About

The art market across Europe has become a regulated sector for anti-money laundering purposes. This legislation has been adopted by the UK and will not be impacted by Brexit. It is also anticipated that the US will adopt similar legislation in due course.

The legislation is mandatory and requires verification of the identity of clients when selling or acquiring artworks. It applies to both new and existing clients (including those from outside the EU) transacting with us. The checks that we are required to carry out and the records that we must keep are similar to the “Know Your Customer” processes that banks, law firms and some of the major auction houses already follow.

In summary:

– If a work is being invoiced to an individual, we will need to see an original / certified copy of your passport or other similar photo identification and we will need details of your permanent residential address.

– If the work is being invoiced to a company, we will need copies of the company’s incorporation documents and details of its directors and ultimate beneficial owners.

– We will only be able to receive funds from the person named on the invoice unless, by prior agreement, you have discussed with us that you wish for a third party to pay the invoice and we confirm that we have satisfactorily carried out the necessary due diligence on the third party. Without such confirmation, unfortunately we may not be able to accept the funds.

Please be assured that all personal data will be held and processed securely in accordance with data protection legislation.

We anticipate that the new legislation may, in the short term, impact on the speed of some transactions and we therefore ask for your patience if it takes a little longer than usual for us to process sales.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact: simon@stowarthouse.com

We thank you for your understanding and cooperation, and look forward to working with you.

Having a professional insurance valuation carried out is an excellent way of keeping a detailed record of your valued assets. Our experienced valuers can provide formal written valuations discreetly and expediently giving you peace of mind. We can undertake valuations on single items or complete house contents.

Our fully illustrated, detailed valuations will be invaluable when either making an insurance claim or helping to recover stolen items. Insurance valuations are normally carried out on a retail replacement basis, although other levels of determining valuation are possible. Our constant monitoring of the art and antiques market enables out valuers to be sensitive to current market trends.