Auc oneer Adver sements 101

Auctioneer Advertisements 101

By: Anthony D. Cox, Jr., Esq., PAA Legal Counsel

What happens if a consumer believes that an auctioneer has misrepresented information in an auction advertisement? In these scenarios, a consumer may pursue a complaint with the State Board or a civil lawsuit for misrepresentation. How do you decrease the chances of this happening?

It is important to ensure that your advertisements do not misrepresent anything or contain inaccurate information. There are really a few tips to implement in order to ensure that your advertisements do not put you at risk of any liability for misrepresentation.

First, you want to make sure that you do not omit key information from the advertisement. Precisely, you want to ensure that you include the important information that a buyer may need in order to make a decision as to whether they want to buy the product in question. Second, you want to make sure that you do not exaggerate anything regarding the product. This is where having pictures is helpful. It is best to let the consumer be the judge of what they think the condition of a product is based on the photographs presented rather than attempt to exaggerate the status or condition of a product.

Finally, it is important to have evidence to ensure that your pictures accurately reflect what is being sold. In other words, if you have a product that is older, be sure to make sure that your pictures reflect the old condition.

While there many things that an auctioneer can do to prevent misrepresentation, these three tips should be the primary focus.

If you have any questions or wish to have counsel review your advertisements for potential misrepresentation issue, please do not hesitate to contact Attorney Anthony Cox by email acox@eckertseamans.com or by phone at 717.237.7161.