Debtors (Scotland) Act 1987

37 The warrant sale.S

(1)Where the warrant of sale does not appoint as auctioneer the officer of court appointed under section 31(2)(a) of this Act to conduct the warrant sale, that officer—

(a)shall attend the sale and keep a record of any articles which are sold and the amount for which they are sold and of any articles whose ownership passes to the creditor under subsection (6) below; and

(b)if the sale is to be held in premises other than an auction room, shall supervise the sale.

(2)Where the officer of court appointed under section 31(2)(a) of this Act is appointed as auctioneer to conduct the sale, he shall be attended at the sale by one witness.

(3)In the warrant sale there shall be no reserve price unless the creditor chooses to have one and, if he does so choose, it shall not exceed the value of the article fixed under section 20(4) of this Act.

(4)The value of a poinded article fixed under section 20(4) of this Act and the reserve price, if any, fixed by the creditor under subsection (3) above need not be disclosed to any person bidding for the article.

(5)In the warrant sale any poinded article exposed for sale may be purchased by—

(a)any creditor, including the creditor on whose behalf the poinding was executed; or

(b)a person who owns the article in common with the debtor.

(6)Subject to subsection (7) below and without prejudice to the rights of any third party, where the sum recoverable has not been realised by the warrant sale, ownership of a poinded article which remains unsold after being exposed for sale shall pass to the creditor.

(7)Without prejudice to the rights of any third party, where the warrant sale is held in premises belonging to the debtor, the ownership of a poinded article which has passed to the creditor under subsection (6) above shall revert to the debtor unless the creditor uplifts the article by 8 p.m. (or such other time as may be prescribed by Act of Sederunt)—

(a)if the premises are a dwellinghouse in which the debtor is residing, on the day when the sale is completed;

(b)in any other case, on the third working day following that day,

and the officer of court may remain on or re-enter any premises (whether open, shut or lockfast) for the purpose of enabling the creditor to uplift any such article.

(8)For the purposes of subsection (7) above “working day” means a day which is not—

• Saturday;

• Sunday;

• 1st or 2nd January;

• Good Friday;

• Easter Monday;

• 25th or 26th December;

• a public holiday in the area in which the premises are situated.

(9)Subject to subsection (10) below, where at the warrant sale any article is unsold or is sold at a price below the value fixed under section 20(4) of this Act, the debtor shall be credited with an amount equal to that valuation.

(10)Where—

(a)any damaged article has been revalued under section 20(4) of this Act on the authority of the sheriff given under section 29(2) of this Act;

(b)the damage was not caused by the fault of the debtor; and

(c)no order has been made under section 29(3) of this Act requiring a third party to consign a sum in respect of the article, or such an order has been made but has not been complied with,

the amount credited to the debtor under subsection (9) above shall be an amount equal to the original valuation and not the revaluation referred to in paragraph (a) above.