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Kittitas County

Terms and Conditions of Online Sales

 

1.     General
Items are offered for sale by Kittitas County, WA, identified herein as the "County" through an Internet auction services contractor. Those submitting bids are identified herein as "bidder(s)" or "buyer(s)".

2.     Eligibility
A buyer must be a minimum of 18 years old and legally able to form binding contracts as a buyer in an auction. County employees are not eligible to bid on items originating from the same division, unit, or area in which the employee works. The County reserves the right to reject any and all bids and to withdraw from sale any of the items listed.

3.     Bid Award and Rejection
The County reserves the right to award by item, groups of items, or total bid; to reject any and all bids in whole or in part; and to waive any informality or technical defects if in its judgment the best interests of the County will be served. Successful bidders will receive a Notice of Award by email from PublicSurplus.com.

4.     Guarantee Waiver
All property will be sold "as is", "where is", and "with all faults, if any". The County disclaims all warranties or guarantees, expressed or implied, as to the condition, quality, completeness, or fitness for any particular or general purpose or compliance to safety regulations of the equipment being sold. Descriptions of items appearing in this online auction are believed to be correct; however, neither those descriptions nor any oral statements made concerning any item shall be considered as a warranty, expressed or implied. The liability of the County shall not exceed the actual purchase price of the property. Upon removal of the property, all sales are final.

5.     Inspection
Most items offered for sale are used and may contain defects not immediately detectable. The responsibility to determine the condition of the property rests with the bidder. Prospective bidders are encouraged to inspect the property prior to bidding and to place bids based solely on their personal inspection and evaluation. Prospective bidders will not be allowed to test, operate or disassemble any item featured in an auction. Unless otherwise described on the auction website, bidders may view auction items, by appointment only, on Wednesdays and Thursdays between 9 am and noon.

6.     Ownership
At the end of the auction, the highest bidder has entered a binding contract with the County and is obligated to pay the price bid. Placing the winning bid, but not paying for the product, is illegal in most states, and may result in prosecution. The winning bid cannot be retracted unless due to a fault of the County, for example, typographical or other error.

7.     Removal
Once funds are received by the County from Public Surplus the awarded items must be removed from the County's premises within 5 business days. No property may be claimed or removed prior to making full payment. The (1) Notice of Award printed email, (2) payment receipt printed email, and (3) a driver's license or DMV ID must be presented by the buyer at the time of pick up or the auction item(s) will not be released. If unclaimed by winning bidders, the County reserves the right to re-auction or award the item to the next highest bidder. County employees are not available to assist in removing items from the premises. Buyers are responsible for loading and removal of any and all property awarded to them from the County premises. The buyer will make arrangements and perform all work necessary, including packing, loading, and transportation of the property. Under no circumstances will the County assume responsibility for packing, loading, or shipping.

8.     Default
Bidders who fail to claim, pay for, and remove auction items from the County's premises by the close of business on the 5th business day after the close of the auction shall forfeit their rights to the auction item, and be declared in default. The County may ban a default bidder from participating in future online auction events. If one item goes into default, all items won by the bidder go into default and are subject to resale. In the event of default of the buyer, the County reserves the right to sell or otherwise dispose of the items through other means and hold the buyer liable for any loss of revenue or disposal expense. If the Buyer fails in the performance of their obligations, Agency Name may exercise such rights and may pursue such remedies as are provided by law.

9.     Payment
Payment must be made within 5 business days of the close of the auction. Acceptable forms of payment are credit card or wire transfer. No cash, checks, or money orders will be accepted. Payment will be processed through PayMac, a third-party payment processing company.

Payment may only be made online by credit card, or by wire transfer. NO CASH, CHECKS, OR MONEY ORDERS WILL BE ACCEPTED. If you choose to pay with a credit card, please follow the instructions below. The credit card limit per transaction is $4,000.00. For payments larger than this amount, follow the instructions listed under Wire Transfers.

Payment by Credit Card

Login to the Public Surplus site. Click on the My Stuff link and then click on the Past Bids link. Click on the description of the auction and then click on the Pay Online link located on the right-hand side of the screen. Follow the steps to complete the transaction. A receipt will be emailed to you once the payment has cleared.

Partial Payment

There will be NO partial payments allowed for an auction. All auctions must be paid in full according to the specified payment process. For example, you WILL NOT be able to partially pay for an auction by Credit Card and pay the remainder by another payment method, such as a wire transfer. All credit card payments must be made using a single credit card.

Wire Transfers

For payments over $4,000.00, a Wire Transfer is required. If you need to do a wire transfer, please email support at buyersupport@publicsurplus.com and ask for wire instructions or request the instructions via live chat. These instructions will be emailed to you. Please follow them exactly to ensure prompt payment.

