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Second chance offer - anyone clued up on this?

B boswellMember
Bidding today on an item with AS, max. bid 437.50 (actually pounds sterling). Winning bid was £447.50. OK, fair enough, I can accept defeat.

I then received an immediate emailed 'Second chance offer' from eBay inviting me to buy the item (now changed to a Buy Now item) for £437-50, my original max. bid.

I happened to notice that the 'winning' original bidder had 0 feedback, so I guess the original auction was cancelled due to some misunderstanding between seller and buyer, or maybe he/she just disappeared or something.

What I don't understand about this is that it seems likely that the price was escalated past my original offer by a bidder who dropped out. So I might have got this item for much less if the phantom bidder hadn't been around. I therefore don't feel that £437-50 is a fair offer to me. In fact, it's laughable.

Also, being highly suspicious with eBay shennanigans, what's to stop any unscrupulous buyer being in partnership with a fake auction winner (could be a one-day wonder with a brand new email address), who effectively 'tests' the market, finds out the max. price by bidding as high as they like, drops out, and then the unsuspecting fall guy (me) has to pay my max. price (which has now been exposed to all and sundry), vaguely thinking how nice of eBay to give me a second chance.

In fact, I think the whole thing stinks. The wording of the email from eBay included the phrase: "....Second Chance Offer because the high bidder was either unable to complete the transaction or the seller has a duplicate item for sale.....'

So, let's say the seller has a duplicate item for sale. If it went into auction in the normal way, why is there any reason it should reach the price that its 'twin' made in this sale? Seems like seller and eBay come out tops, and the buyer is being taken for a ride.

If anyone can understand all that, would appreciate comments.
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C chatterMember
It is simple. You bid a certain price; the seller has duplicate item or the original sale not not go through and is offering it to you for the price you had offered to pay. Typically, when the offer is made immediately after the auction, the seller had a duplicate, but when it is made some time (as in days) after the original auction, it is likely that the buyer defaulted.

You can spend a lot of time speculating on the hows and whys, but in the final analysis, it really does not matter, since second chance offers are standard (and, more importantly, protected) eBay transactions. I have purchased a number of items in this manner. If you were willing to pay the price and want the item, then it is a chance for you to get it. If you feel that you can get it later for a better price, then simply pass on the offer. I would take it, but that is just how I operate.
region2region2Member
Hmm - you bid 437.50 so that was the price you were willing to pay at the time. The seller now offers to sell to you at that price and you're whinging!
Schrill bidding is the process you're describing and it is illegal. Check the sellers history to see how many zero rated winners he's had and/or ask him what happened this time.
You now have a choice - pay the seller the price you were willing to spend or walk away!

R2
B boswellMember
OK, I knew there would be a bit of flak, and I can see my example is a bit pathetic.

Is it different if something is hanging around at $10, and I am willing to pay, say $400 (it does happen) and I bid via AS.

Someone comes and gets it for $440 (or whatever). We're the only bidders. I'm the underbidder. Buyer then disappears. I'm offered it for $400.

I know I've got the choice, but my choice would be to walk away.

I'm willing to pay the market price, but would be naive to pay it in these circumstances.

This offer at the underbid price wouldn't happen at Sotheby's, Swann, etc. - the underbidding buyer would just laugh.
Last edited by boswell
C chatterMember
quote:
I'm willing to pay the market price, but would be naive to pay it in these circumstances.
There is no true market value. An item is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. What may be valuable to someone (for, say, sentimental reasons) is worth little or nothing to someone else.


quote:
This offer at the underbid price wouldn't happen at Sotheby's, Swann, etc. - the underbidding buyer would just laugh.
Unless he really wanted the item, in which case he would likely pay it. That is what second chance offers are all about. It is simply a matter of how badly one wants the item. Come to think of it, that is really what eBay is all about.
M medalguyMember
Chatter is absolutely right. Many times I've auctioned items, offered duplicates on a Second Chance offer, and sold all of them. Then a week or two later I may offer the same item again, and it can either receive no bids or go for far more than the first time. There's just no way to tell what will happen in an auction. Everything is worth whatever it will sell for at a given time.

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