Ebay item pulled unexpectadly, can I do anything?

thehomeofDob

I had put a bid in for an item on ebay, I was the only current bidder and there was no reserve on the auction. There was still 7 days to go till the auction ended, yet the seller pulled it. Are they allowed to do that even when someone has bid on their item? I've never actually used ebay for auctions, only ever ebay shops. I tried to contact the seller but there has been no response. Am I just out of luck, or is there something that can be done?

Any help is appreciated

jor el

Was it the seller, or eBay, that pulled the auction? A seller can't normally remove an auction once there are bids on it. They can end it early, but then you'd simply win it if you were the highest bidder. eBay can remove them though, for varying reasons.

thehomeofDob

The item says that it has ended, and there are 0 bids. Even though I am one hundered percent positive I bid.

In fact, I just checked Bid History and this is what it says.

Bid retraction and cancellation history

Bidder Action / Explanation Date of Bid and Retraction
lmobie( 8 ) Cancelled: EUR 450.00
Explanation:The seller ended the listing early and cancelled all bids.
Bid:20-Aug-08 00:21:07 BST
Cancelled: 20-Aug-08 21:24:54 BST

I've contacted ebay support and they seem to be completely inept at understanding basic English.

Judgement Day

I agree with you that eBay customer support is next to useless but that's all there is. In this situation the best advice is to walk away. List the item you want in your favourite searches and receive an email whenever a similar item is listed. Don't deal with this seller again if he is the type who doesn't respond to emails. :)

thehomeofDob

Thanks for the advice. Guess I'll have to walk away. It's weird tho, because it's an Irish seller, who has 43 100% positive feedback. :-( It was a great deal and all. Guess I'm gonna have to buy new.

Thanks.

rubadub

Post the link!

In all these types of threads just post the link, you might be missing something blatantly obvious that you have neglected to mention.

thehomeofDob

I'm in work, and browers have right click and the addressbar removed. So if you google -
"ebay 110280149351" It'll bring it right up. I might have missed something, I dunno, quite new to the actual bidding business.

Aimee_gleeson

Plesase pay attention, if you have less than 5 positive feedback than NO BID PLEASE!

That could have something to do with it?

thehomeofDob

Nope, I have 8 feedbacks, all of them positive. I got a reply from ebay with a response to my actual query. It looks like there's nothing that can be done. It's an excellent deal I thought, but I'm just gonna have to buy new.

Again, thanks for the replies.

viv2

I think you are able to end an auction even if there are bids on it up until there are 12hrs left for a couple of reasons..
You accidentally listed the same item more than once.
You made an error in the starting price or reserve amount.
You made an error in the listing that you couldn't correct.
You lost or broke the item.
Items have been listed on your account without your consent.

I would imagine though that they werent happy with the price and there were no watchers.

JJ

That's correct you can end an item early and sell to the highest bidder or end an item early and cancel all bids but not when there's 12 hours or less to go. If a seller starts ending too many auctions early, they could get done for reserve fee avoidance.

thehomeofDob

Thought I'd post here instead of starting a new thread.

I've made a purchase form another seller here and payed for the goods on the 24th. I haven't heard from the seller about postage or anything yet? Is this normal?

Judgement Day

thehomeofDob wrote: »

Thought I'd post here instead of starting a new thread.

I've made a purchase form another seller here and payed for the goods on the 24th. I haven't heard from the seller about postage or anything yet? Is this normal?

You sound like you should stop, stand away from your computer and have a rest before you do any more trading on eBay. How have you just paid for something when you haven't heard about the postage costs?? :)

thehomeofDob

I think you misunderstood me :-) What I meant was that I hadn't heard from the seller in two days since payment about when the item would be posted. Contrary to how I may come accross in this thread I'm actually not retarded :-P. I'm just used to quicker communication on the sellers part. All is well tho, he replied this morning after I posted here, letting me know it had been sent. I rarely drop that sum of money online with someone who is not a reputable company, so I guess it's just a bit of shaky nerves.

*Dallas

i recon the seller ended it early becasue it hadnt reached the price they wanted.You can see they relisted it, and then ended the second item aswell... its not allowed on ebay and if you can be bothered you can report the seller but as the items are already ended, its not going to change your situation.

I'd recommend that you wash your hands of it!

If I was buying anything electrical or expensive, I'd try buy from a PowerSeller or someone that has a history of selling those types of items.. they will more likely to be helpful with returns/refunds etc, this guy only has 1 feedback as a seller

A Dub in Glasgo

I would have expected the seller to let you know when the item was posted and the tracking number. Email and ask for the tracking number. The seller will be an idiot if he did not post it by a means that is trackable on a website.

If you do not get anywhere, raise a dispute in paypal

jor el

I often get no communication from a seller, past the "Congratulations you won" emails. I always give it a week, or maybe two, before trying to contact them or raising a dispute. It's good if they provide the tracking info, especially if you've paid for registered post, but I often find that some sellers, especially very busy ones, don't seem to have the time. You would think this would be a requirement for Power Seller status, it's not just about selling lots of items, but also providing the service of a quality seller.

Stokolan

Same here depending on the item I rarely get a mail saying it was shipped..

But for more expensive items I would email them. As i had an issue before where i bought a phone and heard nothing for about 2 weeks and no sign of a package even tho it was express mail. After a few emails and a dispute I recieved the phone.

Id give it till monday then send an email asking if it has been posted.

thehomeofDob

the item arrived, I got an email an hour after it came from the seller saying it had been posted... meh.

A Dub in Glasgo

Make sure you mark the seller down on the 'communications' score