10.  Buyer's Premium
A 10% Buyer Premium shall be added to the final sale price with a $1 minimum charge per auction to collect payment.

11.  Sales Tax
Kittitas County will collect sales tax unless the Buyer has provided a valid tax-exempt certificate to Kittitas County prior to payment. The sales tax will be visible during the bidding process and will be included in the payment specified.

12.  Bid Deposit
The County may require bid deposits in order to ensure fairness to all bidders. The deposit will be reversed if no default occurs, or the bidder does not win the auction. The deposit will be retained if the winning bidder defaults.

13.  Shipping
All items sold must be picked up at the County. Winning bidders will be solely responsible for pick-up or shipping arrangements, and all associated costs and labor. The County will not be responsible for items after the buyer, or designated shipper, takes possession. Disposal of any items into the County's waste containers is strictly forbidden and may result in legal action being taken.

14.  Software
Technology equipment, such as computers, is not sold with the intention to transfer ownership of any software or operating system. All computers are sold without operating systems (Windows) and all hard drives have been erased and reformatted unless noted otherwise in the item description.

15.  Vehicle Titles
The County will issue a title or certificate upon receipt of payment. Titles may be subject to any restrictions as indicated in the item description on the website. Open titles cannot be issued. The County will not issue replacement titles.

16.  Hazardous Materials
Buyer acknowledges that the purchased materials may contain materials or substances which are designated as hazardous or regulated substances by law. Buyer understands and agrees that the County has no and will have no responsibility or liability of any kind resulting from buyer's use, misuse, handling, preparation, or modification for transportation, transportation, storage, transfer, sale, donation, recycling, ownership, operation, abandonment or disposal of any hazardous materials/substances or any portion thereof. Buyer assumes sole responsibility for complying with all legal requirements, environmental and otherwise, regarding any such hazardous materials/substances.

17.  Indemnification
Buyers agree to indemnify and hold harmless the County for any and all damages, claims, or liability of any nature or kind in the sale of, or the buyer's use of, the property. The buyer, its predecessors, successors and assigns hereby release, relinquish and discharge the County, its former, present and future agents, employees, officers, officials and legal representatives (collectively known as "the County") from any liability arising out of the sale and/or concurrent negligence of the County for any injury, including death or damage to persons or property, where such damage is sustained in connection with, or arising out of, the sale of County owned property.

18.  Liability
Items are offered for sale using the services and website of the online auction services contractor. Under no circumstances will the County be liable to any person or business entity for any direct, indirect, special, incidental, consequential, or other damages or losses based on, or caused by, any use of the auction website, or any other website to which the site is linked, the content of such websites, or any viruses or other harmful components derived from any such websites, including, without limitation, any lost profits, revenue, or use, business interruption, or loss of computer programs or information. The County strives to make the online auction system as accurate as possible; however, errors and equipment malfunctions are possible and may occur without notice. In case of malfunctions of hardware or software, the County reserves the right to cancel any sale, even if an award notification email has been received. The County cannot and will not guarantee uninterrupted access to the auction system.

19.  Links
Links to other websites or internet locations from this website have been provided for convenience only. The County does not endorse, sponsor, or approve any of the content of such websites or locations. Access to any other website or internet locations through this website is at your own risk.

20.  Reproduction of Auction Materials and Resale of Items Listed
Bidders or website users may reproduce or copy images, photographs, or descriptions of property listed on the auction site for personal use only. Bidders and website users may not reproduce, display, or broadcast online auction materials by any means, or by using any media, without the express written permission of the County. The County reserves the right to disallow participation in the online auction by any website user or bidders at any time for violating applicable laws, ordinances, terms and conditions listed here, or for activity deemed unacceptable by the County. Before paying for and taking possession of the items listed for sale by the County, successful bidders and website users shall not post or list the same items for sale by any other means.

21.  Privacy
The County gathers information from bidders so that it will know who has won an auction item. Personal information is not sold or rented. Personal information is used for the purpose of conducting online auctions and not used for any other purpose. Personal information will not be released to any other party, except as required by law. Transactions of the County auction are subject public disclosure laws.

22.  Applicable Law
Although this site may be accessed from any state, bidders who participate in this auction agree that the laws of the State of Washington shall govern all matters relating to the use of this auction and purchase of items listed by the County on this site.

23.  Acceptance of Terms and Conditions
By submitting a bid, the bidder agrees that they have read, fully understand and accept the Terms and Conditions of Online Sales, and agree to pay for and remove the property, if the bid is accepted, by the dates and times specified.