Send the whole estate box. We sort it on camera.
Send the whole estate lot by mail: sterling next to silverplate, all in one box. We sort it on camera, pay each published category at its published rate, and itemize everything on one receipt. Gold is paid by the gram at the published rate; anything not on the price list is quoted to you in writing first.
Built for executors and downsizing families
When you are clearing a house, the metals drawer is the one job with no good answer. The jeweller only wants the gold. Many buyers will not take the silverplate chest, and every stop is a separate trip, a separate quote, a separate stranger.
Our answer: one box, one itemized receipt, one payment.
- Everything is sorted on camera, from the sealed box to the scale. The video record protects you and any co-heirs.
- Every published category is paid at its published price: silverplate on the pound basis, pewter and brass at their posted pound prices. Gold is paid by the gram, at the live published rate.
- Unlisted items are the exception: anything not on our price list is set aside on camera and quoted to you in writing, and nothing in it is processed until you approve the quote. We pay metal value only, so keep back anything the family thinks is worth more than its metal.
- The itemized receipt gives executors a clean paper record for the estate file: every category, every weight, every rate, every dollar on one document.
Before you box anything: the two rules
Rule one: keep the pieces with stories. No payout replaces the christening mug or the ring your parent actually wore. Walk the family through first and pull out what anyone genuinely wants.
Rule two: when in doubt, send it in. We test and sort every piece. Items can come back if you change your mind, but at your shipping cost. If anyone in the family is unsure about a piece, email photos to [email protected]: we will tell you honestly what it is, and when the better answer is an auction house. That advice is free and it comes before you ship, when it can still change your mind.
Do not polish the lot, and sort with the marks, not by looks. Polishing strips silver and can destroy collectible value. Families reliably mis-sort sterling into the plate pile, because plate was designed to look like sterling. If the marks confuse you, photos to [email protected] settle it before anything ships. Our sterling vs silverplate guide walks through every mark.
What to put in the box
Everything the family has decided to sell: flatware chests, the tea service, the plated trays, sterling jewellery. Gold rides in the same box and is paid at its published rate.
What NOT to send
- Documents, photographs and keepsakes with no metal value: keep those safe at home.
- Anything anyone in the family is still unsure about. The decision to sell happens before you ship, not after.
A note on larger estates
Tell us roughly what you have when you request your label, or email [email protected]. As part of our anti-money-laundering (FINTRAC) compliance program we ask every seller for photo ID: a photo of the front of your driver's licence or other government-issued photo ID, emailed to us, is enough. A buyer who shrugs at identity checks is a red flag.
Estate professionals: executors' lawyers, estate liquidators, auction houses and senior move managers can use our bulk and trade selling guide to prepare multiple lots and ask about trade terms. For a single estate, see selling as an executor.
More reading: the executor's page and how to sell inherited silver without regrets.