ON THIS PAGE Information & Rules Routing List Report Sheet

SALES CIRCUIT: INFORMATION & RULES

The Society for Hungarian Philately has decided to initiate a Sales Circuit Department and Mr. H. Alan Hoover has volunteered to get it organized. The first announcement of this service appeared in the January 1994 issue of THE NEWS. The second announcement will be in the March 1994 issue and will contain the Rules and Regulations as formulated by Circuit Manager Hoover. Notices will be sent out in January & February and sales books solicited, and hopefully the first circuit will be on its way on by mid year 1994.

To start, books containing stamps of Hungary will be sent out along with books of other items such as covers, cards, stampless covers, etc.. Since early Hungarian postal history includes combined frankings and different town cancels, this material is also permitted.

Realizing that a philatelic loss places the Society at a certain risk, the officers voted in 1994 to obtain additional insurance through the American Philatelic Society. Each time a member forwards a circuit via the mail, the member pays the postal service for $100.00 worth of coverage. The additional insurance for that circuit is covered by the APS policy and costs $1.50. Each time a circuit moves from one member to another costs us $1.50 and this expense is paid by each member on the routing. This payment is forwarded to the Circuit Manager and he in turn submits it to the APS.

There is nothing mysterious or complicated about the Society's Sales Circuit. It accepts stamps, miniature sheets, covers, postal history and stampless covers from the above mentioned areas. Any of these may contain special cancellations, plate numbers, errors and varieties as listed in specialized catalogs. With the exception of covers and postal stationary, all material submitted must be mounted in the Society's approval books each of which has ten pages of 5 x 8 inches in size and holds 120 stamps. They are available from the Circuit Manager at $1.00 each. Covers and postal stationary may be submitted un-mounted, but each cover or card must have the sales price written in pencil in the lower right-hand corner. A list must be generated by the owners, identifying each cover in some small way, and then including this typed list with the lot when it is sent out to the sales circuit.

A suggested format would be something like:

The manager then batches them and inserts them into a pouch with a similar front and rear cover information. This lot is then combined with other philatelic material for sale on a circuit.

When a "seller" or "owner" applies for and receives his approval books, he fills them with his stamps, prices each item in the spaces provided, totals the value of each book's contents at the end and returns the books to the manager. The manager then sorts the newly received books into groups on not less than six and not more than ten and begins circulating them among those members who have applied for the service. They are the "buyers" or "purchasers". Thus a so-called "Circuit" may be defined as a grouping of six to ten circuit approval books submitted by owners which travel by mail from buyer to buyer according to a Routing List accompanying each grouping. Only Society members in good standing may participate in our sales and exchange circuit and only if they apply as a purchaser or owner or both. Those who apply as purchasers and wish to receive groups of approval books are placed on a mailing list by the manager and have a different spot on each routing. This is done to prevent the same members from having the worst selection by being on the bottom. Purchasers are required to pay $1.50 into the insurance fund for each circuit they receive, whether they bought anything or not. This supplements the insurance purchased through the APS and assures full coverage.

After a circuit is retired, the manager totals the sales and returns the books to the owners. They receive a check for their sales less 15% commission if the owner is a member, 20% if a non-member and 1% of the gross value of the book for insurance and cost of return postage. Checks payable to the Circuit Manager for purchases made are sent to the manager by the buyers as soon as each buyer mails the books they received to the next buyer on the routing sheet.

The department estimates handling on the average of twenty circuits a year or approximately one every 18 days, naturally depending on the amount of material submitted. These circuits help form the life-line of our Society. The Department will be a constant supplier of funds and will aid immeasurably in maintaining the solvency of our Society's treasury. By making purchases from these circuit books, members not only serve their own philatelic needs, but also give financial support to their Society.

The following are the rules and regulations governing the use of circuits:

1. Stamps must be mounted in the Society's sales books which can be obtained from the Circuit Manager for $1.00 each. Only good peelable hinges or non-destructive mounts are to be used. Un-used spaces are to be blocked out to prevent mistaken blank spaces. Covers may be supplied in a 6 1/2" x 9 1/2 " clasp envelope but each item must have the sales price marked in pencil on the front lower right corner.

2. All owner's of material must be identified. No anonomus owners permitted.

3. The Society takes no responsibility for the quality or genuineness of the stamps and materials offered.

4. Scott's current catalog numbers are to be used. If you use any other specialized catalog, you must identify it and it must be in the current year catalog. Enter in the proper spaces the catalog number, catalog value and the NET price at which you want to sell. Total net value of a book may not exceed $800.00.

5. All books must remain in the Sales Department for at least one circuit routing.

6. After the books are retired from the circuit, they will be checked and the proceeds less charges will be paid to the owners. Charges include 15% for the service for members, 20% for non-members, return postage on the books, money order fee for payment of proceeds (if any) and 1% of the total original value of each book for the insurance fund (or $1.50 which ever is greater).

7. Upon obtaining a mailing of circuit books, a buyer must first check the number of books received. If one finds any empty unmarked spaces, they must notify the sender of the circuit as well as the Circuit Manager. In each such space, the buyer should write "Found Empty" and include your name and membership number. The prices of those stamps will then be charged to the member who had the books before them. Do not hold up the circuit.

8. A buyer must sign (use a felt-tip pen or a rubber stamp so not to "emboss" the stamps on the next page) every space from which he or she removes a stamp and place their membership number there. The buyer must mark the Report Sheet and the back of the book with the total amount removed from that book.

9. DO NOT HOLD BOOKS FOR MORE THAN FOURTEEN DAYS. A fee of 50 cents per day will be assessed for holding of a circuit beyond the 14 days. After removing what material you want, send the books by Parcel Post mail INSURED FOR $100.00 to the next member whose name appears on the the Routing List accompanying each circuit. Try to use postage stamps when forwarding the circuit, the next member appreciates receiving used US stamps also. At the same time, send the filled out the Report Sheet and the amount due (there will always be an amount due) to the Circuit Manager.

10. Switching of stamps, or substituting poor copies for better ones is stealing and will be dealt with as the offense warrants.

11. Each member is responsible for the full amount of the circuit as long as it is in their possession and until they receive the insurance receipt from their post office or, if delivered personally, until they receive a receipt from the next member. Members should save all postal receipts for at least six months in case of a loss in the US Postal system. The $1.50 insurance fee on the report sheet must still be paid even if the circuit is properly hand delivered to the next mailing list recipient.

12. Checks or money orders must be made payable and sent to: H. Alan Hoover, 6070 Poplar Spring Drive, Norcross GA 30092-1383.

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SALES CIRCUIT: ROUTING LIST EXAMPLE

	NAME	ADDRESS
1.	Frank Schubert	8505 Cherry Valley Lane, Alexandria VA 22309-2121
2.	Tom Cossaboom	P.O. Box 25332, Scott AFB IL 62225-0332
3.	Emmerich Vamos	8722 Belladona Road, Riverside CA 92508-3032