After the Auction

Q: How do I place a bid on an item?

A: Once you have found an item you would like to bid on, go to the bidding section, located at the bottom of the listing, and place your bid in the appropriate box. For some helpful tips/tricks about bidding click here

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Q: What is a Reserve Price Auction?

A: When a seller lists an item for auction, they are given the option to set a Reserve Price on their item. This Reserve Price is lowest price at which they are willing to sell the item. If at the end of the Auction, the highest bid does not meet the seller's Reserve Price, the seller is not required to sell the item.

On an auction in which the seller has set a Reserve Price, you may notice the words (Reserve not yet met) appear in parentheses next to the current bid amount. This indicates that the current high bid has not met the Reserve Price. Once the Reserve Price is met, the words (Reserve met) will appear. Sellers may not set a Reserve Price when running a Dutch Auction.

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Q: What is a Dutch Auction?

A: Dutch Auctions are a specific auction format where a seller has multiple, identical items they wish to sell. The seller specifies the minimum price (the starting bid) and the number (quantity) of items they are offering. Bidders bid at or above that minimum for the quantity they are interested in purchasing. At the close of the auction, the highest bidders purchase the items at the lowest successful bid. To see an example of the Dutch Auction bidding process click here.

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Q: What is a Private Auction?

A: When listing an item, you may choose to run your auction as a private auction. This means bidders’ e-mail addresses will not be available for public view on the item screen or bidding history screen. Only the seller and the high-bidder will be notified via e-mail when the auction is over. This option is used when a seller feels that bidders might prefer not to have their identities visible to the public. We suggest only using this option in exceptional circumstances, as it may discourage users from bidding on your auction.

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Q: I keep bidding on an item and it immediately says I have been outbid. Why?

A: When this happens, it means that an earlier bidder has placed a maximum bid amount, which is higher than the amount of your maximum bid. When you placed your bid, the Auto-Bid system immediately placed a bid on the earlier bidder's behalf, for an amount just high enough to outbid your maximum, insuring his position as high bidder. If the maximum bid that you place, is high enough to outbid any other bidders, than Auto-Bid will do the same for you, and maintain your position as the high bidder.

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Q: Can I increase my maximum bid after I've placed a bid?

A: Yes. You may place a higher maximum bid at any time during the auction. You will probably want to do this if another bidder outbids your previous maximum bid. If you would like to view any auctions in which you have already placed a bid, click here.

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Q: Can I decrease or retract my bid after I have placed it?

A: Once you have placed a bid in an auction, you will not be able to decrease your bid amount. As per our Community Guidelines, once a bid is placed you may not retract it. However, there are certain circumstances in which retracting a bid may be justified. Please click here to view these circumstances.

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Q: I placed a bid. Why isn’t it showing up?

A: There are 2 steps to placing a bid on an auction. You must complete both steps in order for our system to record and display your bid.

Step 1. Scroll down to the Bidding section of the Listing you are viewing. In the appropriate boxes, enter your password and your maximum bid amount. Then click on the button that says Review my Bid.

Step 2. Review your bid information, and check it for accuracy. Read the rules that follows, and continues to the bottom of the page, where you will see a button that states, “I accept these terms”, Place my Bid. To place your bid simply click on that button.

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Q: I have a question about an item. How do I contact the seller?

A: The quickest way to ask a seller a question about their auction, is to click on the words (ask seller a question) displayed on the top portion of every listing. You may also request additional contact information for that seller, by going to the SiteMap, and clicking on the words (Contact a Registered User).

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Q: Why is my Dutch Auction bid not being accepted?

A: When placing a bid on a Dutch Auction, your new bid must be higher in value than any previous bids. The bid's value is calculated by multiplying the amount of the bid by the total number of items being bid for.

In Dutch Auctions new bids must have a higher value than previous bids. The value of the bid is determined by multiplying the amount of your bid by the number of items you bid for. Attempting to reduce this total value in future bids is not permitted, and your new bid will be rejected.

This policy defends sellers from dishonest bidders who bid for the entire quantity being offered, (which would discourage other bidders from participating), and then reducing their quantity at the last minute.

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Q: I recently bid on an item, and can’t find the listing?

A: Simply go to the ePier.com Search Page, and select “Bidder Search”. In the space provided, enter your User ID or e-mail address, and click on submit. You will then be shown a list of any auctions in which you have placed a bid. If you would like to do this now click here.

It is always a good idea to write down the item number and description of any auction that you have placed a bid on.

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Q: How do I find out if an auction has ended?

A: If you have the Auction's item number, you can go to the Search page and look up the Auction by its item number. The results of the auction are posted on the actual listing for a period of 30-days after the Auction has ended. If you do not know the item number, you may search for the item by its name or title by using the Title Search section of our Search page.

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Q: The auction has ended, and I am the winning bidder. What do I do?

A: At the end of every Auction, our system automatically sends an e-mail to both the seller and the winning bidder(s), notifying both parties that the auction has ended. If you are a winning bidder, you should contact the seller immediately to acknowledge that you have won.

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Q: What do I do if I can't contact the seller by e-mail?

A: You may request additional contact information about another registered user. Please keep in mind that many people are not able to check their e-mail every day. You may request additional contact information about another registered user by clicking here. In most cases, a phone call can resolve most misunderstandings. Sellers and Buyers should make contact within 3 business days. Both are equally responsible for making contact.

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Q: What if the seller decides not to sell their item anymore?

A: This does not happen very often, as most sellers are usually very enthusiastic about selling their item(s). Unfortunately, we are unable to force a seller to sell their item. There may be a very good reason as to why. Ask the seller for an explanation as to why they decided not to sell. You may also leave feedback about your experience with this seller, for the rest of the Community to see.

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