Posted By:
Corey R. ShanusWhile I appreciate the need to try to do something so auctions don't run all night, I'm not sure if what you're proposing is fair for the following reasons.
Suppose I am interested in a lot. My bidding strategy, though, is not to try to outlast my competition by waiting to the wee hours of the morning to bid. On the auction's last day, I'm prepared to bid whenever I notice I've been outbid. However, suppose I'm uncomfortable leaving a max bid. Nothing personal, but shilling is something I believe I have a right to be concerned about with hobby auctions in general (again, not saying with yours but in general) and because I can't say with ONE HUNDRED PERCENT CERTAINTY that I will not be shilled up, I simply do not want to leave a max bid. Why should I be penalized for that? I can't control when my competition will bid and if he decides to wait until the last minute, it's conceivable that I will HAVE to bid after your 1:30am deadline.
Or, here's another scenario. Suppose I am okay with leaving a max bid and in fact do. The max I leave is what I in good faith at the time believe is the highest I will go. Then suppose I'm outbid after 1:30am. Only then do I realize that I'm prepared to go even higher. Max bids often do not reflect high how a person will bid because they are hypothetical bids. Only when the real moment of truth comes and the person KNOWS if he doesn't go higher he has lost the lot does he really know his limit. I don't see why he should then have to be penalized with an additional buyer's premium by wanting to bid further (and in the process make both you and your consignor more money).