Heritage Auction - Made Bidding Mistake - Won Auction

I don’t understand how sniping would be “cheating” someone when that is how the auction is set up. Whoever is willing to pay the most wins the auction, and due to the fact that the auction has a fixed end point, bidders do not know what the other bidders’ max bids are. So just bid the max amount you are willing to pay.

Also it is not really true that someone won by “pennies”, as their max bid may have been much higher.

 

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I have no defense Ksorbo. however, an old dude who used to dress in funny clothes once said, "To thine own self be true." I have always taken that to mean accept yourself as you are. I completely agree that they set the rules, but I can choose not to play. James

 

To be honest I prefer the Heritage format. It is more transparent when you can see what the bids are. I remember my dad clerking actual in person estate auctions when I was growing up and those were done the same way, with no secret bids.

 

I agree with you that sniping isn’t cheating. The rules are set and anyone can do it.

As far as winning by pennies, that actually means the person didn’t bid higher. If your bid was 1,000.00 and you lost to me for $1,000.03, that means my max was $1,000.03. At each level there is a minimal increment (see chart below from eBay). So if I had a much higher bid and you bid $1,000 at the end, the auction would end at $1,025.


Current price Bid increment
$0.01–$0.99 $0.05
$1.00–$4.99 $0.25
$5.00–$24.99 $0.50
$25.00–$99.99 $1.00
$100.00–$249.99 $2.50
$250.00–$499.99 $5.00
$500.00–$999.99 $10.00
$1000.00–$2499.99 $25.00
$2500.00–$4999.99 $50.00
$5000.00 and up $100.00

 

I see what you are saying now in regard to “winning by pennies”. If someone wins by a bid increment, that doesn’t mean that I could have won with just a little more, because their max bid could have been much higher. But if the difference is literally pennies then that really was someone’s max. I always bid an odd amount, like $102.77, and sometimes I’ve ended up paying my exact bid amount, which would mean I barely outbid someone. I didn’t realize that distinction before.[/QUOTE]

 

I’m very familiar with the heritage site and auctions. I just picked this up within the last few weeks.
My point however is that great coins live everywhere and restricting yourself to or from one location or strongly limit your ability to get the high eye appeal coins

 

I am not overly concerned. I follow 2 auction sites. I have 14 dealers that deal especially in the type of coins I prefer on my computer. Plus I occasionally check out the buy sell features of various sites. Bidding aside. I have also always been gun shy about the presence of counterfeit coins and holders on E-Bay. If you follow posts from fellows like Mr.
Young, and others there seems to be an undercurrent of risk i would rather avoid. Good luck though delila. James

 

There's a 3rd option, I ask Heritage to withdraw my bid. The harshest penalty may be losing my account. They have a FAQ discussing seller topics and they mention not getting paid and Heritage says something in that case they'll return the coin to the dealer. I understand a bid is a binding agreement and the seller can sue but no one wants to waste valuable time especially if they're getting the coin back. I would certainly be open to compensating the dealer for any costs incurred.