Can an Ebay seller do this?

[AlanS17]

I was bidding on a couple of items on Ebay - both from the same seller. Their descriptions were obviously jacked. With 2 days left, the seller pulled the auctions. I was gonna have a good deal on my hands until this happenned. I didn't even know they could do this! I emailed back the guy and he says "they were posted by accident". I don't know how that could happen. Seems pretty shady to me... Is pulling an unsuccessful auction legal?

[mp2526]

It's happened to me before.  I don't see why a seller couldn't do it as you as a buyer can retract your bid.  I assume though that if you do it too often, eBay will frown upon you, but that's just my assumption.

[GGKoul]

They probably sold the items outside of Ebay.

[electricd]

An eBay seller can do this as many times as they want, as they aren't bound by any legal contracts to sell the item through eBay just because they have listed it there.  Weird, but thats the rule (I am a certified eBay developer, and asked my rep on this).

Ed7

[Wizard of DelRay]

I've had this happen to me, also.  If they're really so worried about getting at least a certain amount then they should just set a reserve price.  I've had a couple auctions where I took quite a hit in the final auction price but never once did I not follow through and sell.  Some people, huh?

[menace]

Well to play devil's advocate, look at it from the seller's perspective--they are paying money and spending time to list the item.  If its not progressing to their expectations or if its sold through other channels--they don't owe anyone who got to browse it for free, anything--why spend their time and money on a poorly performing auction?  

If they had entered into a contract (i.e. both had agreed on the terms of sale)with a particular buyer then thats different, but if you had just thrown in a bid, him pulling the auction is the same as him rejecting the bid.  It happens at regular auctions, so why not ebay?

[RayB]

If they're really so worried about getting at least a certain amount then they should just set a reserve price.

The problem with that is that there are ALOT of buyers whose attitude is that they will never bid on an auction with a reserve. I don't know why. It's a retarded policy to have, but there you go. You're damned if you do, damned if you don't.

[Sylentwulf]

Actually, you're wrong, they can NOT do this, it IS against ebay policy, and you should report them. Technically, if nothing else, it's fee avoidance since if they didn't want to sell it so low, they should have had a reserve.

Ebay not only frowns on ending auctions early because you're not getting enough money, they WILL ban you for it.

[Wizard of DelRay]

RayB:  I started laughing when I read that because I'm actually one of those.  The reason I don't bid on those I guess is because sometimes you gotta start outbidding yourself over and over just to reach the reserve.  When I post an auction I just make my starting bid the least I'll settle for and put a Buy It Now of what I would really like.  Works for me.

Sylentwulf:  I thought so, too, but I could never find anything that actually says that they can't.  But they still do have to pay the insertion fees so maybe that's how they can get away with it.

[mp2526]

from eBay's website:


Users may not use systems or techniques to circumvent eBay fees.

Examples:

...

Reserve Fee Avoidance - Canceling bids and ending a listing early because the seller's desired price has not been met.


I'm not saying that was the case in AlanS17's case, but the before mentioned practice of cancelling because the auction didn't get a high enough price is not allowed.

[mp2526]

More from eBay's site:

Reasons for ending listings early include:
   The item is no longer available for sale.
   There was an error in the starting price or reserve amount.
   There was an error in the listing.
   The item was lost or broken.

Note: Sellers are not permitted to cancel bids and end listings early in order to avoid selling an item that did not meet the desired sale price. This is considered to be reserve fee circumvention. Although there are legitimate reasons for ending a listing early, abuse of this option will be investigated.

[BLACK KNIGHT]

I know when I had to end an auction early that I had to put in a reason as to why I had to end it early...like it was damaged.  And a notice said that ebay would frown upon multiple early endings of auctions.  But I'm not sure if they really follow through on that or not.

[Bgnome]

it has happened to me also.  people pull their auctions for one reason or another.  i guess ebay doesnt really care if they still pay the insertion fee.  i tend not to bid until the end tho to try to keep the prices down..

[BLACK KNIGHT]

it  i tend not to bid until the end tho to try to keep the prices down..

