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How to Bid
How to Bid
Auction Rules and Regulations
The Auction Process
Bidding Priority Rules
Email Notification
Frequently Asked Questions

What happens when you combine the excitement of a live auction with the experienced merchants at egghead.com?

Egghead Auctions!

Egghead.com auctions are the ultimate source for online shopping. We bring you unbeatable bargains on new, factory refurbished and closeout computer hardware, computer software, sporting goods, consumer electronics, office products, jewelry and more. Mega Auctions™, daily auctions, Hyper Auctions™, SurplusAuction™, and product category-specific auctions, just to name a few, are going on around the clock. It's a fun and exciting shopping experience where YOU set the price. Registering for an egghead.com auction account requires just a few easy steps.

How to Bid

1. First Time Bidders
To participate in one or more of our auctions, you must first Sign-Up to Bid. If you're a first time bidder, it's important to read the Egghead Auctions Rules and Regulations. Once you complete the Sign-Up to Bid page, click the Submit button at the bottom of the form. Be sure to choose a password that's easy to remember. After submitting your registration, you will receive an auction account number with a confirmation of your password, as well as an email confirmation of your account information. Please keep this account information for future reference.

When opening new auction accounts, or when updating an existing account, credit cards are verified via an online authorization process.

When you receive an auction account, you are automatically signed up for the auction mailing list where you will be notified by email regarding items up for auction.

Auction account information can be updated and changed by going to the Customer Service area, Auction Information Account Information, or by clicking on update account information on the left side of any auction page.

2. Once you have an auction account number, look for products to bid on by selecting one of the featured items located on the Egghead Auctions Home Page or by browsing through products listed in each of the current live auctions, including Mega Auctions™, Mega+ Auctions, Hyper Auctions™, SurplusAuction™ or any one of our specialty auctions.

3. After you've found a product you're interested in, click the "place your bid" button on the product page. Enter your Account Number and Password on the page that follows. Once you've submitted your Account Number and Password, you will be taken to the Place a Bid page where actual bids are placed.

4. The Place a Bid page will display Lot #, Current Minimum Bid Required, Bid Increment, Quantity for Bid and Your Current Bid. You will also see a place to Enter Your Bid, a place to Enter Quantity, a check box labeled Accept only if all quantity wins, and a Submit Bid button. Here's an explanation of each of these items:
Lot # This is the unique number assigned to the specific auction lot. The Lot # consists of the auction number plus the item number. Example: 90416A-JE163520
Current Minimum Bid Required This is the minimum bid amount required for bidding on this auction lot at this time.
Bid Increment This is the amount the minimum bid will increase after all of the quantity in this auction lot have been bid on at the current minimum bid.
Quantity for Bid This is the number of items up for auction on this particular auction lot.
Your Current Bid If this is the first time you have placed a bid on this auction lot, Your Current Bid will be $ .00. If you have already placed a bid on the auction lot, this area will contain your current bid amount.
Enter Your Bid. This is the area where your bid amount is placed, entering dollars only, no cents. Your bid must be at the current minimum bid amount or higher. If you place a bid that's higher than the current minimum bid, your bid needs to be a multiple of the current bid increment. If your bid is not a multiple of the current bid increment, your bid will be rounded DOWN to the nearest bid increment amount.
Enter Quantity This is where the number of items you want to bid on is entered.
Accept only if all quantity wins This check box should be used if you are bidding for a quantity greater than one, and you only want the product if you win ALL of the quantity. Checking this box means you will not accept any quantities less than what you've bid on. In other words, you will not accept partial quantities. Example: You would place a check in the check box when you bid for a quantity of 5, and you only want to win if you win ALL five of the items. By leaving this check box blank, you will accept any portion of the quantity on which you are bidding. Quantities may be increased during an auction, but not decreased.
Submit Bid This is the button you click on to submit your bid once you are satisfied with the bid information entered.

