Bidder Reviews for Chapel Street Auctions (13)

BEWARE! My negative review pertains only to the way Chapel Street handled the problem it created with shipping my picture frames, but the way they handled their mistake should make one wonder how they view customer service more generally. I bought several inexpensive framed artworks in a Chapel Street auction, which the auction house agreed to ship, removing the glass but retaining the frames at my request. Instead, Chapel Street discarded both the glass AND all of the frames. When I contacted Chapel Street, I was told that the frames were discarded because of a “misunderstanding”. I asked how I would be compensated, but Chapel Street ignored this question. Only when I involved the Maine Attorney General’s Office did Chapel Street finally respond, offering merely to refund the shipping cost I had paid as a “gesture of goodwill.” To add insult to injury, the auction house cited to me a portion of its terms and conditions that say that it is not responsible for “damage” to frames. Chapel Street believes that a contract provision absolving it of responsibility for damage to frames gives it carte blanche to do anything it wants with customers ’ frames – destroy them, discard them, whatever – with impunity. Anyone offering this argument in litigation would of course be laughed out of the courtroom, but this is actually what Chapel Street believes (I have it in writing!). I accepted their lowball offer, because I had no wish to profit from the problem nor to negotiate with the business any more than necessary. So, artwork purchasers: caveat emptor!

Nobody has the auction process down like Chapel Street. Others take note-they are the gold standard!

I had no issues with the auction house; all went smoothly, and I got my item very carefully packed (which, considering it was a drawing in a glass frame, is saying something). The shippers even took the precaution of taping the glass (with easy to remove tape) to secure it. Impressive! So, overall, quite happy.

Thank you for a seamless transaction! The items I won were extremely fragile and had to be shipped with extreme care. This process was super easy and I can’t really complain with the shipping cost as they are expensive everywhere. The were just as they were described and received in perfect condition. Thank you for Chapel Street Auctions for making this purchase super easy.

none

I did not receive the print I bought. When I contacted Chapel Street auction, they told me via email that they must have switched two lots. They sent me one that looks nothing like what I bought and never offered to find the one that I bought. On the plus side, I did receive a full refund. But it took several calls, which they never returned, and e-mails. It was disappointing and clearly was a lot of work to get the refunds. Puts me off ever buying from an online auction.