I'm amazed more people haven't figured this out.  I think it's funny how people will drive the cost of something up themselves.  

[Raven..]

I had one cancel an auction on me because I was going to win a MAME cab for less than $10.  He canceled the auction with a few minutes to go!  The reason given was a "mistake on the shipping"....it was listed as "local pick up only".  The item was put back up again a few days later, wtih absolutely no change in the description...and still "local pick up only".  It ended up selling for wuite a bit more.  

So, good for the seller....but so much for following the rules of an auction!  I am not a sore loser though, so I didn't bother turning him in or leaving bad feedback.

[the3eyedblindman]

The smart thing the seller should have done if he wanted a higher price, which i also do sometimes, is have someone you know constantly outbid people, so if they really want it theyll bid again, if not, your friend wins and you just repost it.

[Wizard of DelRay]

i tend not to bid until the end tho to try to keep the prices down..

Word.  I never bid until it's down to 45 seconds or less.

The smart thing the seller should have done if he wanted a higher price, which i also do sometimes, is have someone you know constantly outbid people, so if they really want it theyll bid again, if not, your friend wins and you just repost it.

Actually, being a shill is worse than cancelling cause you didn't get the amount you wanted.

[fredster]

Word.  I never bid until it's down to 45 seconds or less.

I guess it depends on what catagory you are selling in.  When I sell things in arcade parts & accessories, people bid on them all the time.

But when I sell coins or cards it's rare to get bids in before 45 seconds to the end.  I guess that's because there are so many identical items.  

But that's the way to do it.  Look at the item, decide your high dollar, and bid it right at the end.

[RacerX]

The smart thing the seller should have done if he wanted a higher price, which i also do sometimes, is have someone you know constantly outbid people, so if they really want it theyll bid again, if not, your friend wins and you just repost it.

That's definitely against Ebay rules, and it's also completely unethical.   You act just like Do-Rag.  

Honestly, just set a minimum bid on the item, and you never have to worry about getting less than you are willing to accept.

[mcdo15]

i knew of an auction that was gonna be pulled...is the sell solarpc.com?

i was watching that as well and i knew it was gonna be pulled...

[GodSend25]

Actually, you're wrong, they can NOT do this, it IS against ebay policy, and you should report them. Technically, if nothing else, it's fee avoidance since if they didn't want to sell it so low, they should have had a reserve.

Ebay not only frowns on ending auctions early because you're not getting enough money, they WILL ban you for it.

Why do they provide the provisions to do it?  I have removed an item I was selling because my brothers friend came over and decided to buy it.  I had no bids at the time though..

[IG-88]

The smart thing the seller should have done if he wanted a higher price, which i also do sometimes, is have someone you know constantly outbid people, so if they really want it theyll bid again, if not, your friend wins and you just repost it.

That's definitely against Ebay rules, and it's also completely unethical.   You act just like Do-Rag.  

Honestly, just set a minimum bid on the item, and you never have to worry about getting less than you are willing to accept.

I agree, dude thats just plain cheating. You and people like you are the reason Ebay is as screwed up as it is.

If a person wants an item too sell and to get some good bidding, all they need is a good HONEST description of the item and some quality photos. Don't be a liar or cheat. Thats for fools.  

[fredster]

I think it's a guy who doesn't want to pay for the higher listing fees past $9.99.  It costs like what, 30 cents to list that way with one pic. So he keeps on it until he doesn't think it will get the money for it and he backs off.


If you go up, it costs more.  This guy is just a cheap dude.  You are probably better off, he probably wouldn't have treated you well if you did end up "winning" the auction.


Complaining to ebay is useless.  You have to keep on with an issue.  I had a guy pull out of a deal and I asked for my commission money back.  It was like $8.00 or something. Never did get a response I wanted like - "here's your money".

I got bored and quit trying. Ebay has literally millions of transactions and millions of people involved.  They really can't handle that volume, I don't know if anybody can.  They are selling basically an Ad. It's not like a store.  It's more like the thrifty nickel.

I did pull an item off ebay for a guy once.  He gave me what I wanted, and he was building a mame machine that really needed the part.  

