The 5 minute rule may not solve the time stamp problem, as mentioned above. However, the 5 minute rule would give bidders who have been outbid the chance to come back with another bid. They have 5 minutes to decide whether or not to put in another bid. In that 5 minutes, some bidders will decide to bid again and some will decide to pass. If nothing else, the 5 minute rule will REDUCE the chances of having issues determining who the winner should be because everyone has more time to decide whether or not to bid. It will not totally eliminate the problem with the time stamp.
As others have mentioned above, it should be the responsibility of the seller to clearly establish the rules of the auction up front. It also should be the responsiblity of the seller to determine the winner in the event of any questions brought on by snipe bids. The moderators should not have to make that decision.
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