5. After your bid has been submitted, a Bid Acknowledgment page will be displayed. This is an acknowledgment your bid has been received. Please review the acknowledgment carefully, as it contains pertinent information regarding your bid. If a bidding error was made, please call Customer Service at 1-800-EGGHEAD (1-800-344-4323). Egghead.com reserves the right to make the final decision on bid removal requests.

6. Once you have completed the bidding process, you can review your bid status by using the your bid status button at the top of any auction page. Bid status may be reviewed at any time during an auction, or after an auction closes. You will be required to enter your Account Number and Password. The Bid Status page contains bidding activity for the past seven days and is split into four sections:

Auction open Current Winning Bids These are active winning bids on open auctions
Auction open Non-Winning Bids These are non-winning bids on open auctions
Auction closed Winning Bids These are winning bids
Auction closed Non-Winning Bids These are non-winning bids on closed auctions

Depending on the status of the auction and your bid, the following fields will appear and contain information with regards to your bid:

Auction Lot Number This is the auction lot number you've bid on. The Auction Lot Number links back to the auction lot product page.
Bid Amount Your current bid amount
Quantity Number of items bid on
Qty. Won This is the number of items won when the auction closed.
All or None This will be a Yes or a No. If Yes, then the all or none check box was checked when the initial bid was placed. If No, then the all or none check box was left blank during the initial bid.
Date/Time of Original Bid Date and time of your initial bid on this auction lot.
Closes on or after This is the date and time the auction is expected to close or has already closed. Please see the Going, Going, Gone! section of The Auction Process for a description of how auctions close.
Lot Closed The date and time the auction lot closed.
Order Number This is the order number for your winning bid. This field links to order status. Please note, order status may not be available for up to 12 hours after an auction close.

  You can view the Top Bidder list for an auction lot while it's open by clicking on the
"click here for latest top bidders" button on any product page.

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Auction Rules and Regulations
Terms and Conditions

1. Once a bid has been submitted it cannot be canceled.

2. By registering for an account number and bidding in an auction, you unconditionally agree to these terms and conditions.

3. Unless otherwise explicitly stated in the individual item descriptions, all goods sold through or by Egghead Auctions are strictly NON-RETURNABLE. All goods purchased through Egghead Auctions are warranted against defects.

4. EGGHEAD AUCTIONS IS SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR THE MERCHANDISE AND PROCESSING OF ORDERS PLACED.

5. Egghead Auctions provides the Products and/or Services as-is and makes no warranties, expressed or implied, regarding their capabilities, merchantability, fitness for your purposes, or with respect to infringement. Any warranties provided by the manufacturers of the products are made solely by the manufacturers and are not binding on Egghead Auctions. Refer to packing materials for warranty information.

6. As the sole arbiter as to the successful bidders and purchasers, Egghead Auctions reserves the right to alter the offer of products, including quantities offered, minimum bid required, bid increments, and closing times. Egghead Auctions also reserves the right to remove from sale or re-offer for sale any item which fails to draw a bid above the minimum as posted or which fails to meet merchantability due to quality, quantity, or availability.

7. Egghead Auctions offers all items for a limited time and on a limited supply basis while supplies last. Egghead Auctions cannot guarantee a product will be available on a continued basis. Egghead Auctions will not be responsible should an item be unexpectedly out of stock.

8. All bids are made in US dollars only. All successful bids may be paid with Visa, Mastercard, American Express or Discover cards. All winning bids are payable on demand in US Dollars.

9. Egghead Auctions reserves the right to monitor bid activity to ensure a fair bidding process. Egghead Auctions also reserves the right to reject any bid deemed to be made in bad faith, or that may be in violation of local laws, taxes or restrictions.

10. Egghead Auctions charges Washington State sales tax on all orders shipped into Washington State and North Carolina.

11. Egghead.com only accepts Reseller or Exemption Certificates for telephone orders.

12. Credit card authorization problems may result in the delay or cancellation of order(s).


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The Auction Process

Egghead.com auctions open and close on a regular basis. You may see multiple auctions running concurrently with different closing dates and times. You may participate and bid on any open auction simultaneously.

