Beaming Bay of Islands couple buy BMW in Christchurch charity auction

A new BMW auctioned by the New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants (NZICA) has raised $75,000 for the Christchurch earthquake recovery thanks to a Bay of Islands couple’s generosity.

Bay of Islands couple Bruce and Diana Munro are the proud owners of a brand new 3 Series BMW 320d Touring Edition Sport, having seen off more than 200 other bids to secure the car for a closing price of $75,000.

NZICA auctioned the BMW after winning the car in a newspaper subscriber competition on 25 February. The auction, which closed at noon on Tuesday 22 March, was viewed more than 30,900 times.

NZICA Chief Executive Terry McLaughlin said he is delighted with the result for Christchurch.

“I would like to thank Bruce and Diana, all the bidders, our members and everybody who has contributed to our appeal for this extremely valuable cause,” Mr McLaughlin said.

“It’s great that the BMW has attracted such a good price. Being accountants, we had a few nervous moments putting the car up for auction with a $1 reserve, but it has certainly paid off.

“We will now be donating the proceeds to our NZICA EQ Appeal, which we have organised to raise funds for the Christchurch recovery.”

Bruce Munro and his wife Diana, who own the picturesque Matauwhi Bay Manor in Russell in the Bay of Islands, said they were looking forward to receiving the keys.

“In the last hour people were just nudging the bids up by $100 at a time. I thought, come on you blokes, it’s for a good cause, so I pushed it up a couple of thousand dollars and that did the trick,” Mr Munro said.

“It’s a special place up here, so the car will definitely have a good home.

“It’s a great thing NZICA have done. If any of their accountants fancy a holiday at a discounted rate they can look us up.”

ENDS

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