Terms & Conditions

City of Boca Raton - Online Terms and Conditions

By participating in this online auction, buyer agrees to the terms and conditions detailed below

The online auctions are opened to the general public, unless otherwise stated in the auction description.

The following provisions set forth the terms and conditions on which the City of Boca Raton, a municipal government, sells its surplus inventory by use of the online auction services provided by a third-party web site provider, Public Surplus.

Items are offered for sale by the City of Boca Raton, Florida, identified herein as the "CITY". Those submitting bids are identified herein as "bidder(s)" or "buyer(s)".

A buyer must be a minimum of 18 years old and legally able to form binding contracts as a buyer in an auction.

ALL SALES ARE FINAL. There are no refunds or exchanges.

All surplus property will be sold "as is", "where is", and "with all faults", if any. The CITY 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 property 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 CITY OFFERS NO GUARANTEES OR WARRANTIES. DETERMINATION OF CONDITION, FUNCTION, AND PERCEIVED OR ASSUMED VALUE IS THE SOLE RESPONSIBILTY OF THE BUYER.

Purchase of any item sold by City of Boca Raton shall be subject to and expressly limited by the terms and conditions contained herein. No changes to, waiver of, or addition to any of these terms and conditions shall be effective unless made by authorized City personnel. Any different or additional terms proposed by the Buyer are objected to and hereby rejected. The buyer acknowledges and agrees with these terms and conditions on any purchase. The City of Boca Raton reserves the right at any time to amend these terms and conditions.

Consideration of Bid: The CITY reserves the right to award by item, groups of items, or total bid. The CITY reserves the right to reject any and all bids and to withdraw from sale on any of the items listed. The Buyer is not entitled to any payment for loss of profit or any other money damages - special, direct, indirect, or consequential.

A. INSPECTION INFORMATION

Buyers may view auction items by appointment only, Monday 9am – 11am at the item designated location, unless otherwise stated on the auction website. 

The auction item description has been included to assist in identifying the sale item. This information has been compiled from the information that is presently available to the City and is not warranted to be accurate. The responsibility to determine the condition of the property rests with the bidder. Prospective bidders are allowed to inspect the property prior to bidding, and to place bids based solely on their personal inspection and evaluation. Bidders must adhere to the inspection dates and times indicated in the item description or contact the person listed to schedule an inspection. Prospective bidders will not be allowed to test, operate or disassemble any item featured in an auction. City staff will not be providing any additional information to prospective bidders at the time of inspection.

B. Ownership

At the end of the auction, the highest bidder has entered into a binding contract with the CITY, and is obligated to pay the price bid.

C. DEPOSIT AND PAYMENT

Bid Deposits

The CITY may require bid deposits in order to ensure fairness and equity to all buyers as a way to decrease default bidding. For auctions requiring a bid deposit, should the bidder default due to failure to pay in full by the specified time, the bid deposit will be forfeited. The deposit will be reversed if no default occurs or the bidder does not win the auction.

Payment
PayMac, collects all payments for the CITY. Payment for an awarded item must be received by Public Surplus within five (5) business days from the email notification provided by Public Surplus in accordance with the Payment Options identified in item D below.

UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL THE CITY ASK TO COLLECT PAYMENT DIRECTLY. All email payment communications will always be from PUBLICSURPLUS.COM. (NOT: US, .CO, .NET, publicsurplus-auction.com, -US.COM, -terms.com, etc.). All Credit Card payments will be on the PublicSurplus website only.

A 10 % buyer's premium will be added to all purchases made.

In the case of a "Transfer of Title", the purchaser will be responsible to pay any applicable costs associated with the title transfer.

Partial Payments

There will be NO partial payments of an auction allowed. All auctions must be paid in full per payment process used per auction. For Example: Buyer WILL NOT be able to pay partially for an auction by Credit Card and pay the remainder by another payment method such as a wire transfer.

Sales Tax

Sales tax will be collected, currently 7%, unless the buyer has provided valid proof of tax-exemption to The City of Boca Raton prior to payment. If applicable the sales tax will be visible during the bidding process and will be included in your payment to Public Surplus.

D. Payment Options

Payment may be made by Cashier's Check, Wire Transfer or credit card via PayPal per the limits identified below.

Credit Cards

Credit card may only be used for transactions up to $4,000.

Login to the Public Surplus site. Click on "My Stuff" and then click on "Past Bids". Click on the description of the auction and then click on "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. We accept all major credit cards.

