Britannia AuctionsCommercial vehicle and fleet auctions in Doncaster
Two motorways and a rail freight terminal give Doncaster more lorries than most towns its size, and when a haulier loses a contract a whole yard can come to market at once. Container work from iPort runs on skeletal trailers and tractor units. The sheds at West Moor Park and Redhouse Interchange run curtainsiders and rigids on retail and parcel contracts. A consolidation at one of those operators can put forty trailers on a single hard standing.
The outskirts sell a different vehicle. Plant hire yards and agricultural machinery dealers run tippers, beavertails, pickups and plant trailers, and those come to market at the end of a season or when the yard changes hands.
We sell both kinds by online timed auction. The catalogue is open to bidders across the UK, and the hauliers, plant firms, farmers and dealers around Rotherham, Barnsley, Worksop and Scunthorpe are near enough to attend the viewing day.
Container trailers and units from the iPort contracts
Skeletal trailers are simple to describe and easy to get wrong. Buyers want the length, whether the chassis extends, the twist lock condition, the tyre depths and the annual test date, and they want to see the landing legs and the brakes in the photographs. We record all of this on the yard and list each trailer as its own lot so a haulier can bid for two or twenty.
Tractor units from rail freight work have often done short runs at low mileage for their age, and that is worth stating plainly in the listing. We record the MOT date, the tachograph calibration and the hours on the engine where the unit logs them, and we say whether the fifth wheel and the lights were checked at the last inspection.
The yards around junction 3 of the M18 were laid out for artic traffic. We confirm the access and the turning space when we walk the site, and where it suits, the viewing day and the collection days run from the seller's site.
Tippers and beavertails from the hire yards
Plant hire yards on the edge of Doncaster keep a small fleet that does hard work. A tipper carries aggregate and spoil, a beavertail moves diggers and rollers, a pickup tows a plant trailer with a compressor on it, a 4x4 fetches parts, and all of them are due for sale when the yard is sold, a partner retires or the hire business swaps to contract delivery.
We photograph the bed, the ramps, the winch and the tailgate on each vehicle, note the last MOT and the plated weights, and describe wear honestly. This kit is aimed at groundworks contractors, small plant firms, landscapers and farmers, and they know what hire work looks like, so an accurate listing is worth more than a flattering one.
At Kirk Sandall, Balby Carr and the other older sites we check when we walk the site what the approach will take. Where a vehicle will not start, the listing says so and recovery is arranged as part of the removal.
What these sales can include
- Panel vans
- Long wheelbase vans
- Luton box vans with tail lifts
- Tippers and dropside trucks
- Refrigerated vans
- Rigid lorries
- Tractor units
- Curtainside trailers
- Flatbed and skeletal trailers
- Minibuses and welfare vehicles
- Pickups and 4x4s
- Car derived vans
- Plant trailers
- Vehicle mounted equipment
How the sale runs
We photograph and describe each vehicle, record the mileage and note known faults. The vehicles are listed in an online timed auction and the catalogue is marketed to trade buyers, hauliers, owner drivers and export buyers. Bidders can inspect on a viewing day, usually at your yard or ours, and lots close in sequence on the sale date.
Lots are offered as seen under the auction terms, and buyers are expected to inspect before bidding. The buyer pays the hammer price plus a buyer's premium, with VAT charged where it applies and shown separately on the buyer's invoice. Your charge is a separate commission, with any costs agreed in advance, deducted from the proceeds.
Reserves can be set on individual vehicles where there is a clear reason, such as a finance settlement figure.
The commercial vehicle and fleet auctions page covers when auction suits a fleet, paperwork that affects the price, livery and fleet kit, after the hammer.
Questions about selling in Doncaster
- We run a plant hire yard at Balby Carr and want to sell the vehicles but keep the plant for the season. Can the auction be split that way?
Yes. We catalogue only the vehicles now, hold the viewing day at the yard on a day the plant is out on hire so buyers have room to look, and run the plant in a second auction when the season ends. The two sales can use the same photographs and reach the same buyers, and someone who took a tipper in the first sale can bid on the roller in the second. Tell us which vehicles are on finance, because the funder's consent is needed before the first listing.
- A container haulage contract at iPort has been lost and we have twelve skeletal trailers we no longer need. Will they sell to buyers outside Yorkshire?
Trailers travel well. Skeletal trailers are wanted by container hauliers wherever there are boxes to move, and the catalogue reaches the east coast ports, the Midlands rail terminals and further afield. Lots are offered as seen under the auction terms and buyers are expected to inspect before bidding, which is why the tyres, the twist locks and the test dates are described accurately and why we answer questions while the sale is running. Listing them separately lets a small haulier take two and a larger one take ten in the same sale.
More questions about vehicles and fleets
Related services
Guides
- Selling a commercial vehicle fleet
Fleet sales turn on paperwork as much as on price. This guide covers the V5C, MOT and plating documents, clearing finance before listing, keys and livery, recording mileage and tachograph data, and how to defleet in batches while still trading.