Shill Bidding

[ratbastard]

During this past week i found a bottle on the bay that i have been looking for. It's nothing special just an acl i want for my collection. auction ends sunday. There was one bid on the bottle by a user with zero feedback. So i waited a day or two and made my bid. I was the high bidder at the time. The other bidder bid 17 more times to out bid me. no big deal. So i contacted the seller questioning the bidder with zero feedback. Seller replied the zero feedback bidder has been an ebay member since 2010 and never bid on anything. Seller also stated he tried to contact the bidder but the phone was disconnected he couldn't get a hold of the bidder suspects it was one of his family members screwing around with his auction. Yesterday the seller contacted me again saying he was going to cancel the zero feedback bids and ban him from bidding. Later on yesterday the seller contacts me again stating the zero feedback bidder is legit talked to him by phone knows his family members , his ex wife , aunts etc. I mentioned to the seller about shill bidding and was told No way it's all on the up and up if i want to complain to ebay feel free to do so. So i asked about the zero feedback bidders phone being disconnected and never got an answer about that. Now zero feedback guy has one positive feedback and has bid on items in the last 7 days.. What do you guys think ? I really suspect shill bidding. Don't know if i should report it or not. Funny how the seller claims zero feedback has been a member for 2 years yet just starts bidding this week. As of this posting im the high bidder on the bottle. Something to me don't feel right about the whole auction

Thanks

 

[epackage]

So he relisted the bottle and you're bidding on it again? If that's the case I wouldn't wory about it, did the seller leave any sort of feedback for the bidder with zero feedback?

 

[ratbastard]

no the bottle wasn't re listed , i believe it's a 6 day auction ending 12/16. no clue on who left the zero feedback bidder his one and only feedback

 

[blobbottlebob]

It's weird Rat but it's not enough to prove anything. If you see a pattern of that same zero feedback person only bidding on that one seller's items and then turning around and re-listing them using the same pictures taken in the same backyard, you might be on to something.

Regarding the bidding in tiny increments. This certainly is odd. However, many newbies see the number that ebay puts up (for example it will say you must bid at least $1.25) and think that they have to bid that number. I have sold to people in different states (that I have never heard of) items that they bid tenty times on - when it would have been far simpler to just bid their one final bid.

Having said all of that - which is basically that you can't prove anything yet, I hate the fact that ebay decided to conceal the identity of bidders (to other bidders). This policy makes it much harder to catch a shill bidding seller - because you have to keep an eye on them for long periods of time like a detective to prove anything. So, basically, ebay thinks keeping bidders from recognizing other bidders is more important than preserving the integrity of their auctions. Annoying.

 

[blobbottlebob]

As far as somebody joining and then bidding two years later - it doesn't factor in either way. If he wanted to set up a shill account yesterday, he could have done it. In fact, it might even have seemed smarter (as a cheating seller) to say, "Look. The guy just joined. It might take him a few days to respond."

But sometimes people get into something or they don't. Doesn't mean much. I signed up for a photobucket account, used it like mad for two months and haven't been back for two years. It happens.

 

[UncleBruce]

This is just one of many reason I use a bid service for buying on eBay. I used to place my one bid early; a bid that was my top; then another bidder would come along and ding me several if not dozens of times. I can't respect that. Decide on your bid, stick to it, and place only that bid. Esnipe.com allows me to place my top bid in the final six seconds of an auction. No being pecked by a chicken bidder. Shill bidding is hard to prove, but it goes on. It is a risky business as if the shill wins the seller still pays all the associated fees with no income for said sale. If any collector is serious about buying on eBay they need a bid service. Fees are miniscule and by placing your bid for you, you never miss or forget to bid. So do yourself a favor and get yourself a bidding service.

 

[blobbottlebob]

I've never sniped Uncle Bruce. But because you have to be there at the closing time, I've forgotten to bid and lost items I may otherwise have won. So, maybe I should try it next time.[]

 

[tigue710]

I see people who bid 20 times in 2 dollar increments all the time... its usually just people who have no idea how to use ebay... There are also bid engines that bid for you and they bid in small increments like this... strange stuff

 

[kungfufighter]

ORIGINAL: UncleBruce

This is just one of many reason I use a bid service for buying on eBay. I used to place my one bid early; a bid that was my top; then another bidder would come along and ding me several if not dozens of times. I can't respect that. Decide on your bid, stick to it, and place only that bid. Esnipe.com allows me to place my top bid in the final six seconds of an auction. No being pecked by a chicken bidder. Shill bidding is hard to prove, but it goes on. It is a risky business as if the shill wins the seller still pays all the associated fees with no income for said sale. If any collector is serious about buying on eBay they need a bid service. Fees are miniscule and by placing your bid for you, you never miss or forget to bid. So do yourself a favor and get yourself a bidding service.

I am amazed that there are still folks who do not use sniping services...

 

[cyberdigger]

I indulge in the occasional snipe, the manual way.. it's kind of exciting, and 6 seconds is an eternity if you have high speed internet.. I snipe at 2 seconds..