# Ok so the winning bidder on my auction backed out. What do I do now? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 20, 2002, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-so-the-winning-bidder-on-my-auction-backed-out-what-do-i-do-now/115131 "2002-06-20T20:15:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-so-the-winning-bidder-on-my-auction-backed-out-what-do-i-do-now/115131/1 "2002-06-20T20:15:54Z")
So I listed this motorcycle on ebay for my neighbor (neither one of us have ever messed with ebay before but I know alot about computers so I was half a step ahead of him.) We set the reserve at $1,700 and it finally hit the reserve with like 2 days left and stayed there. Well, like a day after it hit the reserve price the guy emails me and says the bid was a mistake or something along those lines and he doesn’t want the bike. Now the auction has ended and he was the winning bidder, not to mention the only person that met the reserve price. I IM’ed him on instant messenger and told him that he had won the auction and he just said “i emailed you and told you i didn’t want it.” So what do I do now? Sorry if this belongs in IMHO or MPSIMS, I think there are some factual answers here though. Thanks. Oh yea, this is on eBay by the way. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-so-the-winning-bidder-on-my-auction-backed-out-what-do-i-do-now/115131/2 "2002-06-20T20:22:19Z")
Oh, and just for an added complication, my neighbor is out of town right now. ---
**Author:** ![booklover](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/85f322/32.png) [@booklover](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/booklover)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-so-the-winning-bidder-on-my-auction-backed-out-what-do-i-do-now/115131/3 "2002-06-20T20:34:55Z")
Well, basically you leave negative feedback and report the bidder to Ebay. The bid is a legally binding contract–they’ll probably ban him from bidding. There are all kinds of FAQ’s on their website—you should log in to the “My Ebay” section and there should be “What do I do if…” set of questions at the bottom. They’re pretty good about keeping things clean over there—I complained about a seller not shipping merchandise and saw later that his account had been revoked, probably due in part to my complaint (he had one other similar complaint against him). ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-so-the-winning-bidder-on-my-auction-backed-out-what-do-i-do-now/115131/4 "2002-06-20T22:28:26Z")
Was he selling a simular bike or did he just buy one? If he bought one (I don’t know how you would find out except for his feedback and that’s most likely not posted yet) he was placing many bids in the hopes of getting one. If he was selling one then he was elimiating the competition by priceing yours higher. Why did he not withdraw his bid? - It sounds fishy and you should contact ebay. I’d save feedback for now and see waht else can be done (through ebay) ---
**Author:** ![zen101](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c68b51/32.png) [@zen101](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zen101)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2002, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-so-the-winning-bidder-on-my-auction-backed-out-what-do-i-do-now/115131/5 "2002-06-20T23:59:17Z")
Track him down and kill him and his family. ---
**Author:** ![Hanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b3f665/32.png) [@Hanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hanna)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2002, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-so-the-winning-bidder-on-my-auction-backed-out-what-do-i-do-now/115131/6 "2002-06-21T01:14:42Z")
Go to eBay and file a NPB (Non Paying Bidder) form, then you won’t have to pay the fees. Then relist the item. Ebay probably won’t ban him from bidding unless he does this sort of thing often. To be safe, you can block him from bidding on your auction again, and leave him negative feedback - but be aware he might leave you neg. feedback in retaliation. Sucks, but that’s how it goes. ---
**Author:** ![MannyL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@MannyL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MannyL)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2002, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-so-the-winning-bidder-on-my-auction-backed-out-what-do-i-do-now/115131/7 "2002-06-22T19:39:58Z")
Unlike standard E-bay auctions Ebay’s auto auctions are not binding ---
**Author:** ![red\_dragon60](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ce73a5/32.png) [@red\_dragon60](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/red_dragon60)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2002, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ok-so-the-winning-bidder-on-my-auction-backed-out-what-do-i-do-now/115131/8 "2002-06-22T19:49:34Z")
I agree with filling out the NPB form. Relist it and then if such a thing happens again, let your neighbour know, and ask them if they want to approach the second-highest bidder and offer them the bike.