Valuing Your Piano

We are often asked to put a value on a piano, but this can be more difficult than it might at first seem, particularly over the internet. Two identical models of the same make, and of the same age can have different values depending upon the condition of the instruments, as well as their locations.

We are happy to offer a professional valuation service to all UK clients - for clients local to Oxford we will visit you to assess the instrument, and the fee will depend upon how far from Oxford you live. For clients who live further afield we are still able to supply a valuation, but we will need the answers to various questions, and a few photos of the interior of the instrument. The more information you can give us, the more accurate our valuation will be.

If you would like to request a valuation from us, then please send the information and photos requested below. The fee for a valuation either by letter, sent by post, or by Email, is £ 42 + VAT.

PLEASE NOTE : This service is only open to clients based in the UK. (Sorry, but we simply do not have the resources available to offer this service to clients abroad.)

We will endeavour to provide the most accurate figure we can, based on the details you provide. However, we cannot accept any liability for inaccurate valuations due to lack of information or misinformation provided to us. Clients using our valuation service will be deemed to accept these conditions.

Our usual practice is to calculate a range within which a piano's value lies.

Firstly we need to ask several questions about the instrument :

1. Upright or Grand ?
2. Make of piano - found on the Fall (keyboard lid); or inside, cast in the iron frame above the strings;
3. Height, if upright; Overall length, if Grand ?
4. Confirmation of any factors of which you are aware and which are not obvious from the photos. This would include cracks in the frame, splits in the soundboard, repairs undertaken in the past, water damage, etc etc.
5. The serial number, if possible. This is usually stamped on the iron frame (If a Grand, slide out the Music stand, and look on the iron frame or soundboard).
6. Confirmation of the type of valuation you want - ie. Market value; likely replacement cost for insurance purposes; price at which to attempt a private sale, etc.

In addition to the above, we also need a few pictures of the instrument, particularly the interior, and preferably by Email using a digital camera.

The pictures we need are as follows:

• In an upright, lift up the 'Half-top' lid, then remove the 'Top Door' (above the keyboard), using the two catches just inside at each end at the top. Take photos of the strings and the action.
• In a grand, lift the main lid onto the Prop-stick, and slide out the music stand. If you can lift out the Fall (keyboard lid), an additional picture of the Action horizontally taken, will assist, but it is not essential. Take photos of the case and strings.

If you don't have a digital camera, then ordinary photographs sent by post will be fine. We regret that we cannot offer a valuation without photographs.

Our postal address is :

Courtney Pianos,
43, Botley Road,
Oxford
OX2 0BN.

Our email address is :

david@courtneypianos.co.uk

Again, we must emphasise that this service is only open to clients resident in the UK .