Take advantage of our Bidding Priority Rules of Price over Time over Quantity. It's to your advantage to get into an auction and bid on the products you want as soon as possible.

The time stamp of your original bid can be the deciding factor as to whether you win the product or not! If you place a bid one minute after the auction lot opens, you will retain that bid time stamp throughout the duration of the auction. The only time your original bid time stamp will change is if you decide to increase the bid quantity.

Going, Going, Gone! An auction lot is deemed closed when there has been no bidding activity for at least five (5) minutes following the posted closing time of the auction. The entire auction will close when all of the auction lots within that auction have closed.

Once the auction is closed, winners are posted and can be viewed in closed auctions for review. If you are a winner, an email notification will be sent to you that will include your order number and other pertinent information. You can also review your bid status by using the your bid status button at the top of each auction page.

Winning bids are usually processed within 12 hours of an auction closing and orders are normally shipped within 24 to 48 hours of the auction closing.

If you win an item on an auction, you can review your order status in one of two ways. You can go to your bid status and click on the Order Number link, or by using the order status button at the top of any auction page. You will be required to enter your Order Number and billing Zip Code. Please note, order status may not be available for up to 12 hours after an auction close.

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Bidding Priority Rules

All bids are processed with priority given to bid amount, then time, and finally quantity.

1. A higher bid amount always beats a lower bid amount regardless of bid quantity or time of bid.

2. An earlier bid beats a later bid of equal bid amount and equal or greater bid quantity. Your original bid time stamp on any auction lot will remain constant throughout the duration of the auction, unless you increase your bid quantity. See the Frequently Asked Question: Is it better to place a bid early in the auction?


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Email Notification

Bidder Sign-Up Notification
You will be sent an email notification after successfully submitting the Sign-Up to Bid form. Along with your registration information, the email will include your new account number. Please print and save this email for future reference.

Winning Bid Notification
If you submitted a winning bid, you will be sent an email confirmation following the close of the auction. This confirmation will include your Account Number, Auction Lot Number, Bid Amount, Bid Quantity and Order Number. Due to the nature of email delivery, Egghead Auctions cannot guarantee you will receive email notification. If you do not receive a winning bid email, you can also view your bid status and your order number by using the your bid status button at the top of any auction page. You will be required to enter your Account Number and Password.

Once your order has been placed, you will receive an email within 12 hours confirming that your order has been successfully received. When your order ships, you will receive an email confirming shipment. We'll contact you via email if there are any questions or changes regarding your order.


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Frequently Asked Questions

I placed a bid. Why am I not in the Top Bidders list?
Is it better to place a bid early in the auction?
Why did I get bumped by people who bid for a lower quantity than me?
Why did the auction close later than it was scheduled to close?
Do you ship outside the United States?
Where can I find a list of winners for a closed auction?
How do I find out how much the shipping cost will be?
Why did I receive the message "Bidder Account Not Found"?
Why did my bid appear less than the amount I submitted?
Where do I find information and specifications about a product?
How will I know if someone has out bid me?
How do I find the status of my auction order?
How can I change my auction account information?

I placed a bid. Why am I not in the Top Bidders list?
If the product page is not showing the current date and time, you are not viewing the most current version of that page. Clear your browser cache or click the refresh/reload button. Note: If you use AOL or CompuServe, you may experience problems receiving current pages even after following these suggestions.

Is it better to place a bid early in the auction?
Yes! When you place a bid early, your bid will maintain its original time stamp throughout the duration of the auction even when increasing the dollar amount of your bid. Your bid time stamp will only change if you increase the quantity of the bid. A bid placed early cannot be bumped by a later bid of greater quantity unless the later bid is for a higher amount. Therefore, it is always in your best interest to get a first bid in as soon as possible.

