Accepting a bid

Question

Hi, How do I accept a bid?

sportyspice22 · Accepted Answer

Wow, thank you so much!!! That was super helpful. Thanks again !!!

woodland_gnome · Answer

Too many people confuse "bid" and "Best Offer." Those are two entirely different things that the seller handles differently. People who come here and use the wrong term (what does the message or display ACTUALLY say you got?) often get the wrong answer (actually it's the right answer for the question asked but not what s/he needed to know).

A bid is part of an auction. Sellers don't "accept" them (eBay accepts them if they are valid bids: meet the minimum bid requirement as of the time they are received, received before the end of the last second of the auction, buyer is not prohibited from bidding on that auction because of a restriction by the seller or eBay). A seller can cancel any bid up until the auction ends* (or eBay might if the buyer is suspended before the auction ends or the bidder might retract the bid for a very short very specific list of valid reasons) but otherwise the bid remains active until the auction ends, at which time a winner and price is set from the bids that were accepted by eBay and not cancelled/retracted before the end. The seller is obligated to sell for that price (if the buyer pays, provides valid address that seller agreed to ship to etc.) and the buyer is obligated to buy.

*The seller can end the auction early at any time before the scheduled end which results in a sale to the then high bidder at the then showing "current bid" amount (not his/her hidden maximum or some other amount s/he is promising), which is what some posters here mean by "accept a bid", but that is rarely a good idea since many good bidders/buyers don't bid until near the scheduled end.

A Best Offer is simply an offer that the seller can take or leave. S/he can accept it, reject it, make a counteroffer (which acts as a rejection of the offer), or do nothing and the offer expires (at the duration the buyer chose when making it up to 48 hours, or earlier if there is a "bid" placed--Best Offer is no longer available after the first bid on the auction, or when the listing ends for whatever reason). The seller is under no obligation to accept any offer or respond in any way to a particular offer or any offer at all.

dryophelia · Answer

@sportyspice22

Bids are accepted until the end of auction. At the end of the auction, the winner will be determined.
You are potentially leaving money on the table if you sell before the end of auction.

Never list an item you canâ€™t afford to give away. A buyer could buy your Frieda art, return a picture of dogs playing poker and get a full refund (up to 180 days from sale) if they know how to manipulate the system.

New sellers with fixed price (Buy It Now) listings should NOT entertain offers. The better way is to require immediate payment.