The US Embassy in London has relocated to a new facility in Battersea and is auctioning off unwanted items – including a second-hand Volvo, a printer and 1,200 toilet rolls.
The online auction, which began on Monday, features 100 Desna toilet rolls being sold in packs of 12 for £255 as part of a 41-lot auction.
An embassy spokeswoman said: “Our new building has different toilet paper dispensers than our previous building.
“So we had excess supply from our old building that we are no longer able to use.”
The US embassy recently located from Grosvenor Square in Mayfair to the new £762m new Nine Elms facility in Battersea.
The spokeswoman added: “Our embassies around the world host auctions on a periodic basis as a way of disposing excess property that is no longer needed.
“We have guidelines set as to how those auctions are held and where the funds that are raised from this auction go. Essentially, they go back to the Treasury.”
Other lots in the auction include a Bosch circular saw, a ceramic lamp without a shade (£120), an HP laptop (£181), five Dyson vacuum cleaners (priced between £34-£50), 22 plastic stacking chairs with wheels (£102) and a 2007 Volvo (£6,494).
The spokeswoman added: “It’s not uncommon for us to auction off old embassy vehicles in this way.”
Other US embassies currently having clear-outs include the ones located in Turkey, Armenia and Ukraine with auctions planned for the sites in Portugal, Serbia and Sweden.
