Question Re: Retracting a bid in Member To Member Support DO NOT DELETE

Retracting a bid

dougz64 — Sun, 24 Jan 2021 11:00:29 GMT

I have tried to contact a seller to arrange for a retracting of a bid. The seller has been in touch with me and asked if I can do it my end. Any solutions?

Re: Retracting a bid

1956glyn — Sun, 24 Jan 2021 11:02:18 GMT

Read this Ebay link Retracting a bid | eBay

Re: Retracting a bid

arkwebus — Sun, 24 Jan 2021 13:05:50 GMT

Please see @1956glyn advice. At your point in your eBay "career" it is sad to see you trying to retract.

There are few valid reasons to do so. The only one that I can think of is bidding an amount by mistake say £2000.00 when you meant £20.00.

Bidding by mistake or finding it cheaper or changing your mind are not valid reasons.

EBay records bid retractions

@dougz64

Re: Retracting a bid

dougz64 — Sun, 24 Jan 2021 13:58:41 GMT

Good afternoon. In response, I explained to the seller that due to unseen
circumstances, I was unable to proceed with the bidding, which they
understood graciously, and very helpfully. There was no malice, or ulterior
motives. As for my ebay "career"..... actually my career has been with the
NHS for the past 22 years. And I don't intend letting any ebay
"gatekeepers" to intimidate me in the meantime. I hope this makes things
clear.

Re: Retracting a bid

arkwebus — Sun, 24 Jan 2021 14:19:59 GMT

Thank you for an update. No one - I hope - seeks to intimidate you. My intention here [and I am a member like you] is to ensure [as far as possible] that everyone has a good understanding of the rules.

EBay works brilliantly as long as all understand how it works. One problem is that mostly it is automatic. It simply does not make exceptions for exceptional circumstances.

This is what eBay says about buyers retracting bids:

When can I retract a bid?

A bid is a binding contract that's active until an auction-style listing ends or you're outbid. You can only retract a bid if the seller significantly changed the description of the item, if you accidentally bid the wrong amount, or if you can't reach the seller. Retracting a bid for any other reason is considered an invalid bid retraction. If you're retracting a bid for a valid reason, you'll also need to make sure you do so within the bid retraction timeframe.

Keep in mind that you can't always retract a bid once it's made –if you're not able to retract your bid, you can also try contacting the seller to see if they'll cancel your bid for you.

When you can retract a bid

You can retract a bid if:

The seller significantly changed the description of the item
You accidentally bid the wrong amount. For example, you meant to bid £20, not £200. In this case, enter the price you intended to bid as soon as you've retracted the incorrect bid
You can't reach the seller. For example, you sent the seller an email and it comes back undeliverable, or you tried calling the seller and the phone number doesn't work

As well as the above, timing is also important when retracting a bid:

If there are 12 hours or more left before the listing ends, all of your bids can be retracted
If the listing is ending in less than 12 hours, you can retract your most recent bid if it's been less than an hour since you placed it

Any other bids can't be retracted, but you can still contact the seller to see if they'll agree to cancel a bid for you. Remember, the seller isn’t obligated to cancel a bid so they may not agree.

I am uncertain why - when you contacted the agreeable seller - he did not simply deal with it!

The use of the word "career" in respect of eBay wqs ill-chosen.

@dougz64