Unredeemed item: how the public sale works and how the surplus is calculated

The legal basis: articles D514-3 and D514-9

Article D514-3 of the Code monétaire et financier provides for the sale of any item that is neither redeemed nor renewed. Article D514-9 requires the contract to set out how the public auction will be conducted and, where there is a surplus, how it will be paid.

A decision made enforceable by a judge

At the Crédit Municipal de Paris, the sale is decided by the director general and made enforceable by an order of the president of the judicial court. The general terms of 1 May 2026 state that it then goes ahead without any further delay or notice.

Ten days of public notice

Each Paris sale is announced at least ten days in advance, on the website and on the institution's premises. Waiting for that announcement is risky, since withdrawing a lot must be paid for no later than fifteen days before the sale session.

Withdrawing your item from the sale

You can still avoid the hammer falling by paying what is owed at least fifteen days before the scheduled date. Paris then charges a withdrawal fee equal to 5% of the valuation; an earlier renewal of the pawn loan avoids that charge.

Voluntary sale at the borrower's request

Borrowers may also choose to have the item sold. In Paris, the request can be made from three months after deposit until thirty days before the due date; in Strasbourg, from three months and one day after pledging.

Fifteen per cent in charges on the hammer price

The Crédit Municipal de Paris deducts 15% of the hammer price as sale costs. The Bordeaux sheet of 15 November 2022 split things differently: 10% preparation charged to the borrower and a 15% buyer's premium paid by the purchaser.

How the surplus is calculated

The surplus is the price obtained, minus the capital, interest, storage fees, penalties and sale costs. Strasbourg states that the difference goes to the owner after deduction of sale costs, without specifying any deadline for claiming it.

What if the price does not cover the debt?

Service-Public is clear: when the sale brings in less than the amount owed, the borrower has nothing further to pay. The appraisers then reimburse the shortfall to the institution under article D514-3, which encourages them to value items cautiously.

Two years to claim your money in Paris

After the sale, the Crédit Municipal de Paris sends a letter stating the amount of the surplus, which remains available for two years. After this contractual period the sum passes permanently to the institution; the regulatory text on limitation could not be verified.

Collecting the surplus remotely

Simply write to the auction department at 55 rue des Francs-Bourgeois, enclosing a double-sided copy of your identity document and details of a bank account in France. Payment is made by transfer, or in cash up to 3,000 euros.

How many items end up at auction

About one item in ten deposited in Paris is sold, at roughly 80 public sales a year; 7.2 million euros of surplus was generated there in 2025. Nîmes says that 96% of pledges are recovered by their owners.

Buying at these sales, or comparing with Brussels

These sales are open to the public: the page on buying at Crédit Municipal auctions explains how they work. In Belgium, the balance remains owed if the sale falls short, as described under the sale of pledges in Belgium.

Players in the sale of pledges

• Crédit Municipal de Paris, service des ventes: Runs about 80 public sales a year and handles payment of the surplus for two years.
• Crédit Municipal de Strasbourg: Allows a sale on request from three months and one day and pays out the surplus net of sale costs.
• Crédit Municipal de Nîmes: States that 96% of deposited items are recovered and that any shortfall is borne by the institution.
• Service-public.gouv.fr: Confirms that the borrower owes nothing more if the sale does not cover the debt.

From a missed due date to payment of the surplus

1. The due date passes with no repayment or renewal, and late penalties start to accrue by the fortnight.
2. The director decides on the sale, made enforceable by order of the president of the judicial court.
3. The sale is announced at least ten days beforehand on the website and at the institution's premises.
4. The item is knocked down to the highest bidder at the public session, with sale costs deducted.
5. The institution sends a letter stating any surplus left after the debt has been settled.
6. The borrower claims the surplus with an identity document and bank details, within two years in Paris.

Sale charges and deadlines

To claim the surplus

• The institution's letter stating the amount
• Double-sided copy of your identity document
• Details of a bank account in France
• Contract number or pawn ticket

What loses you money

• Ignoring the institution's letter after the sale and letting the two-year period expire, after which Paris keeps the surplus.
• Moving house without telling the institution, which then cannot inform you of the amount due to you after the auction.
• Trying to withdraw the item from the sale less than fifteen days before the date, too late under the Paris terms.
• Forgetting that 5% of the valuation is charged for a withdrawal, whereas an early renewal is presented as free in Paris.
• Believing the institution will claim more if the price is low: in France, the debt is extinguished by the sale.

General information, up to date as of October 2026 and non-contractual: always check the terms with the Crédit Municipal or the institution concerned.