Originally Posted by
buck mulligan
Technically, no. A bid is an offer; there is no contract without an offer, an acceptance, and consideration.
I'm just being a persnickety lawyer, though - your main point (it's unethical) is spot-on. It's also probably a violation of the terms of service.
Yes, I guess you're right. The bid becomes a legally binding contract only when the seller has accepted it. The bid is merely an offer to enter into a binding contract. But if you retract what turns out to be the highest bid (which the seller of course accepts), the seller can still hold you to it, right? That's certainly the way it works in buying and selling houses. If you have buyer's remorse and want to walk away from a house you've put an offer in on, you'd better hope that someone comes along with a higher bid to get you off the hook.
But certainly agree that bad-faith bidding is unethical. Fer shure.