Terms & conditions of sale
The terms that apply when you sell an item to Buybackgold.com. Using the website itself is governed by our terms of use.
In effect from 16 September 2026
- 1
An online estimate is not an offer
Anything the calculator or a photo assessment shows you is an indication based on the live gold price and the details supplied. It is not an offer to buy, and it does not bind either of us. The only figure that counts is the one produced after your item has been physically tested and weighed.
- 2
The final price is set in person
Karat and weight are confirmed on calibrated equipment, in front of you, before any number is final. Where a physical test disagrees with a photo estimate, the physical test is correct — and you are free to walk away at that point owing us nothing.
- 3
Quotations expire
A written quotation is valid for 24 hours from the time it is issued, because the gold price it was calculated from moves. After that, request a fresh one. We do not adjust a price downward between quotation and payout inside that window.
- 4
You are never obliged to sell
The valuation and the physical test cost nothing and commit you to nothing. If you decline, your item goes home with you and that is the end of it. We do not charge for a visit, a test, or a quotation.
- 5
Identification is required
We verify the identity of every seller (18 years old or over) before a transaction completes, as the law requires for dealing in second-hand precious metals. We cannot complete a purchase without it, and we cannot make an exception for a seller who would prefer not to be identified.
- 6
You must be entitled to sell the item
By selling to us you warrant that the item is yours to sell, that it is free of any other person’s claim, and that it is not subject to a hire-purchase, pledge or credit agreement. If that warranty turns out to be untrue you must repay us what we paid you, and you are responsible for any loss we suffer as a result.
- 7
Items we believe to be stolen
We report items we have reasonable grounds to believe are stolen, and we cooperate fully with the South African Police Service. Where an item is the subject of a police enquiry we will retain it and hand it over as directed. This is not negotiable, and it is the main reason identity verification exists.
- 8
Ownership and risk pass on payment
Ownership of the item passes to us when we pay you. Until we do, the item is yours. Once ownership has passed, the sale is final — precious metal is refined or resold quickly, so an item cannot be recovered after the fact.
- 9
Cooling off does not apply to a sale you make to us
The Consumer Protection Act’s cooling-off right applies to goods a consumer buys, not to goods a consumer sells to a dealer. You can change your mind at any point up to accepting payment; once payment is made the sale is concluded. Your other rights under that Act are unaffected.
- 10
Payment
Where an offer is accepted, payment is made by EFT to a bank account in the seller’s own name. We do not pay third-party accounts, and we do not pay in cash. This protects you as much as us: a payment trail in your own name is what proves the transaction was yours. How quickly it reflects is covered in the payment section below.
- 11
What you tell us must be accurate
You warrant that the information you give us — your identity, your contact details and your banking details — is accurate, current and your own. We are not responsible for a payment that goes astray because the account details we were given were wrong, and we may cancel a transaction or suspend an account where information turns out to be false.
- 12
We may decline to buy
We can decline any item, at any point before payment, without giving a reason — and we sometimes will, whether because of authenticity, condition, provenance, or our own stock position. Declining costs you nothing and your item stays yours. We may also refuse or reverse a transaction where identity verification fails or where we are required to by law.
- 13
Photographs you upload are retained
Photos submitted for a valuation are kept on our systems whether or not you go on to sell, and are used to check and improve valuation accuracy and to resolve disputes. They are visible only to authorised staff and are never published or sold. See the privacy policy for how to have one removed.
- 14
Record keeping
We are required to keep a register of second-hand goods we acquire, and to retain identity and transaction records for the periods South African law prescribes. We cannot delete those records on request, even where you ask us to delete everything else.
If we collect the item from you
We arrange collection by courier in some areas and for some items. Where we do, these apply in addition to the clauses above.
Eligibility is ours to decide. Whether we can collect depends on the item, its value, and where you are. Some areas we cannot reach, and for some items we will ask you to come to us instead. We will tell you before you commit to anything, and you will never be charged for a collection you did not agree to.
Get the arrangement in writing before you hand anything over. Before you consign an item to a courier, we will confirm in writing who is carrying it, what cover applies while it is in transit, and who bears the risk if it is lost or damaged. Do not hand your item to anyone without that confirmation — not to a courier, and not to someone who says we sent them. If you are unsure, phone us on the number on this site rather than a number you were given.
Collection does not commit you to sell. A collected item is tested and valued the same way as one brought in person, and you are as free to decline the offer. If you decline, we return the item to you at our cost.
We may reschedule. Weather, road conditions, unrest and courier failures happen. Where a collection has to move we will tell you as soon as we know, and rescheduling does not cost you anything.
Identity is still required. Collection does not remove the verification step — a purchase from a collected item completes only once identity has been verified.
What “instant EFT” actually depends on
We pay immediately on acceptance, and in normal conditions the money is in your account within minutes. That is what we aim for every time. What follows is an honest account of the things that can sit between our instruction and your balance, none of which we control.
What we are on the hook for. Our obligation is met when we have irrevocably submitted a correctly addressed payment instruction to our bank. When the funds actually reflect is then in the hands of the South African National Payment System and your own bank.
What “instant” means here. Real-time payment rails operated by the South African banks — real-time clearing and PayShap. It describes the rail, not a branded product, and every rail has rules.
Cut-offs, weekends and public holidays. Real-time payments are subject to the banks' own cut-off times and processing windows. An instruction submitted late in the day, over a weekend or on a public holiday may only settle on the next business day, depending on the rail and your bank.
Transfer limits. Banks cap what can move in one payment and in one day. Where a purchase exceeds a limit we may settle in more than one payment, or by ordinary EFT, and we will tell you if that is going to happen before you accept.
Compliance checks. FICA and anti-money-laundering checks — ours or either bank's — can hold a payment. We would rather be straight about this than have it surprise you: where a check causes a delay we will keep you informed, and we are not liable for the delay itself.
Things outside anyone's control. Bank or payment-switch downtime, telecommunications failure, load-shedding, unrest or other events beyond our reasonable control can delay a payment. Where the real-time rail is unavailable or a payment is rejected, we fall back to ordinary EFT, which typically clears in one to two business days.
No promise of a specific time. We do not warrant that a given payment will reflect within any particular period. Statements on this site describing how fast we pay describe ordinary conditions and are subject to this section.
“Business day” means any day other than a Saturday, Sunday or South African public holiday on which the banks are open for ordinary business.
Ask before you sell, not after
If anything above is unclear, call us on 010 157 5180 before you sell. A buying agent will also go through any of these clauses with you at the visit — asking is free and it is the point of the visit.