Frustrating As It Is Sometimes, Bidders are People Too!
Written by Kelley Hopper on December 9th, 2009I was reading through the sellers forum on eBay this morning and saw an interesting question from a frustrated seller. They wrote that they had a bidder on one of their items who wanted to withdraw their bid. The seller wanted to know if they had to agree to this. My answer is why wouldn’t you?
People make mistakes and regardless of the circumstances, if a bidder wants to cancel their bid, let them. Maybe the bidder doesn’t have the money to pay if they win (emergencies do happen) or maybe they just received the same item as a gift or maybe they just changed their mind.
eBay is clear about the three reasons a bidder can cancel their bids:
It is ONLY OK to retract a bid if…,
* You accidentally enter a wrong bid amount (for example, you bid $99.50 instead of $9.95). If this occurs, re-enter the correct bid amount immediately.
* The description of an item you have bid on has changed significantly.
* You cannot reach the seller. This means that you have tried calling the seller and the seller’s phone number doesn’t work, or you have tried emailing the seller and it comes back undeliverable.eBay states that changing your mind isn’t a reason but I say give them a break and let them cancel their bid if they don’t want to buy your item.
Think about it. If you were forced to complete a transaction that you had requested be canceled, would you leave good feedback? Would you ever go back to that seller’s store again? And what if the seller has a return policy. Would you complete the transaction, receive the item then return it for a refund? I don’t want the hassle.
The bidder can and should withdraw their own bid by going to eBay’s Bid Retraction form, entering the item number and entering the reason for canceling their bid. The bidder made the mistake and it is the bidder’s responsibility to correct it.
After the bidder has withdrawn their bid you may or may not want to block this bidder from bidding on your eBay items. I have done this in the past with people who just seemed to be the type to create problems. I look at their feedback, especially the feedback they have left for others to determine if this person made an honest mistake or if they are just trouble. You can block bidders by going to eBay’s Managing Bidders and Buyers page, scrolling down to the section To Add A Member to Your Blocked List. Add the member’s user name and click save.
Remember, this is your business and you can run it any way you like. You want all of your customers to be happy having done business with you. Treat your customers and potential customers with respect and you will benefit by having customers who come back again and again.
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Tags: bid retraction, block bidder, blocking bidders, canceling bids, Customer Service, withdrawing bid
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