Ritchie Bros. Columbus, Ohio auction site hosting United Rentals equipment inspections prior to six-city auction

Public invited to inspect items in Columbus ahead of November 2^nd Maryland auction

COLUMBUS, OH, Oct. 18, 2011 /PRNewswire/ - Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers (NYSE and TSX: RBA), the world's largest industrial auctioneer, will conduct a one-owner public auction for United Rentals, Inc. ("United Rentals") — the world's largest equipment rental company - on November 2, 2011. More than 575 lifting, aerial and general equipment rental items are located at six different locations in the Mid-Atlantic, including more than 70 equipment items at the Ritchie Bros. auction site in Columbus, Ohio.

The auction itself takes place at the Ritchie Bros. permanent auction site in North East, MD on November 2, and interested buyers can inspect the equipment - and pick-up the items after purchase - at United Rentals locations in NY, NJ, GA, and CT as well as at Ritchie Bros. auction sites in MD and OH. They can also view detailed equipment information on the Company's website at rbauction.com. All the equipment items will be sold to the highest bidders on auction day - regardless of price. There are no minimum bids and no reserve prices for the items being sold. All equipment items are being sold "as is, where is". Bids can be made in person at the North East auction site, online in real time at www.rbauction.com or by proxy.

"We have a very sophisticated schedule of preventative maintenance that is second to none," said Kevin Parr, Eastern Regional Vice President for United Rentals. "Most of the equipment in this auction is not even half-life; there is a nice blend of equipment across many equipment categories."

Ritchie Bros. Columbus, OH auction site (70+ equipment items, including crawler tractors, loader backhoes, skid steer loaders, trenchers, boom lifts, scissorlifts, forklifts, and more):

200 Ritchie Drive, South Vienna, OH

Tel: 937-568-9500, M-F, 8am-5pm with extended hours on Oct. 29/30

* More info about the other five locations and the auction itself is available at www.rbauction.com/unitedrentals

About Ritchie Bros.

Established in 1958, Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers (NYSE and TSX: RBA) is the world's largest industrial auctioneer, selling more equipment to on-site and online bidders than any other company in the world. Ritchie Bros. offers services that enable the world's builders to easily and confidently exchange equipment. The Company conducts hundreds of unreserved public auctions each year, selling a broad range of used and unused heavy equipment, trucks and other assets utilized in the construction, transportation, agricultural, material handling, mining, forestry, petroleum and marine industries. Ritchie Bros. has over 110 locations in more than 25 countries, including 43 auction sites worldwide. The Company maintains a website at www.rbauction.com and sponsors an equipment wiki at www.RitchieWiki.com.

SOURCE Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers