Dealing with an offer vs a bid.

[steamntrout]

I have an active auction item and have received an offer vs. a bid, it does not show up in the listing so I am suspicious of it. The auction has several days left before it's ending.

If I were to accept such an offer is that all inclusive (including tax, handling fee, shipping fees)?

[inceptions]

Hi @steamntrout 

The offered amount is for the item price only. Any shipping cost shown on the listing is added to that. Shipping is not negotiable.

[woodland_gnome]

Once a bid has been placed the Best Offer process is over and all offers and counteroffers immediately expire, so there is no choosing between one and the other.  You can't accept a Best Offer once there has been a bid.

If you mean you got a "Message from a member" containing an offer, you can (if there are least 12 hours left to run) but it is usually not in the seller's best interest to accept such unsolicited offers. They are frequently made by scammers but even at best are made because the offeror a) doubts that the amount would win if the auction goes to the end and/or b) is 1) chronically and/or 2) situationally impatient. To accept it you have to cancel all bids and end the listing early without a winner (ticking off your existing and prospective bidders and incurring an extra fee) and then relist the item in a manner that allows the offeror to buy it properly at the correct price, with no guarantee that s/he will do so (it is likely s/he has made multiple such offers).

[woodland_gnome]

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@steamntrout wrote:

. . . it does not show up in the listing so I am suspicious of it. . . .

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Best Offers do not show up on the listing like bids do.   Only the seller and the offeror can see them in their My eBay/Seller Hub appropriate sections.

[steamntrout]

Thank you, your response and 'inceptions' gave me most of what I was curious about, I'll take the advice of declining by not responding to these offers.

[inceptions]

@steamntrout 

You currently have 23 auctions that have the Best Offer option displayed. (Only those with bids no longer display that option.)

Here is a sampling:

Only offers made through messaging rather than through the Best Offer process would be unsolicited.

[steamntrout]

Hmm, can I change the listing to remove the or best offer. Being new to ebay, I did not understand that, thinking that it sounded like a good thing to offer. Now I'm seeing it's fraught with unintended issues. 

[inceptions]

Yes you can. Click Revise on the listing, scroll down to the pricing area, and turn off Allow offers.