Is a seller allowed to constantly take items we bid on when they don't seem to get what they want?

[irenesevier]

I've bid on an item twice,and both times the seller took them down and relisted them. I was 10 minutes away from winning the bid, just to have this greedy joker take the item down.

There were 0 bids other than mine the entire time it was up.

Magically the item was up again with 0 bids as a new listing.

I'm quite positive the seller purchased the item themselves and resisted it, as it states 'resisted' on two occasions.

[femmefan1946]

What we have here is a really really stupid seller.

While only your bid showed at the 10 minute mark, he saw only your high bid and not your maximum.

That is, if the asking price is $10 and you bid $100, the seller will only see you as bidding $10 until there is another bidder.

In auctions, most of the bidding comes in the last few moments of the auction.

In fact, there may have been 'snipe' bids already to be executed by the fast fingers of experienced bidders or even by electronic services which place last nano-second bids for bidders*.

And the dimwit is paying for those cancelled auctions. His fees are based on your high bid at the moment he shut it down.

Frankly, look for a smarter seller. If you won, he will probably do something else idiotic.

But you could also use Contact Seller to ask him to set up a private listing for you. Tell him what you are willing to pay. Don't forget shipping. If he likes the total price he can relist, using your name as the title for privacy. You buy. You pay. He ships. Easy.

* Some of those bidders are half a world away. DH bids, with a sniping service, in Australian auctions that close while he is fast asleep.