ask for a descriptive booklet titled Public Auctions. Complete the application in this booklet and return it to EG&G Dynatrend, along with a check or money order. After six to eight weeks, your subscription flyers will begin arriving. Subscriptions are yearlong and payment is nonrefundable. You have three options when you subscribe: 1) Nationwide, covering all sales in the continental United States, Alaska, and Puerto Rico. Cost: $50. 2) Eastern Region, covering all sales east of the Mississippi River, including Puerto Rico. Cost: $25. 3) Western Region, covering all sales west of the Mississippi River, including Alaska. Cost: $25. Add $10 to each option for foreign delivery. Dial "A" for Auction Another way to find out about U.S. Customs Service auctions is to dial the 24-hour Public Auction Line (PAL), which provides a recorded telephone message explaining upcoming sales. When you call, you'll get information about sale dates, locations, viewing times, and descriptions of some of the items for sale. To reach PAL, dial (703)351-7887. If you have a touch-tone phone, you can make the following selections by pressing: 1 to subscribe to a flyer service 2 for general information 3 for specific listings: Eastern region 4 for specific listings: Central region 5 for specific listings: Western region 6 for real estate sales 7 to leave a message In addition to the subscription service and the PAL, you can find out about customs auctions by looking for ads in local newspapers and industry magazines. Up- coming sales are usually advertised for three consecutive weeks prior to the sale date. In addition, notices of upcoming sales are posted in the Customs Service office nearest the sale location. Signing Up If you want to participate in a Customs auction, you must register at the sale site. A bidder-registration form, located at each sale registration area, must be filled out and submitted to obtain a bidder number and sales catalog. Once you have a bidder number, you're authorized to bid on any item up for sale. You are responsible for any bids you make. Once you have a sales catalog, be sure to read the terms of sale. They provide specific information about acceptable payment methods, removal dates, inspections, and so on. Look Before You Leap Each Customs Service auction's viewing time is listed on the flyers, on the PAL, and in ads. At these viewings you can inspect the merchandise or representative sample. Naturally, you shouldn't bid unless you have inspected the merchandise first. Even if a flyer or catalog describes the items, all weights, measurements, and other attributes are only approximations. You have to see for yourself. Items for sale range from "new" to "salvage," and no merchandise is covered by warranties or guarantees. All items are sold "as is." Viewing times may not be on the day of the sale. You may have to make another trip beforehand to inspect merchandise. You should verify that the description of an item matches the actual merchandise. If there is any confusion about lot numbers, check with sales-center personnel prior to the start of the sale. The Customs Service reserves the right to pull any merchandise at any time prior to the sale. Some merchandise will be identified as "export only." Such items can't be registered, used, or sold in the United States. You should bid on such merchandise only if you intend to resell it in foreign markets. EG&G Dynatrend, however, does not provide a list of licensing and federal permit requirements for export merchandise. All countries have their own regulations, so they may not allow these goods for entry. You should hire a customs broker or bonded carrier before bidding on "export only" merchandise. Bidding Basics In a typical Customs Service auction, bids are open and prices are called out by the auctioneer. They're "progressive," meaning that each bid must top the previous one. Merchandise is identified and sold by lot number; if you bid, you bid on the entire lot. Usually, the lots are sold in the same sequence listed in the sales catalog. When the auction starts, bidding begins immediately. The auctioneer will announce each lot as it comes up for sale. "Errata" sheets indicating any changes will have been inserted in the sales catalog. Announcements may be made to clarify export status, catalog description, or other information about a lot. These announcements don't alter the basic terms of sale. To bid, you raise your bidder number. Pay close attention to what's going on because the auction process moves very quickly. After making a successful bid, you're obligated to purchase that particular lot. After the bidding is over, proceed to the cashier, where you can pay and receive a "notice of award," a receipt that is needed to pick up your merchandise. Money Matters At Customs Service auctions, you can pay for merchandise in U.S. funds with cash or cashier's checks. In some cases, Visa and MasterCard are accepted; check the terms of sale in the flyer or the catalog. Cashier's checks should be made payable to U.S. Customs Service/EG&G Dynatrend. Alternatively, you can make the cashier's check payable to yourself. If your bid wins, you can sign the check over to EG&G Dynatrend. Caution: At Customs Service auctions, personal checks, business checks, or bank letters of credit are not accepted. What if you cashier's check is not made out for the exact amount of your purchase? Normally, it's not possible to get change for more than 10% of a cashier's check, so you should probably bring several small cashier's checks rather than one large check. Unless you have a tax-exempt or resale number, you're responsible for paying any applicable state sales taxes on top of your winning bid. You may be required to pay these taxes to the cashier at the time of sale or to tax officials after the purchase is made. If sales taxes are required, you'll have to present proof of tax payment before the merchandise can be released. You Can Take It With You After you've paid for your merchandise, EG&G Dynatrend will provide you with a "notice of award" form, which you can present to the storage vendor and take possession of what you've bought. Removal of merchandise stored with commercial vendors is by appointment,and must be complete by the dates specified in the terms of sale. If not, you may be able to make arrangements to continue storage, at your expense. When you take your merchandise, you and the vendor must sign the property release on the notice of award and submit it to EG&G Dynatrend as proof of delivery or a storage arrangement. In all cases, merchandise must be paid for in full before removal. In most cases, title documents for vehicles, vessels, or aircraft will be provided immediately after payment. What if you buy export-only property? It usually needs to be removed from the U.S. within 30 days after the sale, although for some merchandise you will be allowed 60 days. Check the terms of sale for specific dates. If you don't make the required payment, or if you don't remove merchandise in the amount of time specified, you'll lose all rights to the items you've bought. The federal government will repossess the merchandise, and any money you have paid will be forfeited.