Tie Bids At Auction Every Time??

Nobody basis their decision to do business base on one persons complaint . We all look at patterns and other view points . I don't like hanging anybody but if more people complaint then there is a story there .

Thanks Steve. I messaged Scott English. Perhaps he knows how to find them if they are listed with the APS...

Scott -

When you have a free moment, please take a look at the below linked thread on the Stamp Community Forum. There may (or may not) be some hanky-panky going on in terms of bidding, but take particular note of Steve Taylor's post regarding the APS.
Just a heads up, fwiw.
Best Regards,

George F. DeKornfeld
APS 180251

For realzz???? With all the verbiage I dropped all over my previous post and you can't figure out EXACTLY who I am writing about???? ????

As far as I can tell, the only mistake that could POSSIBLY be made would be that someone would think that Modern Stamp Company doesn't capitalize their name (as in my previous post).

In case it still isn't CRYSTAL clear: The company in question is Modern Stamp Company.

From Scott English ~ APS (with permission to share):

George –

I can confirm the individual is an APS member and a lapsed Dealer Member. He is receiving notification to update his status or remove the logo. We will review the thread, but if someone has a complaint, we will ask for formal documentation.

Scott

Mooter- someone who is relatively new to the forum or to the hobby might still not be able to definitively identify the firm you were talking about, so it is not unreasonable for you to confirm it. It is important that the wrong firm not get incorrectly tagged with this type of concern.

Thanks for making us aware of the situation. We have contacted the individual member. For those not familiar, the APS does have a formal complaint process. To learn more about the process, you can go here:

https://classic.stamps.org/Complaint-Procedure

As a note, an individual does not need to be an APS member to file a complaint.

Each APS member agrees to live up to a Code of Ethics and we're pleased to report that most of our members do so without hesitation. However, the complaints process is there to ensure there are remedies or disciplinary action is taken. THe Code is here: https://classic.stamps.org/userfile...f-Ethics.pdf

As always, I am available for questions at scott@stamps.org

Scott

Thank you!




Exactly! I am not completely avoiding them but I will be careful with what I bid on, and what my bid actually is.

Ironically, I had several lots in that auction saved and forgot to bid.

Tom - for the love of all that is good, PLEASE add a feature that reminds us the day before an auction if we have saved a lot on SAN.

Dealers, you should be shouting for this. I have forgotten to bid in numerous auctions despite having saved the lots in SAN. Had I received a reminder email 24 hours prior, YOUR lots would have sold for more.

Dealers, also let this be a lesson to you. Most of you are honest, but a few of your group are leaving bad experiences with some collectors and we start to get gun shy. Your reputation is everything, and it only takes one reasonable post on this website to undo years of your hard work.

I may have needed a single item from a lot, but I will simply take my money elsewhere.

Stay healthy, everyone!

The story that you were bidding against yourself is baloney. If you were bidding against yourself, you could only tie yourself once for each lot, not repeatedly for the same lot.

If you place an early bid on SAN and then sign in and watch the auction "Live" it will show you winning the item until your early bid is exceeded. I've done it many times. I never tried to bid against myself but I don't think you can do it.

eyeonwall and KRelyea - yes to both statements. I've been using SAN for years and am aware of both of these. It looked like the auctioneer was trying to convince me otherwise. I felt like a rube, like I had just fallen off the turnip truck. The reality is that I have worked in the stamp auction industry (no longer - I decided it would be better for me to keep it as a hobby) and have been using SAN for years. There are 6 or 8 auction houses (on SAN) that I bid at just about every time they have a sale. My understanding of how SAN works is not the problem. Maybe I have over-reacted, but there is nothing I find less respectful than to imply that I don't understand what I am doing in a field that I have intimate knowledge of all the ins and outs.

For everyone that posted in this thread: thank you for all your input!

mooter:

"I read that thread. I do need to know more information. You can call me at 919-403-9459



Tom Droege"

This is the reason at StampAuctionNetwork, we developed StampAuctionNetwork Agent Bidding, which keeps your bid from being revealed to the auction house. Because of COVID more and more auction houses are offering Live Bidding, so you can use the StampAuctionNetwork Agent Bidding with more and more auction houses. Most auction houses know not to run you, as that will have long term impacts on their business.

But in the end, trusting the "marketplace" is a failed bidding strategy. You should never bid based on what someone else is willing to bid. Best strategy is to bid what you are willing to pay and what you think the lot is worth.

StampAuctionNetwork agent bidding protects you from being run up, but rule 1 still applies.

I can't tell from your description, but is sounds like the house in question only took bids from StampAuctionNetwork up to the start of the auction and then conducted it live.

Tom Droege
StampAuctionNetwork

However, I read the entire thread and I see that Modern Stamps is mentioned. I believe this was a training issue. Modern Stamps does not act in this manner. I would have to know more so someone can call me at 919-403-9459 and we can get to the bottom of this. I had trained one person to operate the console, and then in the middle of the sale, they switched to an operator that had not been trained, so that is the likely cause.

***Moderator Note - typically we disallow phone numbers in posts but in this case we will make an exception***

I spoke with Modern Stamps, and none of these claims are substantiated. If you are referring to Modern Stamps, please contact them.

Thank you, Tom, for your input. I have enough experience using SAN to know that this issue was not with SAN. At no point did the auctioneer claim an issue with it, either. I don't like to 'leave a bid' with the auction house, either --- I will do whatever I have to in order to be at home to bid live at an auction I am truly interested in. The auction in question on this thread was over the weekend and I was home anyway. Besides, I like the 'action' of bidding live. Perhaps my issue was due to a training issue which you alluded to. I don't know. I didn't hear anything about that until just now. Either way, the stamps are paid for, I await their arrival, and I am getting on with bigger fish to fry.