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Second chance offers

Has anyone been outbid on an item only to find that ten minutes after auction finishes that you are offered a second chance to buy it!!!! Tired of sellers upping the bids and then offering a second chance on it!
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Comments

  • Enterian
    Enterian Posts: 69 Forumite
    I've had a few of these, but have never taken them up.

    Having a suspicious mind, it seems to me that it would be pretty simple for an unscrupulous seller make a shill bid with a throwaway account in the last seconds to expose your maximum bid price, then give you a 'second chance' offer to sell it to you AT your maximum price regardless of the price at the time of the shill bid.

    But then maybe I'm just an old cynic!

    It's one of the reasons I've taken to 'sniping'.

    Enterian
  • chugalug
    chugalug Posts: 969 Forumite
    Funny you should mention this, I was wondering whether to accept a second chance offer on a top I didnt win. What makes it worrying is that its not through the ebay site but she pm'd me. It doesnt say on the item description that there are 2 tops available and she wants paying by uncrossed postal orders. I think I've just answered my own question.
    ~A mind is a terrible thing to waste on housework~
  • Totally agree on the sniping front! It is more fun to snipe anyway. The only time sniping is not good is when stuff is going in the USA which is silly o'clock in the UK, but if you want the item that much lol!
    Most of the second chance offers I have had the highest bidder was a new account with no stars on it, if people don't want the stuff to go cheap why not put a reserve on it.
  • soolin
    soolin Posts: 74,408 Ambassador
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    Has anyone been outbid on an item only to find that ten minutes after auction finishes that you are offered a second chance to buy it!!!! Tired of sellers upping the bids and then offering a second chance on it!

    If you read the e mail from ebay that has the second chance offer you will see that it says the seller may have more than one item which is why you are bing offered a second chance. It has very little to do with shill bidding.

    As a seller I use them every time i have more than 1 identical item. It saves me a second listing fee and it means I can move onto a new item rather than hang around keep relisting the same things.

    I've had a lot of very nice feedback from my buyers who were pleased to have the opportunity of getting the item at a price they were happy to pay. I have noticed though that it is the more experienced buyers who tend to take up the chance, the newbies tend to panic about what it all means. The funniest was recently I offered a second chance offer on a top to a newish buyer for £7 (her highest bid) which she didn't take up. I listed the second top and this one went for in excess of £10 and the newbie was outbid again. She then had the cheek to email me and say she would have the top after all for £7 and could I please send her another second chance offer as the previous one had expired before I relisted it. Unfortunately I had no more.

    Soo
    I’m a Forum Ambassador and I support the Forum Team on the eBay, Auctions, Car Boot & Jumble Sales, Boost Your Income, Praise, Vents & Warnings, Overseas Holidays & Travel Planning , UK Holidays, Days Out & Entertainments boards. If you need any help on these boards, do let me know.. Please note that Ambassadors are not moderators. Any posts you spot in breach of the Forum Rules should be reported via the report button, or by emailing forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com.All views are my own and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.
  • RACHIE77
    RACHIE77 Posts: 2,014 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture Combo Breaker
    I'm with you Soo, I find it a very useful tool as it saves the fees... If the second bidder is only outbid by £1 then it makes sense to offer them the item at the price they were prepared to pay and i've been offered this before and been well chuffed cos not did it mend the disapointment of being outbid but got it for a better price than the highest bidder....!!

    I dont think many ebayers would get away with shill bidding their auctions like this for very long so if an ebayer has good feedback there is no reason not to accept a second chance offer - IMO you are cutting off your nose to spite your face as you were obviously prepared to pay the price you bid!!

    I think like Soo says it is mainly fear of the unknown that puts people off - maybe ebay should have a look at how the email is worded that is sent out to install more confidence in the buyers? :)

    Rachie x
    Official DFW Nerd 210 :D
  • 1jim
    1jim Posts: 2,683 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    I agree, second chance offers are a valuable tool for sellers, i use them whenever i can as it saves another listing fee, it also allows the buyer to buy at a price they were happy with, I usually send an email to the buyer telling them why i have sent a second chance offer through ebay to reassure them it is not a con and it seems to work well
    Jim
  • RACHIE77
    RACHIE77 Posts: 2,014 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture Combo Breaker
    1jim wrote:
    I usually send an email to the buyer telling them why i have sent a second chance offer through ebay to reassure them it is not a con and it seems to work well
    Jim

    Thats intersting 1jim as i haven't had a lot of uptake of second chance offers, as i mentioned before I assumed its cos of lack of clarity about their purpose - What you have suggested is a brilliant idea (and completely obvious now you mention it!) - I might well have to do that :D
    Official DFW Nerd 210 :D
  • Some of the time it is a con though,you have to admit that!
  • RACHIE77
    RACHIE77 Posts: 2,014 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture Combo Breaker
    Some of the time it is a con though,you have to admit that!

    Why??? :confused:

    I dont get why it would be a con??
    Official DFW Nerd 210 :D
  • If I have 2 items exactly the same I only ever list 1 in the hope that 2 or more people are interested

    This happened not so long ago when 2 people bid my item from £9.99 to £17.50 .... I offered the under bidder the other item which they took at £16.50 .... obviously if I had put 2 items on at £9.99 common sense tells you that you will more than likely get 1 bid on each
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