ACC Program Area:Appraisals & Appraising - Program

Program

Should Our Club Offer Appraisals?

Many collecting clubs struggle with the question, "Should we offer to help people seeking information or values of items in the collectibles area our club supports?" And, while there are examples that go from one end of the spectrum to the other, many clubs are caught inbetween, and may have not yet made a decision.

This has become a much greater problem (or opportunity) since many clubs have their own websites and the general public has greater access to the club than ever before. The more visitors to the club site, the likelihood is probable that there will be more and more queries for value information. Although this can easily become a burden from a time standpoint, it may also be an excellent membership recruitment opportunity. If the inquirer has a genuine interest in the collectible area and is impressed with how your club responded to his need, he or she may well want to join. (Always send membership information with your response.)

Some clubs, due to charters or bylaws, have a direct policy - "We are unable to offer appraisals or estimates of value" - period. This is particularly true if your club is incorporated and/or a not-for-profit 501(c)3.

There are clubs which have determined that assisting with offering values in response to queries on items pertinent to their collecting areas is one of the responsibilities of the club's existance. Usually a club will offer this service at no charge, although a few offer an appraisal service for a fee. In most cases, a club has designated a single person or two to handle these requests, although they may contact other club members for advise.

A few clubs openly encourage people to use their appraisal services, particularly if they charge a fee, hence this becomes another form of revenue for the club.

A less direct approach is for the club to not get involved directly in the appraisal business, but to provide a listing of their members who are willing to do appraisals or to offer value information. In this case, the club is not directly responsible for the validity of the appraisal or value - however, they are indirectly responsible because they recommended the person who made the appraisal or value judgment.

A club may decide not to offer value advise in any direct way, but may offer resources or suggestions for where the person inquiring should go for assistance, e.g. a price guide, website, visit to a local hobby store or antique mall. (The Appraisals Program in the National Association of Collectors [NAC] section on this website offers many resources for appraisals for collectors.

Although we're not aware of any examples of clubs offering this type of service, a club could offer a members-only appraisal service as one of the benefits of membership.

Also, check to see if by chance any of your club members are certified appraisers or belong to professional appraisal associations. This could be a good way to handle the club queries.

Are There Legal Ramifications If Our Club Provides Appraisals?

The answer is "You bet!" Like anything else, you run the risk of not always being correct. What if, for example, you make a judgment error valuing a collectible substantially lower than it should have been, the person sells the item for that amount and then finds out it was worth far more? Law suit? Maybe. What if you didn't charge for the value information provided, aka appraisal? Probably doesn't matter. You provided `bad' information and somebody lost money. Will they file suit against a collecting club? Probably not - unless it was a very, very expensive mistake. Potentially the club, the club officers and board, whoever else they care to include could, in theory, be named in a law suit.

Developing an Appraisal Program

In spite of the possible risks, the hassles of time and research involved, assisting the general public with information about the collecting area your club serves - including information on values - has good merit.

If you make the decision to go in this direction, develop a clear policy and operating program...and follow it! For example, all responses from the club conveying appraisal information should be on an approved form with appropriate disclaimer. If you charge for the service, maintain accurate accounting records.

The need may vary from one collecting area to another, but for some smaller collecting areas, the resources are slim to none and having a collecting club willing to offer advise on values, history and anything else can be a tremendous service.