Bid cancelled and auction ended early on ebay

Hello,

There were like 20 different sales going on by a specific seller on ebay, and i was keeping an eye on most but actually bid on at least four of them. With one day and 20 hours or so left, the seller cancelled my bids and ended the sale early. Just like that. No explanation or anything.

I am fairly new to all this, so i wanted to ask: Has that happened to any of you? Is this normal? Is there anything to be done?

I can understand if the seller decides to close the sale early if there are no bids, but to cancel the sale when there are bids seems to me like breach-of-contract behavior, just like me refusing to pay for an item I've won...

What do you think?

John

It happened to me a few times and it's a kinda shitty move but as far as I know a seller has the right to do this before an auction ends.
Some times it is warranted for example when a seller has sold all the items he had but automatic re-listing put them up again. But most of the time it's like a rage quit because they don't get the money they hoped for.
Then use a minimum or a higher starting point.

It happens a lot typically where the seller is a coin dealer. Coins which are listed on ebay can still be bought (usually much cheaper) over the counter. Personally I would take any coins up for auction out of the shop stock to avoid this kind of cross selling but sadly many dealers see nothing unethical about it.

It's like negotiating a swap in good faith on Numista only to find out that the coins have been swapped to someone else at the last minute for a better deal. It's actually happened to me twice. To me at least, the moment you begin negotiating for a coin I'm going to reserve it for you. I've resisted many good offers for "must have" coins simply because I consider my reputation is worth more than a few bucks.

I avoid such people like the plague.

Also, keep in mind that Ebay is for Sellers. They charge a fee for many of the postings so, they make money even if the item doesn't sell.

Any business is going to look after their "bread and butter" first.

Buyer Beware.

So, if ebay charges the sellers for the listing and not for the sale, would it not benefit the seller to sell the item, even at a small loss, as opposed to relisting it?

Quote: "Jasanche"​So, if ebay charges the sellers for the listing and not for the sale, would it not benefit the seller to sell the item, even at a small loss, as opposed to relisting it?

​They charge for the listing AND the sale. Of course, Paypal takes a cut on the sale too.

Don't you worry. Many of these Sellers are retailers of the highest order. They know their costs down to a fraction of a cent, how fast to turn their inventory, even when to lower the cost to a small loss to get rid of "dead" inventory. Think of it as a casino.....the house always wins.

Thank you Idolenz, Pnightingale, and Peter for your your replies. It appears that I should change my routine, since I've gotten in the habit of regularly getting a few coins from ebay.

John