How to sell your whisky with Whisky Hammer

Yes - as part of our personalised service, we offer a free, indicative, valuation.  You can request a valuation by filling in the form under the Request Valuation page on the website, or alternatively by sending details to us at [email protected].  We recommend sending a photo of your bottle(s) to help our experts provide a more accurate and robust valuation.

• Bottle registration fee is £6.00 per bottle +VAT (note multiple bottle lots will be charged appropriately)
• Reserve fee (optional) is £10.00 per Lot +VAT
• Seller's Commission is 0% (from April 2024)
• Bank handling charges may apply when we transfer payment to you if you are located outside the UK

The seller is also responsible for any costs involved in getting the bottles to Whisky Hammer.

From 1st January 2024, Whisky Hammer (and all other UK auction houses) is legally obliged to collect, verify and report certain data to HMRC (UK tax authority) for "Reportable Sellers" under The Platform Operators (Due Diligence And Reporting Requirements) Regulations 2023.  In 2023, the same obligations existed for EU-based sellers only, under DAC7 (EU Directive (EU 2021/514)) regulations.

You are a "Reportable Seller" if, in a calendar year, you sell 30 (or more) lots or you exceed €2,000 in hammer price proceeds (before commission) from your sold lots.

Please note these regulations do not introduce any new tax obligations for sellers, instead they are aiming to improve reporting transparency of digital platform operators for authorities.

We will monitor the cumulative value and volume of lots that you sell in a calendar year and will let you know if you become a "Reportable Seller".  We have partnered with an encrypted digital identity verification tool called "Amiqus", which will allow you to submit the required information and documents safely and securely online through the encrypted system.

The additional information required to be collected for "Reportable Sellers" includes proof of primary residence address, tax identification number (or place and country of birth) and date of birth with verification of ID by upload of an official ID document such as drivers licence or passport.

In the case that you are selling as an entity, additional information such as incorporation certificates will be required to verify the legal company name, registered address, tax identification number ("TIN") and VAT number where applicable.

In the event you do become a "Reportable Seller", Whisky Hammer will not complete the transfer of auction proceeds until the required additional information has been provided, to protect its legal obligation to collect and verify the additional information.

Data is submitted to HMRC annually each January for the preceding calendar year, i.e. data for 1st January 2024 - 31st December 2024 will be submitted to HMRC in January 2025 and so on.  At the same time, Whisky Hammer will provide a summary of all information submitted to HMRC (including quarterly values of sales proceeds completed via Whisky Hammer) to each "Reportable Seller".

If you have any questions or concerns regarding these regulations, please contact [email protected] and our expert team will be happy to help where possible.  For advice on your personal tax affairs we recommend consulting with a professional tax advisor.

It is the seller’s responsibility to ensure a safe transit of bottles to us at our office in Aberdeenshire, UK and they will be liable for any damage caused during this journey.  After they arrive with us, we’ll let you know straight away that they’ve arrived safely and assume full responsibility for your bottle.  We place huge importance on security and have invested heavily in our fully insured storage premises, so you know it is in safe hands.  Once the auction has closed and the bottles have been sold, we’ll organise the secure passage on to the buyer, who will then become responsible for the bottle when it leaves our premises.  

Yes, this will be an option available for you when you register bottles, however please note that the minimum reserve price level is £150. There is an additional reserve fee of £10.00 (+VAT) per Lot.

After the auction has finished we will make every effort to transfer the sales proceeds to your preferred account as soon as possible and no longer that 21 business days after the auction end date (although typically within 10 days). Your Whisky Hammer adviser will send you an e-mail notification when the proceeds are transferred.

Of course, we understand you’ll be curious to follow the auction as it happens. All you need to do is simply log into My Whisky Hammer and you will find all of your items automatically listed. As the auction progresses you will be able to see the level of bids on each item.

If your items didn't sell, either because no bids were received, or because bids didn't exceed your reserve price, we offer two options; We can re-list in the next auction, or we can return the bottles to you. Please note that the seller will be responsible for all costs associated with returning the bottles back to them.

Absolutely not, sellers cannot bid on their own items. This is against our Terms & Conditions and is illegal.  Whisky Hammer is trusted by whisky collectors and investors around the world, with a 5-star TrustPilot rating – integrity and trust is central to our business.