George Hazell & Co

George Hazell & Co works the insolvency and business recovery end of the market rather than the consignment end. The firm values plant, machinery and business assets for practitioners and then disposes of them, and it is based in Thetford, Norfolk — placed for sales across East Anglia and the south-east, London included, though it takes instructions further afield.

What you can buy

• Plant and machinery from failed and restructuring businesses.
• Business assets of every kind, from office contents to production equipment.
• Marine and offshore assets, handled by the firm's specialist GHC Marine division — a category few general auctioneers touch.

How the bidding works

Sales run online with a current auction and an archive of past ones, and an account is required to bid. Because the instruction usually comes from an insolvency practitioner, sales appear when a business fails rather than on a fixed calendar — the mailing list is the practical way to follow it.

What to check before you bid

Insolvency assets are sold as they stand, and what the auctioneer can warrant is limited by the appointment they are acting under. Collection is from the failed business's premises, usually to a deadline set by the practitioner rather than the auctioneer. For marine lots, the location and the condition survey matter far more than the catalogue photograph.