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Posted By: barrysloate

Steve- I am sure you as well as most auction houses are trying to keep everything on the up and up, but it is impossible to catch everybody. What if you suspected someone was bidding for a friend and it turned out he actually wasn't and you wrongly accused or banned him? You would lose a customer. It's a fine line. I think some bidders may telegraph to auction houses that they will not stop until they win their lot, or simply have a reputation for bidding that way. Those bidders are most susceptible to the run up. If bidders kept lower profiles and exercised more discretion they would improve their chances in an auction. As far as leaving ceiling bids, it's easy to check with fellow collectors and get a general feeling about how the auction is being run. I'm not saying every house is squeaky clean, but I think a good deal of the time bidders are just paranoid and trust noone. Maybe this is a good thing, but I'm not sure.