Your hired equipment appears to have been sold before the objection was resolved

The sale changes the immediate enquiry

You raised a claim over hired equipment at a builder's site, then learn that an auction may already have sold it. Contact your lawyer promptly and seek the relevant facts from the liquidator through verified channels. Do not assume the same collection request is still enough, or that you can recover the machine from a buyer without proper authority.

Establish what actually occurred

Imagine a plant owner seeing an auction listing marked sold after sending ownership documents. Preserve the listing and ask about the asset identifier, sale status and relevant dates. A website status may not explain whether payment or delivery is complete. Give the adviser the correspondence showing when the claim was raised and what response was received.

Understand the liquidator's role

ASIC explains that a liquidator collects and sells company assets and investigates its affairs. That general role does not decide the competing rights over your equipment or the effect of an apparent sale. Provide the hire, ownership and security records for specialist review. Do not infer that being the original purchaser automatically resolves every issue arising in the liquidation.

Source: ASIC: Liquidation, a guide for creditors

Request information relevant to the advice

Ask the lawyer what sale and handover information is needed and how it should be requested. Keep communications factual and avoid unsupported allegations against the liquidator or auctioneer. In the plant example, the serial number may establish that the listing concerns a different machine, or the sale may require urgent consideration of a different remedy.

Avoid creating a second dispute

Do not enter premises, track down a private buyer or remove equipment based on your own conclusion. Ask about lawful options and any urgent steps available on the facts. Preserve records of rent, deposits and previous communications without modifying them. Questions about the asset, proceeds or another claim require advice rather than an assumption that one remedy is automatically available.

Update the claim strategy

Record the verified sale position, advice and next action. Keep any remaining claim accurately described and supported. The practical objective is to respond to the stage the transaction has actually reached. A sale that has progressed may require different instructions from an unresolved catalogue listing, and prompt factual clarification helps the adviser assess that difference.