I felt guilty about it later.  I haven't done it since.

If a person wants an item too sell and to get some good bidding, all they need is a good HONEST description of the item and some quality photos. Don't be a liar or cheat. Thats for fools.  

Agreed totally.  And you should always be skeptical of any auction that looks like that.  If I get a bad vibe, I don't bid.  After all, they usually made more than ONE of these things.

[AlanS17]

i knew of an auction that was gonna be pulled...is the sell solarpc.com?

i was watching that as well and i knew it was gonna be pulled...

That's the one! (Well, two...) They said it was mistakenly posted. They didn't say "an error in posting". They said "posted by accident." There's a huuuuuuuuuge difference in my book. They're just being dirty, I think. According to contract law, I gave "consideration" by placing a bid. I lived up to my end of the legally binding contract.

The only way they can pull out of a contract legally would be if they somehow made a mistake, but there really was no mistake that I could see. If those items went to $500 they wouldn't have been pulled.

[ErikRuud]

There are a lot of shady characters and dishonest tactics used on EBay.

Sellers do have the right to pull an auction, but they are only supposed to do it if there was a mistake or other problem.  Not getting a high enough bid is what minimum bids and reserve prices are for.

So far I have mostly been lucky in my dealings with EBay.  I have only gotten one item that was not as advertised. It was a Tyco slot car that was supposed to be in excellent running condition with perfect decals and paint.  The car did not run at all and the number decals on both doors were damaged.  I'm still not sure how he managed to setup the photo so that the flare from the flash hid the damage on the decals.  I left negative feedback and got an angry response.

I also got accused of using a shill by someone that lost an auction.  He got beat by $0.50 on an item that sold for $6.00.  The guy was basically a sore loser.  He sent nasty emails to me and the winner and left neutral feedback, claiming that he was having me investigated for shilling.  I checked with EBay, and they said that no claim was ever made.  Now I'm stuck with it in my feedback.


There are also plenty of honest sellers and buyers.
I did once get a somewhat rare Canadian edition of "Battling Tops" called "Battling Spaceships" in great condition for about $10.00 because the seller did not actually use the phrase "Battling Tops" in his auction.  At the time good "Battling Tops" were going for $60.00 or more.  Because the seller only used "Battling Spaceships" in his auction no one else found it in their searches and I was the only bidder.  The seller honored the auction even though he really hoped to get more money for it.

[mcdo15]

i knew of an auction that was gonna be pulled...is the sell solarpc.com?

i was watching that as well and i knew it was gonna be pulled...

That's the one! (Well, two...) They said it was mistakenly posted. They didn't say "an error in posting". They said "posted by accident." There's a huuuuuuuuuge difference in my book. They're just being dirty, I think. According to contract law, I gave "consideration" by placing a bid. I lived up to my end of the legally binding contract.

The only way they can pull out of a contract legally would be if they somehow made a mistake, but there really was no mistake that I could see. If those items went to $500 they wouldn't have been pulled.

yeah, i was gonna post but i knew it was bad...the text was edited to "x" and the pic was deleted..but the item remained...
yeah, they make an intresting product  on there website.  that listed (2) was  up for 7 or 9 days.. i would complain..why not?  they had no problem listing and selling there other products like the lcd screens...

[AlanS17]

i knew of an auction that was gonna be pulled...is the sell solarpc.com?

i was watching that as well and i knew it was gonna be pulled...

That's the one! (Well, two...) They said it was mistakenly posted. They didn't say "an error in posting". They said "posted by accident." There's a huuuuuuuuuge difference in my book. They're just being dirty, I think. According to contract law, I gave "consideration" by placing a bid. I lived up to my end of the legally binding contract.

The only way they can pull out of a contract legally would be if they somehow made a mistake, but there really was no mistake that I could see. If those items went to $500 they wouldn't have been pulled.

yeah, i was gonna post but i knew it was bad...the text was edited to "x" and the pic was deleted..but the item remained...
yeah, they make an intresting product  on there website.  that listed (2) was  up for 7 or 9 days.. i would complain..why not?  they had no problem listing and selling there other products like the lcd screens...

