01Who can sell
Anybody can book in and sell, whether you are clearing a loft once a year or you do the circuit every weekend. What we ask is that you are straight about which one you are.
- Private sellers are people selling their own second hand belongings. Most of the field is this.
- Traders are anybody selling new goods, bought in stock, or selling as a business. Tell us at the gate so we can place you properly.
- Traders must hold their own public liability insurance and any licence their trade requires.
- Nobody under 16 may hold a pitch on their own, though of course you can help out on the family one.
Why it matters
Buyers have different rights when they buy from a business than from a private seller. Pretending to be a private seller when you are a trader is the single complaint car boots get most, and it is the one thing that will get a pitch refused twice.
02What cannot be sold
This list is not us being difficult. Most of it is the law, and the rest is the difference between a family morning out and a car park of trouble.
- Counterfeit goods, copies and fakes of any brand
- Stolen goods, or anything you cannot account for owning
- Knives, blades, air weapons, imitation firearms and anything designed as a weapon
- Fireworks, flares and explosives
- Alcohol and tobacco, including vapes and refills
- Prescription medicines, supplements and anything medical
- Live animals, birds, fish or livestock
- Pornography, and any film or game above the age of the person buying it
- Food and drink for eating on site, unless you are registered and approved by us in advance
- Car parts of unknown origin, airbags, and anything cut from a vehicle
- Gas cylinders and pressurised containers
03Electrical and safety
Second hand electricals are part of what makes a car boot worth coming to, and they are also where people get hurt. Both things are true.
- Anything electrical must be safe, undamaged and complete, with the correct plug and no bare wire
- Say plainly if something is untested or sold for spares, and price it that way
- Children's toys, car seats, cots and prams must not be sold if they are broken, recalled or missing parts
- Upholstered furniture must carry its fire safety label
- Bike helmets, motorcycle helmets and anything that has taken an impact should not be sold at all
04Pitches and vehicles
- Pitches are first come, first served. There is no booking and no deposit.
- Pay at the gate on arrival. Keep your ticket where a steward can see it.
- One pitch is one vehicle and the space to trade behind it. Bring your own table.
- Vans, trailers and anything oversized are priced separately and placed by a steward.
- Follow the stewards on the way in. They are laying out rows, not being bossy.
- Once the sale is open, vehicles stay put until it closes, unless a steward walks you out.
- Drive at walking pace on the field. Every single time.
05Conduct on the day
A car boot works because a few hundred strangers are decent to each other for four hours. That is the whole mechanism.
- No abuse or threatening behaviour toward buyers, sellers or stewards
- No selling from a pitch you have not paid for
- No amplified music or calling out across the field
- Dogs on leads, and cleaned up after
- No smoking or vaping in food queues or the toilet block
06Rubbish
Whatever does not sell goes home with you. That includes the boxes it came in, the bags, the tape and the cup you had your tea in.
Leaving unsold goods on the field is fly tipping, it is charged back to us, and it is the fastest way to lose a venue. Anybody caught doing it will not be sold a pitch again.
07Weather and cancellation
This is an outdoor sale on grass. Heavy rain, high wind or soft ground can stop it, sometimes at short notice.
If a sale is called off we will post it as early as we possibly can, on this website and on our social pages at the same time. Please check before you set off on a bad morning.
08Right to refuse
We can refuse entry, refuse a pitch, or ask somebody to pack up and leave, and we do not have to give a reason on the day. In practice it is always one of the things on this page.
Where somebody is asked to leave for breaking this policy, the pitch fee is not refunded.
09Liability
- Everyone attends at their own risk, and everything you bring is your own responsibility.
- We are not party to any sale. What passes between buyer and seller is between them.
- We do not insure sellers' stock, vehicles or takings. Traders must hold their own cover.
- Please report anything unsafe to a steward straight away rather than working around it.