How can I tell if an 'antique dealer' is genuine?

[deanna]

A leaflet arrived through my door offering to buy or value books, records, jewellery etc.
I have checked the name and address on the internet and can't find anything. The gentleman is from Brighton.
He does leave contact numbers but I am not too sure if I should call.

[123everton]

In my experience these people are nothing more than grave robbers usually.
House clearances and the like, they'll say these are worth �200 in total and the rest is junk so I'll charge you �300 to remove it.
Look up what you want to dispose of yourself, ask on here even, then sell it on eBay.
For example when Quiggins was open I offered an antique phone for sale (fully working order) "oh if we had that in the shop we'd only sell it for about �10" the owner said, I looked at her and thought do you think I'm stupid?
Yes she did.
There was nothing on offer for less �90, I said it's ok, I'll sell it on eBay (got �40 for it) and left.
I think an auctioneer might be a more honest assessor.

[mtanner]

A bit of common sense is what is needed here. you have not telephoned this man because you are suspicious, and rightly so. he is 99.9% likely to rip you off.

if you are going to sell things go to a local antique shop and get someone to value it. say your not looking to sell it, its for insurance purposes and they will tell you the value and the 'insurance value' (which is always much higher).

always get at least three valuations (that way you can pick off the guy who tells you its only worth �10 when the other two say �90. Also if you use someone who has a shop locally they will have a local reputation to protect and will be less likely to rip you off. A guy on the end of a telephone - what does he care?

Do remember that if you have items valued there is no obligation to sell them to the dealer (although he may charge a small fee for valuing but normally it is fre).
If you sell to a dealer he wont give you top price as he will be looking to sell it on and make money on it himself.

Best thing to do if you have time is get it valued, look it up on the internet, decide how much you want for it then put it on ebay or in your local paper for sale. or, if you have a few things take them to a local auction. you can put a reserve price on an auction item so you dont have to sell it unless it meets the price you want for it. that way you get the full sale value.

[deanna]

Thank you 123everton and mtanner. You have aired what I suspected.
Will take your advice.