Example:
Bidder A bids for a quantity of 1 for $20 with a time stamp of 11/10/1999 11:01:00 AM
Bidder B bids for a quantity of 1 for $50 with a time stamp of 11/11/1999 03:02:00 PM

Bidder A is no longer on the Top Bidder list.
On 11/11, Bidder A decides to bid for a quantity of 1 for $50. His time stamp will remain 11/10/1999 11:01:00 and Bidder A will now move ahead of Bidder B in the Top Bidder list, because his original bid was entered prior to Bidder B's initial bid.

Why did I get bumped by people who bid for a lower quantity than me?
When you placed your bid you were given the option to accept a partial quantity if the full quantity you requested was not available to you when the auction closed. If you checked the box indicating you did not want a partial quantity you risked being bumped from the list by bidders that would accept partial quantities even though the quantity they bid for was less than yours.

Why did the auction close later than it was scheduled to close?
An auction lot is deemed closed when there has been no bidding activity for at least five (5) minutes following the posted closing time of the auction. This gives all bidders a chance to counter any bids that may have been bumped in the final stages of a particular auction lot. Therefore, an auction can remain open long after the posted closing time if the bidding activity on any given auction lot within that auction continues to have bidding activity.

Do you ship outside the United States?
We offer shipping for auction orders anywhere in the continental United States, Alaska, Hawaii, Canada, and Puerto Rico. We service International customers via phone orders only. Please call Customer Service at 1-800-EGGHEAD (1-800-344-4323).

Where can I find a list of winners for a closed auction?
Click on the link at the bottom of any auction page Review results from recently closed auctions. Click on the appropriate category, click on the item, click on the "click here for latest top bidders" button.

How do I find out how much the shipping cost will be?
Every product page contains product, warranty, and shipping information. There is a link to each of these categories just below the picture of the item. Click the "Shipping" link and you will jump to a table at the bottom of the page that displays the shipping cost of that individual item. For multiple items won on an auction lot, shipping costs will be based on a combined total weight.

Why did I receive the message "Bidder Account Not Found"?
This message will appear if an incorrect Account Number or Password is entered. Please re-enter both and try again. If you are sure you have entered the correct account number and password, and you still receive this error message, please email us using our Customer Comments form. If you are anxious to bid on a product currently up on auction, you may want to open another auction account until the first account problem is resolved.

Why did my bid appear less than the amount I submitted?
All bids must follow the bid increment indicated on the product page based on the minimum bid amount required to participate. If the bid you entered didn't fall within the bid increment, it was automatically rounded down* to the nearest bid increment.
*Bids will only be adjusted downward. They will never be adjusted upward.

Where do I find information and specifications about a product?
Product information and specifications are located on every product page to allow you to review this information before placing a bid.

How will I know if someone has out bid me?
You can visit the product page at any time while the auction is open to see if your name has been bumped off the Top Bidders list. You can also check your bid status by using the your bid status button at the top of each auction page. You will need to have your Account number and Password to check your bid status.

How do I find the status of my auction order?

If you win an item on an auction, you can review your order status in one of two ways. You can go to your bid status and click on the Order Number link, or by using the order status button at the top of any auction page. You will be required to enter your Order Number and billing Zip Code. Your order number can be found on your bid status page, or in your winning email notification. Please note, order status may not be available for up to 12 hours after an auction close.

If you did not receive a winning bid email, and your name is contained in the winners list for the closed auction, please email us using our Customer Comments form.

Auction orders may take up to 12 hours to process after the close of an auction before you will see an order status. Auction orders are normally shipped within 24 to 48 hours after the close of an auction. Delays, or order cancellations, may occur if there are any credit card processing issues.

Once your order has been placed, you will receive an email within 12 hours confirming that your order has been successfully received. When your order ships, you will receive an email confirming shipment. We'll contact you via email if there are any questions or changes regarding your order.

How can I change my auction account information?
You can change your auction account information by clicking on the update account information button on the left hand side of any auction page, or by going to the Customer Service area and selecting Account Information under Auction Information. If you have placed a bid, and your auction account information was wrong at the time you placed the bid, as long as the auction lot is still open, you can update your account information and the changed information will be applied to your current bid.


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