Wire Transfers or Cashiers Checks

For payments over $4,000.00 a Wire Transfer or Cashier Check is required. NO CASH, CREDIT CARDS, CHECKS, OR MONEY ORDERS WILL BE ACCEPTED!

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 allow for prompt payment.

E. Pick-up of Awarded Item(s)

Upon payment of item, Buyer must pick up the items within ten (10) business days (excluding City holidays) from the close of auction date or the CITY has the right to award the item to the next highest bidder, relist the items for sale or dispose of the items by any lawful means.

If a customer pays for and does not pick up an item after 10 days, the CITY will consider the property abandoned and payment is forfeited to the CITY.

Buyers must allow sufficient time to load purchases on to their vehicles before close of business for the City location at which such items are being picked up.

All items must be picked up by the winning bidder at the City location indicated in the item's description by appointment.

Upon receipt of payment, Public Surplus will issue the Buyer a "Paid Receipt." The Buyer may then contact the responsible party listed for that item and arrange for a mutually convenient pick up time Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday during the hours of 8:00a.m. - 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time excluding legal holidays. 

Buyer is required to bring:

"Notice of Award" (emailed from PublicSurplus.com)

"Paid Receipt"

Personal identification such as a Drivers License, Passport or DMV ID to the designated pick- up location specified in the listing.

The CITY staff releasing the item will require all three documents before the item will be released. Release of property will only be to the Buyer unless prior written notification has been received that a 3rd party shipper is being utilized.

For items with a Title, a City Representative will prepare a Receipt and process the vehicle's title for transfer to Buyer at time of scheduled pick-up.

Title will be issued only to the Buyer, as listed in the Notice of Award. Open titles cannot be issued.

Titles may be subject to any restrictions as indicated in the item description on the website. The CITY will not issue replacement titles.

The CITY is not equipped to ship items or prepare items for shipping. The CITY will furnish no services of any kind to the bidder associated with shipping including, but not limited to, packaging, crating, loading, and freight unless otherwise indicated.

The CITY will not be held responsible for any damage(s) incurred to buyer'(s) vehicles or equipment by the loading of CITY property. The CITY will not be liable for any loss, damages, or injuries resulting in, or a result of the loading of, or the transportation of, the property.

Winning bidder will solely be responsible for shipping arrangements and all associated costs. The

CITY will not be responsible for items after buyer, or designated shipper, takes possession.

BY SUBMITTING A BID, AND SUBSEQUENT LOADING OF THE PROPERTY, THE BIDDER HEREBY ACKNOWLEDGES THAT THEY AGREE TO, AND WILL ABIDE BY, ALL TERMS AND CONDITIONS AS DESCRIBED HEREIN.

F. Liability

Items are offered for sale using the services and web site of the online auction services contractor. Under no circumstances will the CITY 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 web site, or any other web site to which the site is linked, the content of such web sites, or any viruses or other harmful components derived from any such web sites, including, without limitation, any lost profits, revenue, or use, business interruption, or loss of computer programs or information. The CITY strives to make the data provided for 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 CITY reserves the right to cancel any sale, even if an award notification e-mail has been received. The CITY cannot and will not guarantee uninterrupted access to the auction system. 

G. Indemnification

Buyers agree to indemnify and hold harmless the CITY 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 assignees hereby release, relinquish and discharge the CITY, its former, present and future agents, employees, officers, officials and legal representatives (collectively known as "the CITY") from any liability arising out of the sale and/or concurrent negligence of the CITY 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 CITY owned property, including pick-up of property.

H. Privacy

The CITY 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. Be advised that transactions of the CITY auction are subject to Chapter 119 of the Florida Statutes entitled Public Records.

I. 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 Florida shall govern all matters relating to the use of this auction and purchase of items listed by the CITY on this site.

All legal proceedings concerning any property sold or offered for sale by the City of Boca Raton shall be brought and maintained in a court of appropriate jurisdiction located in Palm Beach County, FL.

BY ENTERING INTO THIS AWARD, BUYER AND CITY HEREBY EXPRESSLY WAIVE ANY RIGHTS EITHER PARTY MAY HAVE TO A TRIAL BY JURY OF ANY CIVIL LITIGATION RELATED TO THE PROPERTY SOLD OR OFFERED FOR SALE.

J. 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. Express written permission of the City is required for any non personal use related to the reproduction, display, or broadcast of online auction materials by any means, or by using any media. The CITY 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 CITY.

Before paying for and taking possession of the items listed for sale by the CITY, successful bidders and website users shall not post or list the same items for sale by any other means. Please be advised that the CITY staff reports suspected fraud or criminal activity to the proper authorities.