I was following those auctions from day 1. They had been up for over a week so you can imagine my dissapointment when they got canned. Sure the description was lousy, but the item was up there. How do you not notice for a full week that you put something up for auction that you didn't mean to put up? :-P

[scooter]

There are also plenty of honest sellers and buyers.
I did once get a somewhat rare Canadian edition of "Battling Tops" called "Battling Spaceships" in great condition for about $10.00 because the seller did not actually use the phrase "Battling Tops" in his auction.  At the time good "Battling Tops" were going for $60.00 or more.  Because the seller only used "Battling Spaceships" in his auction no one else found it in their searches and I was the only bidder.  The seller honored the auction even though he really hoped to get more money for it.

I got a similar deal on a Battling Tops game--the seller had it listed with other games (a lot, if you will) but "Battling Tops" was not in the description. I got it (with a few other games) for $12 shipped.    My kids *beg* to play this game constantly.

I did bid on a few auctions from a certain individual who kept doing his own shilling (with another account).  It got to the point that I was so aggravated,  I sent a note to eBay, who actually suspended him for a few months.  I did check some auctions that he had afterwards, and the shilling seemed to have stopped (although I never felt comfortable enough to bid on any of his auctions after that).

[Floyd10]

Give him negative feedback. I would

[DaveMMR]

Word.  I never bid until it's down to 45 seconds or less.

I really don't get 'bid sniping' as a feasible strategy.  The whole point of proxy bidding on eBay is deciding who's willing to spend the most, not who gets the last bid in.  

It's not against the rules and some people swear by it but I personally don't rely on it.  You have to sit by your computer during the dwindling minutes of the auction hoping that the server responds before the clock winds down.  Besides, it's also a good way to 'overstep your budget'.  It's much easier to figure out how much you're able to comfortably spend when you have three days left than when you have three seconds left.  Finally, touching upon the original topic, sellers may get frightened when it seems no one is interested in their item (leading on occassion to the seller pulling the item), even though everyone is counting down to the eleventh hour.  

I'm not fully opposed to sniping.  I've done it sometimes when I figure I can spend a little more than I originally wanted.  But, oddly enough, I've won more auctions just setting a bid amount than hoping to rely on the timing of a bid entered at the last second, a few bucks higher than the current bid.  

Just my two coppers on that.  

[patrickl]

Word.  I never bid until it's down to 45 seconds or less.

I really don't get 'bid sniping' as a feasible strategy.  The whole point of proxy bidding on eBay is deciding who's willing to spend the most, not who gets the last bid in.  

I started sniping because I got sniped almost every time I bid. When you snipe yourself, the other snipers don't know your bid so they don't know what to set their snipe for.

See sniping more as a one bid only auction. Everyone (the snpiers) say how much they each want to bid and that's it. After that the person with the highest bid is selected. So you still see who's willing to spend the most, but they say it in one go.

It seems really unfair that an auction can be pulled after bids were placed, but they probably need some provision for when things go wrong with the object. When people misuse that, I would hope ebay takes some action.

[Wizard of DelRay]

I really don't get 'bid sniping' as a feasible strategy.  The whole point of proxy bidding on eBay is deciding who's willing to spend the most, not who gets the last bid in.  

I never really thought of the way I bid as sniping, but I see where it can be seen that way.  I guess the reason I only place bids with less than a minute to go is because I don't like to show my hand until I have to.  I see so many people outbid each other the first day or two an auction is up that it puzzles me why they would show how far they're willing to go so early.

And patrickl is right about having a set price.  Even though I bid at the very end I won't go over a certain amount.  I just set my max amount and hope the other bidders' pages doesn't refresh as fast as mine.

[RacerX]

If you set your maximum bid on the first day of the auction, you can walk away and forget about it until it's over.  If you get the item, great.  If not, another one will be put up for bid shortly, or there are ten more just like it already up for bid.

That's my strategy, and it hasn't failed me yet.  I don't "win" every auction, but I always end up getting what I'm looking for at a price that I am willing to pay.