Catawiki Coin Auctions

[hibernianscribe 159]

There are some interesting posts over the past few days in the "Ebay's Worst Offerings" thread concerning Catawiki coin auctions that should be read by all that might consider bidding in those auctions.  

[zookeeperz 470]

On 29/12/2017 at 3:10 AM, hibernianscribe said:

There are some interesting posts over the past few days in the "Ebay's Worst Offerings" thread concerning Catawiki coin auctions that should be read by all that might consider bidding in those auctions.  

Anything taken your fancy?

 As if I couldn't guess lol

[Stuntman 264]

I'm virtually certain this is a fake in the current Catawiki UK coin auction as well:

https://auction.catawiki.com/kavels/15583053-united-kingdom-crown-1820-george-iv-silver

[DaveG38 385]

It certainly has the look of a fake.

[Nick 325]

That's a laughably bad fake 1820 halfcrown.

[zookeeperz 470]

16 minutes ago, Nick said:

That's a laughably bad fake 1820 halfcrown.

I cannot believe they let that go through even describing the kings likeness lmfao. That trust-pilot rating is soon to plummet mark my words.

[Ukstu 436]

5 hours ago, Stuntman said:

I'm virtually certain this is a fake in the current Catawiki UK coin auction as well:

https://auction.catawiki.com/kavels/15583053-united-kingdom-crown-1820-george-iv-silver

Oh dear oh dear. The cats..certainly out the bag now. ?

[Rob 2,996]

Maybe they will replace eBay as the place to go for dodgy coins? One last heave chaps..................

[hibernianscribe 159]

This all started with me making a straightforward query to Catawiki about provenance for a particular lot (a Newark ninepence) because I was concerned that the seller was based in Bulgaria. Of course, all of that has been discussed and it would seem that the Bulgarian connection was somewhat less than bona fide!

Because my query to their coin expert Marcel Spijkerbosch was ignored I repeated it, but still no response. This silence was deafening as far as I am concerned and in the meantime the discussion about the Bulgarian connection and a first-hand account of how Catawiki might be "turning a blind eye" to counterfeits was posted.

This lack of communication from Catawiki to me is all I need to decide never attempt to buy in those auctions again - I have lost confidence. This is different to the eBay situation since from the conversation about this in the eBay's Worst Offerings thread it would appear that Catawiki staff may well be consciously ignoring counterfeit lots being peddled through their auctions. 

The latest development on this has been that I responded to an email previously sent to me during December before all of this blew up. It was a request for feedback on Catawiki's customer service as I had previously made a query about another lot some time ago. This email was from the Manager of Customer Service - a Petra Hageman, and I saw this as an opportunity to enter into dialogue about the zero customer service I had received when making queries about provenance for a 'suspect' coin. Again absolutely no response and my message was sent a week ago. In my view this does not put Catawiki in a 'good light' at all!  

Of course, none of this is proven and there has been an element of speculation but it is enough, I think, for all to be warned to treat Catawiki auctions with extreme caution!

Edited January 18, 2018 by hibernianscribe

[jaggy 528]

3 hours ago, hibernianscribe said:

This all started with me making a straightforward query to Catawiki about provenance for a particular lot (a Newark ninepence) because I was concerned that the seller was based in Bulgaria. Of course, all of that has been discussed and it would seem that the Bulgarian connection was somewhat less than bona fide!

Because my query to their coin expert Marcel Spijkerbosch was ignored I repeated it, but still no response. This silence was deafening as far as I am concerned and in the meantime the discussion about the Bulgarian connection and a first-hand account of how Catawiki might be "turning a blind eye" to counterfeits was posted.

This lack of communication from Catawiki to me is all I need to decide never attempt to buy in those auctions again - I have lost confidence. This is different to the eBay situation since from the conversation about this in the eBay's Worst Offerings thread it would appear that Catawiki staff may well be consciously ignoring counterfeit lots being peddled through their auctions. 

The latest development on this has been that I responded to an email previously sent to me during December before all of this blew up. It was a request for feedback on Catawiki's customer service as I had previously made a query about another lot some time ago. This email was from the Manager of Customer Service - a Petra Hageman, and I saw this as an opportunity to enter into dialogue about the zero customer service I had received when making queries about provenance for a 'suspect' coin. Again absolutely no response and my message was sent a week ago. In my view this does not put Catawiki in a 'good light' at all!  

Of course, none of this is proven and there has been an element of speculation but it is enough, I think, for all to be warned to treat Catawiki auctions with extreme caution!

In an auction, the operative phrase is 'cave emptor'. This means that the buyer alone is responsible for checking the quality and suitability of goods before a purchase is made. Obviously, that is not always possible with online auctions and where the auction house is in another country. So the buyer has to rely on the reputation of the auction house and its responsiveness to their inquiries. 

A good reputation is hard to develop but very easy to destroy. Catawiki may wish to consider this.

[Peter 615]

The 1820 crown is a well known Chinese takeaway.

[1949threepence 3,366]

Thanks for the comprehensive review, hibernianscribe. I haven't used catawiki up to now, and won't be in the future.