There has been considerable increase in crime, especially breaking and
entering, in the country, and we feel that some notes on the safe keeping of
collections should be issued.
1. Stress to all members of the household that on NO
occasion, however short, should doors and accessible windows be left unbolted;
this means close and lock.
2. Ensure that keys are not left in locks when you
leave the house
3. Ensure that side and back gates are securely bolted,
preferably with a padlock type, when they are not actually in use
4. Inspect all internal and external bolts, padlocks
and their fixings. Renew with a strong
type wherever needed
5. Ensure that all ladders are securely bolted to a
fixture, or are placed under lock and key
6. Check that all large suitcases are stowed away in
relatively inaccessible places (not in cupboards etc). Thieves travel empty handed as part of their
routine, so they must never find innocent-looking cases in which to carry away
their loot
7. Never leave strong tools, such as spades, shears etc
in unlocked outside sheds. Place them
under lock and key.
8. Lock up the most valuable part of the collection at
least in a strong cupboard and keep the keys very safely
9. Fit security locks to all external and internal
doors paying particular attention to doors on the ground floor
10. Fit security fixtures of the correct type to all
windows, including casement windows.
Ground floor back windows need special attention
11. Never put old stamp magazines, auction catalogues,
etc, in the dustbin: they advertise the existence of a collection
12. Make a careful list of all items in the holding and
keep this in a safe place away from the collection. Photograph or photocopy valuable items
13. Look carefully at the wisdom of insuring the
collection and get advice if need be on this point
14. Mark all albums, leaves etc, with your postcode and
house number, eg (CH99 9ZZ (27)), as recommended by the police, using one of
the ultraviolet ink pens now freely available from stationers. This will help prove and identify your
property in the event of loss of theft.
15. Fitting of a burglar alarm should be considered
16. Finally, all police stations have a designated
Security Officer who will willingly come to the house to check and advise on
security. He may well spot a weak and
vulnerable point that you may have missed.
The following notes have been prepared as guidance to member Societies,
both in making arrangements for their own affairs, and in handling approaches
from relatives of deceased collectors.
Collectors generally are
advised to ensure that their executors are aware of their wishes regarding the
disposal of their collections and philatelic material in the event of their
death. A suitable worded letter might
be lodged with their will or addressed privately to the executor or next of
kin.
In the first instance, a
person entrusted with disposal of a collection might best be advised to make contact
with the Secretary of the deceased collector’s own philatelic Society, or a
nearby one if he was not a member of a Society.
A visit to the survivor
might be arranged to view the collection or material. To avoid the possibility of bias or malpractice, it might be
advisable for at least two members to view the collection together. Perhaps the Secretary and Chairman might be
satisfactory.
In the case of a general
collection of no great value, it might be reasonable for advice to be given at
a local Society level, provided that the members feel competent to give such
advice. If the collection is of a more
specialised nature and no relevant expertise is available at local Society
level, then more consideration should be given to enlisting specialist advice
from without the Society. It might be
achieved by referring the matter to the Hon Secretary of the NW Federation,
with assistance from the Executive, who would be in a position to recommend
specialists within the Federation to view the collection and advise upon its
disposal.
When advising on the
disposal of material, it should be borne in mind that seldom will the immediate
disposal of the collection be critical to the financial position of the
survivor, and inevitably the more time which can be devoted to the lotting and
valuing of the collection, the more attractive will be the return.
Generally, if the
collection were anything beyond a fairly general one, it would not be in the
interests of the survivor to refer the collection to a dealer for direct sale.
Consideration should also
be given to an approach to the appropriate specialist Society or Study Circle
to which the deceased collector might have belonged. These bodies often hold auctions regularly, and would almost
certainly be prepared to look at the material and advise.
It might be considered
appropriate to advise disposal through an auction house. In which case careful enquiry into the
commission charged, lotting services and costs and other charges should be
undertaken.
Private treaty sales can be
very remunerative as no charges are normally levied beyond the 15-20%
commission on sales.
Finally, in no
circumstances should an individual member of a Society involve himself or
herself in the valuation or disposal of a collection, for reasons that should
be obvious.