BidSpotter is neither an auction house nor the seller. It is a British online bidding platform that gathers sales run by many independent auctioneers. The conditions of sale, the removal date, the release point and the loading arrangements are set by the auction house running the particular sale, not by the site. A buyer who does not separate those two is looking for answers in the wrong document.
Who is who here
The site operator is Metropress Limited, registered in England and Wales under number 01010311, trading as Auction Technology Group, with its principal place of business on Southwark Street in London. In the British companies register Metropress Limited is shown as active, and its activity codes are for software development and web portals rather than for auctioneering. That is not a registry curiosity but the shortest available proof of what the company actually does.
The sentence that settles everything
The website terms state plainly that the website operator is not a party to any transaction between the user and the seller for the sale of items. They add that items are sold subject to the terms and conditions of the seller and any terms of the auctioneer, and that users are responsible for reviewing them before bidding. The site further disclaims any warranty or representation with respect to items, including as to the accuracy of description, genuineness, quality, provenance, origin, safety, fitness for purpose or availability for sale, and it tells users to contact the seller directly and verify independently. The practical conclusion: the document a carrier needs before sending a vehicle, meaning the collection terms, is never on the platform.
What that changes in planning a collection
- The release address. Taken from the listing for the particular lot and from the auction house invoice. The same house may appear on several platforms and hold sales at several locations.
- The removal deadline. Set by the auction house, not the platform, and it is the house that applies any consequences once it passes, as covered in our article on collection deadlines at the yard.
- Who loads. The answer is in the conditions of sale, not in the website terms. Choosing equipment is covered in our article on loading a machine at the auction yard.
- Documents. The invoice and the release note are issued by the auction house; the full set is listed in our article on documents for a machine bought at auction.
What can be found on the platform
The category directory is broad and overlaps closely with what Polish buyers actually haul: cars, vans, trucks and motorcycles, materials handling equipment and forklifts, agricultural machinery, metalworking machine tools, construction plant, woodworking and CNC machinery, food and beverage plant and catering equipment, medical, printing and recycling equipment. It is a convenient way into the market, provided the buyer remembers that the lot is won from a particular auction house rather than from the site.
The customs strand: the decision is taken before the crossing
The platform does not clear goods and has no role here at all. The country of entry to the Union is chosen by the buyer together with the carrier, and it is chosen before the crossing, because after it there is no changing it. Under procedure 42 the machine is released for free circulation in the country of entry with a simultaneous intra-Community supply, so the tax is accounted for in the country of destination instead of being paid at the border. The conditions are the importer VAT number in the country of clearance or that of his tax representative, the customer VAT number in the destination country and evidence that the goods are to travel on to another member state, followed by listing the supply in a recapitulative statement. On a route through France the smart border mechanism is added: the declaration becomes a barcode paired with the vehicle registration, and on leaving the port the vehicle is sent to the green lane or the orange one. From 20 April 2026 French customs requires a mandatory logistics envelope, the ELO, on ro-ro movements with the United Kingdom. We set this out in our articles on customs procedure 42 and on clearing through France.
What we could not confirm
We found no single sentence on the platform saying in so many words that collection and removal are arranged with the auction house; it follows from the operator not being a party to the transaction and from the auctioneer terms governing. We were also unable to open the buyer help centre, so we quote nothing from it. We do not publish premiums or deadlines. We are not a representative of the platform or of any auction house.
Sources
- BidSpotter: website terms, the operator and its non-party status
- BidSpotter: directory of equipment categories sold
- Companies House: METROPRESS LIMITED, 01010311
- Auction Technology Group: description of the business
- French customs: the mandatory logistics envelope, ELO, from 20 April 2026
Won a lot on the platform and unsure who to call about collection? Send the lot number and the auction house name through the contact form. See also live, timed and online auctions.
