Frequently Asked Questions
Quick links:
Is registration really free?
Yes! There is absolutely no charge for registering or placing bids on QART.COM.
[top]
How do I Register?
Whew, that's an easy one! To register with QART.COM, please click Here or on the link at the top left of any page. Once you have completed registration, you should be directed back to whatever page or action you last attempted.
[top]
I registered but I didn't get my confirmation email.
To complete registration an email is sent to the address you specified to confirm it is valid and we are able to communicate to you about your bidding and purchases. If you do not receive the confirmation email within a few minutes, your email settings or bulk mail filters may have prevented delivery. If you still cannot find the confirmation email please contact us.
[top]
How can I update my registration information?
To update any of your information, simply go to the "My Account" section of the site when logged in. You can edit any of your settings or information there.
[top]
What is your Privacy Policy?
QART.COM is committed to protecting the privacy of your information. We do not sell, rent or otherwise disclose any of your personal or financial data except as required to fulfill your purchases and auctions.
[top]
How do I enter a shipping address that is different from my billing address?
Please use your billing info to complete registration. You may add a shipping address in the My Account section of the site or during the checkout process.
[top]
Help! I can't sign in.
Calm down, it's going to be alright! Humor us and yourself by checking that you are inputting the correct username and password. If you have forgotten your password, click here or on the "Forgot your password?" link on the SignIn page. This will generate an email with a link allowing you to reset your password. If you've reset your password and are still having difficulties please contact us.
[top]
Is my Username or Password case sensitive?
Your QART.COM Username is not case sensitive, but the password is.
[top]
How do I change my Email Address?
To update your email address, please go to the "My Account" section and select "Change Name/Email." After you hit submit, you should receive an email verification to complete the process. You will not be able to bid without completing this step.
[top]
How do I change my User Name?
Once you have registered with our auction site, you cannot change your user name. If you made a mistake entering your user name during the registration process, please contact us for further help.
[top]
How do I change my Password?
To update your password, please go to the "My Account" section and select "Change Password." Follow instructions to change password.
[top]
How do I subscribe/ unsubscribe to promotion emails and newsletters?
When we think of something cool and want to share it, we may send out promo or news emails. Don't worry, we don't plan to swamp your inbox with emails every day. If you would like to receive these or opt out of receiving these you can do so in "My Account" by selecting the "Email Options" choice.
[top]
Do you ship outside the US?
Your QART.COM items are currently only deliverable to the 50 United States. Don't live in the USA? We do have many customers that live out of the country and have their orders delivered to friends or forwarding companies.
[top]
How do I start bidding?
In order to be able to bid on QART.COM you will need to register (here's that link: register). Once registered you are free to bid! Until you have paid for your first win, you will have a limit to how many items you may bid on. This is a safeguard against frivolous bidding and helps us deter those not serious about buying what they bid on.
[top]
What does "No Reserve" mean?
A "reserve" is a hidden price threshold that must be met before an auction can be won. "No reserve" means that there is no such hidden threshold; the highest bid wins. While some of our auction start at just $1, others do have a higher starting bid. Regardless of the starting bid, the you place will be the winning bid (unless you are outbid by another bidder).
[top]
Why can't I see the bids?
We only reveal whether or not there are bids on an auction to active bidders and only if/ when a competing bid is placed. This means only bids after your initial bid will be visible, not the history of bids prior to yours. All bidders are genuine, but only the usernames are visible. This bidding format was developed to protect both the artists and brands as well as the users from predatory bidding and reckless resellers.
[top]
What is the Watch List?
The "Watch List" is your one stop control panel for monitoring all auctions you have bids on and those you are interested in but haven't quite made the commitment to. Any item you place a bid on will automatically be placed on your watch list. You can also manually add items you are not bidding on to the list to have them all visible in one place. The watch list gives you real time countdown and bid data and shows your current high bid just in case you forgot how far you were willing to go to win. You can place first bids, higher bids, or increase/reduce your maximum bid all directly from the watch list.
