Info On The Bidding Process

Bidding Overview

eFlea is an on your honour bidding system — which is run in a similar format to a traditional silent auction. Everyone wants to win an auction, but only at the right price. Bidding for items is fun, but keep in mind that each bid you make is a binding contract to buy the item if you win.

How Bidding Works on eFlea

Each bid value you make is absolute and, if equal to or higher than the item's current bid plus the minimum bid increment, will be applied to the item in the full amount of your bid.

General

Each listing in an auction is sold as a single lot. There can only be one winning bidder per auction item listing. "Dutch" listings, where there can be multiple winners per item, are not supported. If an auction is trying to offer "Top N Bids Win" style listings, please report this to eFlea Support.

Please Note: Proxy bidding (where the system increments your bid for you) is not available on this Auction System, so we advise you to bid wisely as all bids are final.

For out of region bidders: you may incur additional shipping charges if the auction administrator/seller offers shipping. Please contact the auction's administrator for details, and refer to the auction's Payment Information section found on the auction's home page.

Bidding Terms & Conditions

Bidding is meant to be fun, but remember that each bid you place enters you into a binding contract. All bids are active until the auction ends. If you win an item, you are obligated to purchase it.

Guidelines:

Don't bid on identical items in different listings if you only want one item. If you win both, you'll be obligated to buy both.
If you're outbid on an item, be cautious of placing a bid on an equivalent item. If the bidder who won the first item doesn't complete the transaction for any reason, you could become the winning bidder of that item.
Do not place a bid on an item if you have no intention of honouring that bid. The seller can take legal actions against you for false or fraudulent bids.
If you're blocked from bidding on a seller's listings, you cannot bid using another user ID.

How to bid

Once you have logged into the auction with your account, here's how to bid on an item:

Carefully review the item listing and the sellers payment terms
Enter your bid in the box shown (you need to be signed in first)
Click the Bid button
Carefully review your bid amount and the item you are bidding on, and then click the Confirm Bid button.

You now have committed to purchase the item in the event your bid ends up becoming the highest bid.

Note regarding Transitioning Auctions

Some auctions hosted on the eFlea Charity Auction System are configured as a Transitioning Auction.

Transitioning Auctions are used as a pre-bidding platform for an in-person (live) auction that will occur after the online auction closes for bidding.

The items in the online-portion of the auction, once online bidding closes, will then transition to the live in-person event. The highest online bid becomes the first bid placed at the live event. To continue to place bids on the item you must be in attendance at the event, or make other arrangements. If no one outbids you at the live event you will become the winning bidder.

EMail and SMS Notifications

Bid Confirmations

Each time you bid, you will receive an e-mail confirming which item you have bid on and the amount of your bid.

Outbid Notifications

Each time you are outbid, you will receive an e-mail message stating that you were outbid on an item. The email will include a link to the item that you were outbid on. Typically the emails arrive within minutes of the bidding action, but sometimes the emails may get delayed by the intermediate internet email servers. We do not have control of how quickly the emails will reach your email mailbox. You can use the "My Items" section of the auction (available when logged in) to check on the status of items you have bid on.

SMS: You can optionally sign up for outbid notifications via SMS text messages to your mobile phone (US and Canada mobile numbers only). To activate SMS outbid notifications, enter your mobile phone number in the "My Account" setting page and select Yes - Send Me SMS Notifications. SMS notifications are typically faster than email notifications. Note that your carrier's SMS messaging standard fees might apply.

End Of Auction Notifications

For non-transitioning auctions:

You will receive an End Of Auction notification email from eFlea, after bidding closes, with details on the item(s) you have won.

For transitioning auctions:

The auction administrators will contact you directly in the event that you are a successful highest bidder.

Please consult the auction's home page for payment and pick-up/delivery information and terms.

It is important that you have provided accurate contact information. You can update your contact information via the "My Account" page of the auction. Please review our Contact Information Policy.

Bid Changes & Retractions

As a general rule, you can not retract or cancel a bid. Once you place a bid, you agree to pay for the item if you're the winning bidder. However, honest mistakes can sometimes occur.

If you do believe that you have made a bidding mistake (i.e. $1000 instead of $10.00), please contact The eFlea.ca System Administrator immediately to see if the bid can be corrected. Please also contact the auction's administrator regarding your wish to retract/correct your bid. Please include the auction URL, the item's ID, and the correct bid amount with your email.

Retracting bids because you "changed your mind" or "did not read the item description in full" are not permitted. Please read the item descriptions and payment terms carefully before placing your bid. Be sure to ask the auction administrator (Seller) any questions you may have regarding the item prior to placing a bid.

If you want to retract a bid

Review the conditions and time restrictions for cancelling a bid on an auction listing. If you feel you have a valid reason for cancelling a bid, please contact both the seller and eFlea regarding your request.

If you won an item and you no longer want to buy it, you need to contact the seller. The seller has the sole discretion of accepting or rejecting your request.

On eFlea, a bid is considered a contract, and you are obligated to purchase the item (and the seller is obligated to sell you the item). Read more about changing your mind about an item below.

Under what conditions can I retract or change a bid?

Whether you can retract or change a bid depends on the circumstances and timing of the bid.

You can change a bid for the following reasons:

You accidentally entered the wrong bid amount due to a typographical error. For example, you bid $99.50 instead of $9.95. Send your correction request immediately. If you wait too long after your bid was placed it may not be possible to correct it.
Changing your mind does not qualify as accidentally entering a wrong bid amount.

You can retract a bid for the following reasons:

The item's description changed significantly after you entered your last bid. For example, the seller updated details about the item's features or condition.
You can't reach the seller by telephone or email. Please allow up to 48 hours to allow for responses.