Ethics of last minute auction "poaching"


I was just involved in an auction that left a bad taste in my mouth. I had the high bid on an item for over 2 days and
literally in the last 60 seconds of auction a "poacher" came
out trying to sneak in a last minute bid in to win the auction. This caused the price to rise from $160 to $280 which I still won, but this seems underhanded to me. Attempting to win by last minute sneak attack! If you are interested in bidding on an item it seems common fairness to other members to come out in the open and not make your first bid with 60 seconds of auction ending! I know this is not outlawed, but ticks me off.....anyone else experience this?
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Showing 1 response by ucmgr

I attend regular auctions during the normal course of business. I'm in the car business and auctions are part of it. There have been many times I've been outbid by last second bidders who wait to see if others, including myself, have bid less than what they ultimately will pay. The auction process is interesting to say the least; emotions play a big role and there are many times when someone will pay more than they wanted to just because they figure they're "in for a penny, in for a pound" and so they stay in the auction longer than they should and pay the price. The secret, if there is such a thing, is to calculate what you are willing to pay at most for what your bidding on and have the "balls" to walk away once the price exceeds that figure. Auctions can be fun. Once in a while you might get a great deal on some piece of equipment that's worth more to you than it is to others. It's not a life or death siuation and remember this is supposed to be fun!!