[top]
What is the Gallery Wish List?
QART.COM is not just an online auction house, we also allow visitors to browse our extensive inventory of product that is not currently up for auction. You can purchase these items direct without the wait or hassle of an auction. The "Gallery Wish List" is a place for you to store items for easy reference so you don't lose track of that piece that caught your eye.
[top]
What is a Gallery Item?
As we have many thousands of items in stock at any given moment, we cannot have them all listed for auction at the same time and some of them are simply not available for auction. Feel free to browse our Online Gallery. If you see something you like, you can send us an inquiry or simply purchase it.
[top]
What is a Max Bid (proxy bidding)?
Placing a Max Bid is your best bet at winning an auction without having to continually return to your computer to check on it. To set a Max Bid, simply type in the highest amount you would be willing to pay and hit the "bid" button. Our system will automatically outbid others by $1 until your Max Bid is reached. The system will only apply the lowest amount needed to outbid others. When two Max Bid are placed for the same amount, the person who placed the bid first will win as will be indicated by both bids becoming visible with the first one placed appearing above the other.
If you do not recall what you placed as your Max Bid, you can refresh your memory by looking at your watch list.
[top]
Why when I placed a bid did it immediately tell me I was outbid?
When this happens, it means that another user had already set up a Max Bid for an amount higher than the bid you placed. To learn more about Max Bid, click here
[top]
Can I change my Max Bid amount?
Yes. You can raise your maximum bid amount and you can also lower it, but not below the current winning bid amount.
You can raise your Max Bid at anytime through any bid button for a specific listing, though we recommend doing so through the "Watch List".
[top]
What is a Buyer's Premium?
Beats us! You will not find any on QART.COM
[top]
Did I just see the timer go back to 30 seconds?
No, you are not having déjà vu. In order to maintain a fair chance of winning and avoid auction snipers, an auction must remain without bid in the final 30 seconds prior to closing. Should a bid be placed in the final 30 seconds, the clock will automatically reset to 30 seconds and start the countdown again. Great Scott!
[top]
Why can't I bid with cents?
Because we feel it does not make sense. All of our auctions will only accept bids in whole dollar amounts in order to maintain a serious environment.
[top]
How can I keep track of my bidding activity?
At the top right of every page is a link to "Watch List". Trust us, the "Watch List" is your friend.
[top]
Can I pick up my items instead of having them shipped?
As a company policy we do not allow the pickup of items. Our operation is set up to ship all orders and have found that allowing customer pickup creates order issues more often than not.
Under special circumstances, we may allow for a customer to arrange to pick up their items rather than have them shipped. Yet, such cases are rare and done at the sole discretion of QART.COM.
[top]
How do I know if I've won an auction?
There are a few ways to see that you have been the winner of an auction:
- You will see the number of items awaiting payment at the top right of every page next to the "Cart" link.
- Your watch list will display those wonderful words "You've won!" next to the closed listing.
- You will receive an email from us informing you of your win.
[top]
How do I pay for the auction that I won?
At the close of each auction, the winning bidder is expected to pay for their wins. As a courtesy to those without regular access or those intending multiple purchases, we allow a 5 day period for payment to come through from the time an auction closes. To pay for your win(s) go to your "Cart" and take it from there. The Cart link can be found at the top right of each page as well as in the "My Account" section and on the "Watch List".
[top]
Cancelled Auction
We reserve the right to cancel an auction at any time. We work hard to maintain a fair auction environment. With thousands of pieces regularly moving in and out of inventory, there is always the chance of data or human errors. Though highly rare, this may at times result in an auction being closed early with no winner. We reserve the right to end auctions prematurely in the event any data or human error is identified.
[top]
Can I retract a confirmed bid?
No. Just like a live auction, placing a bid shows your intent to purchase an item. Please do not place any bids on an item unless you intend to purchase the item. If you placed a bid accidentally, for instance typing $100.00 instead of $10.00 while placing your bid, please immediately inform us by contacting our Customer Service.
