Ebay

[rogerr]

I recently placed a bid on Ebay for a motorcycle for my husband. The bid I placed did not reach the reserve, and when I looked at the bike near the end of the auction it was up to �780 (I had bid �750). The auction finished 2 hours before it should have.
I have now received an email saying that the top bidder is unavailable!!!! and I have a second chance at it.
What do you all think--do you think this is a bit odd.
I would welcome your comments.
Thanks
Barbara

[mushroom25]

this could be a genuine second chance bid - in which case it will show in your My eBay.

Or it could be a case of "shill bidding" - where the seller himself puts in a bid, and if it wins make a second chance offer to the highest real bidder. The problem is that the bidder, if he accepts, pays his absolute maximum price, rather that the next highest bid, plus increment.

if you suspect shill bidding, check out the highest bidder's bidding history.

[rogerr]

Thanks for that, I will check it out now.

[rogerr]

Ebay is so busy I can't get any info. I emailed the seller and he said the winner didn't answer his emails and the 2nd bidder bought another bike. I had asked if anyone had viewed the bike, but he didn't say either way. Sorry to appear so worried, but �750 is a lot of money to us and I am not very familiar with the workings of ebay. Also the bike is 3 hours away to view,

[stevie21]

Verify it thru My Ebay before doing anything further. For all you know, the bloke might have taken the top 10 bidders and is emailing all of them asking for �750.
Also - if you do purchase the bike, make sure that's still ostensibly via ebay as well - they're not responsible for anything that happens outwith their site.

[rogerr]

Thanks for the advice. We aren't sure about this, so have decided to play safe and decline the seller's offer. It was too much money to take a chance with.