Would you tell me please if it is against the rules to bid against the bidder

[emtdickson]

I bid on an item - a used heater - and was the only bidder.  I lost it at the last minute and the price was £1 above mine.  The other bidder's identity was private.  I think they were hoping I was still at the computer when the auction ended, and would bid higher, because I had messaged the seller 30 minutes before the end, but had to leave the desk.  I suppose I would have bid higher had I stayed.

The same item was immediately listed again at a higher start price by the same seller.  There is a spelling mistake the same as before.  I sent a message asking if they had bid against me and relisted.  I doubt I will get a reply.

They could have withdrawn the item and that would be acceptable.  

[red_magpie]

As a member for over 15 years you should realise that auctions remain live until the second they close.

Until then you could have increased your bid if you were willing to pay more. Many buyers leave their bids until literally the last few seconds, so you must always anticipate the possibility of higher bids at the last moment.

In future, bid the most you're willing to pay. EBay's automatic bidding system will continue to top up your bids until it reaches your maximum. That way, if you lose it will be because someone else was prepared to pay more than you, which is fair and the whole point of auctions.

If you asked the seller whether they were bidding on their own auction it's hardly surprising that they didn't reply. There's no point in debating this, as eBay now claims to have procedures to detect this, and no longer wants suspected cases to be reported.

If the item has been relisted, it's up to you whether bid again or look elsewhere.

[emtdickson]

I was called away near the end. It ended at 19. 26. My last message re collecting was at 19.17. I do not have to prove they bid hoping to get me to bid higher because I was the only bidder, that is for Admin to do. Admin can see if the relisted item has been altered since I asked if they were bidding against me. They can also see if it is the same item relisted and the reason for it. My last message to them was 7 minutes before the end. My messages show we were in correspondence almost to the end. The shipping was £10 which was OK but in the description it said "Will prove fully working before buyer takes away. That was puzzling, so I asked. They said they had added the shipping and not removed the collection point. There was no reference to it having no electronic timer, and in fact there are lots of these and I have written to two sellers to ask about that because they all have thermostats and I cannot see why there should be a timer as well. The seller has now added about the timer in the title and description.
I don't know why anyone on here who answers my question should be annoyed with me: after all, surely the purpose of paying to advertise on ebay is to ensure we have a fair deal. The heater is used. A car rolls off the lot and is worth a lot less before it gets out the gate, similarly anything else. New ones start on ebay at £49, so he is hardly going to get much more for the used one, is he? Was it worth losing a customer for?