Hammertime

HammerTime bv auctions online from Pauwelsdreef 23 in Hoevenen (Stabroek), north of Antwerp, working for banks, insolvency trustees (curators) and leasing companies, and handling the inventory of the goods as well as the sale. That sourcing shapes the catalogue: bankrupt Belgian firms (faillissement), voluntary closures (stopzetting), end-of-lease returns, estates, dealer and importer stock, and vehicles cleared by the City of Antwerp. Around thirty sales are running or announced at any time, and lot texts stay Dutch even in the English interface.

What you can buy

• Cars and vans: ex-lease and bankruptcy stock (Citroen Berlingo panel vans, Renault Clio and Captur, Skoda Octavia RS, Dacia Sandero), trade-in cars (overnamewagens) sold in closed Antwerp sales, classics such as a Maserati Spyder Cambiocorsa, Porsche parts, and scrap or abandoned vehicles from the City of Antwerp.
• Machinery: mini excavators, dumpers, aerial work platforms, an end-of-lease tower crane, a Kubota tractor with generator set, forklifts and pallet trucks, generators and fuel tanks.
• Catering and horeca: kitchen appliances and wine coolers by Kuppersbusch, Liebherr, Fisher & Paykel and Avintage, a GGM Gastro refrigerated counter, and the contents of a closed cafe (stopzetting).
• Workshop and cleaning: hand tools and work materials in the 1 EUR sale, compressors, sweepers and scrubber-driers, and whole clearances from failed tow-truck firms and warehouses (volledige inboedel).
• Retail and consumer stock: indoor, outdoor and industrial LED lighting, sanitary ware and radiators, tiles and wall panels, trampolines, massage chairs, garden houses and carports, site and sanitary units, storage tents, jacuzzis, and Apple laptops, iMacs and iPads.
• Art, jewellery and estates: Panamarenko and Magritte works, Tintin prints, Roger Raveel and Raoul De Keyser, watches and jewellery, wine, S.T. Dupont, and household contents from estates (nalatenschap).

How the bidding works

Bidding is timed and online. Registration is a one-off form open to anyone over 18, private or business; you pick a personal or a business account, and bidding both ways needs two. Hammertime may verify identity through outside databases and shut out a bidder over any doubt about solvency. Lots close in sequence, and a bid in the final five minutes extends that lot by five more. Awards can be provisional, firm only when Hammertime or the seller confirms, and a minimum bid can be imposed or lots merged and split. After the award a pro forma invoice or payment request for bid, premium and VAT arrives by email and must be paid within the term it states; goods are released only after payment in full. Viewing days (kijkdagen) and a single collection window run in Hoevenen or on site in Antwerp, Bornem or Pelt, though some sales are viewing by appointment only and the Antwerp trade-in sales have none at all.

What to check before you bid

Auction costs are 17% buyer's premium unless a sale states otherwise, with 21% VAT on that premium. Every lot page shows its VAT status: on a 21% VAT lot a 1,000 EUR bid totals about 1,416 EUR, on a margin lot (most cars, wine and art) about 1,206 EUR. Foreign buyers pay the VAT in full first; an invoice without VAT follows only on a signed declaration of destination, a positive VIES check and proof of transport, and on export outside the EU the VAT is refunded after customs clearance. Goods sell as-is with visible and hidden faults, descriptions are indicative and come from the seller, and the legal consumer warranty falls away on bankruptcy and judicial sales, so a viewing day is your real inspection where one is offered. Car lots do state per vehicle whether the registration document, certificate of conformity and inspection certificate are present. Dismantling and removal are yours to organise and your risk; late collection costs 90 EUR a week per lot for rolling stock and 30 EUR for other goods, and once storage exceeds the purchase price Hammertime can resell without refund. The Dutch terms prevail over the translations, and there is no right of withdrawal on public, judicial or bankruptcy sales, or on business accounts. The 1 EUR tool sale opens at a single euro, but a minimum bid or provisional award is allowed, so that is a starting price, not a no-reserve promise.