Repeated "mistakes" will result in an account being investigated and potentially blocked for future bidding. We try hard to run a fair auction environment and ask that our bidders do as well.
[top]
Can I use a PO Box or APO/FPO for my shipping address?
As the private carriers we use do not ship to PO Boxes or APO/FPO, we do not accept these as valid shipping addresses during checkout.
[top]
How can I see the cost of shipping an item?
QART.COM sets flat rate Shipping and Handling prices on all items. This rate is specific to the item and can be found at the end of the item's description tab. Shipping is available to all 50 United States with the exclusion of PO Boxes and APO/FPO addresses. Items shipped to Alaska and Hawaii may be subject to an additional shipping fee which will be noted alongside the shipping and handling price when applicable. International shipping is not currently available; yes, Canada is international.
Customers with PO Box, APO/FPO, or international addresses will have their orders held unless a valid address can be obtained or simply cancelled.
[top]
What is your return policy?
For our complete return policy please click here.
[top]
Why was I charged sales tax?
All California shipping addresses will be charged sales tax. We understand that some of our customers may be resellers and if we are provided with proof of this, the sales tax can be waived automatically as long as the permit is valid. For more information regarding reseller status, contact our Customer Service.
[top]
What is your cancellation policy?
Because of the nature of auctions being that one person "wins" against others you may not cancel an auction once you have won or simply "decide not to pay." Should you refuse to pay for a won auction, or allow it to go unpaid until it expires from your account, you may end up having your bidding privileges suspended.
[top]
Will you combine my items to save shipping costs?
We currently offer combined shipping on select tube shipped items only. Items that are able to be combined will indicate such on the auction or gallery detail page directly beneath the shipping and handling price.
Combined shipping works as follows: You are charged the shipping on the highest priced eligible item. Each additional item (up to 2 additional items per order) will be charged only a handling fee of $5 each. If you are paying for many eligible items in your cart, they will automatically be arranged at checkout to save you the most on shipping.
ONLY items that indicate they are eligible for combined shipping actually are. Once an order is paid for, we cannot combine the shipment with other items so please be careful to pay for the items in a single transaction. For more info, please contact us
[top]
How do I know my item is real?
Nearly every item that leaves our facilities is accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity. Yet, whether a listing advertises a certificate or not, QART.COM stands by our product. Should you have legitimate reason to believe that your item is not authentic, we will investigate the matter diligently and, if appropriate, gladly allow for the item's return.
[top]
What is a "Gallery SRP" or "Listprice"?
This is provided to us by the artist, publisher, or gallery from where the art was purchased and may have no reflection on what a piece will actually sell for on the open market; it is meant as a guide only. Due to second hand and closeout markets this price is often irrelevant and we encourage you to purchase items based solely on your appreciation of the image or recognition of the artist. Quality Art Auctions is not an appraisal firm and if we are contacted regarding verification of a piece’s replacement value, we will only be able to provide you with a copy of your purchase receipt reflecting your purchase price.
[top]
I got an error when trying to pay for my wins; what with that?
Common causes of an error during the checkout process are:
-The billing information you provided when attempting the charge does not match that on record with your credit card company.
-Your credit card number is invalid.
-Your CVV number is incorrect (this number is a 3 digit number on the right of the signature line (MC and VISA) or a 4 digit number on the right hand side of the front of the card (AMEX);
-You are using a card that has a billing address not within the United States.
If you have double checked these factors and the charge still will not process, please contact our customer service team for assistance.
[top]
Where should I look for answers on shipping questions?
So glad you asked, please visit the shipping info page here.
[top]
Where should I look for answers on payment questions?
So glad you asked, please visit the payment info page here.
[top]
What are the shipping and handling charges based on?
The shipping and handling prices for our items vary from piece to piece. The prices are based on a variety of factors including, but not limited to, the size, weight, fragility, and value of individual items. Our shipping and handling fees are noted on the bottom of each of our auctions and we encourage bidders to read this information before placing a bid.
[top]