Rosehill Online Auctions - How Our Online Auction Works

How Our Online Auction Works

Before someone registers to take part in our online auction it is imperative they understand how they work.

Please read the following summary:

Online Retail VS Online Auction

Participating in our online auctions events is different from purchasing through an online retailer.

Rosehill Online Auctions offer items we have sourced from mostly large retailers like Wayfair, Costco or Amazon. The items we acquire are mostly from the retailers returns program. As such we receive items in various condition from ‘Brand New’- never used to ‘As Is’ - undetermined condition. It is because we acquire these items as ‘returns’ we can offer them at no reserve meaning all items start at $1.

Our job is to examine and inspect items before listing them to most accurate represent the items description and condition.

Before participating in our auction please read the following to better understand what winning an item on our auction means compared to purchasing the same item from an online retailer.

Large Online Retailers buy items directly from the manufacturer carrying inventory of many pieces of the same item in various possible sizes, colours or options.
Rosehill Online Auction buys items from the large retailers by the truck load. The items are an assortment varying each in type, model and options such as size or colour. We usually have little control of exactly what we are receiving specifically. Most of what we auction off are “one - offs”.
Large Online Retailers offer very open ended return policies. Large retailers now offer return policies that allow customers huge leeways with respect to conditions of returning an item. These policies have created a culture of returning items that allow the buyer to get refunds on items for almost any reason and at any time.
Rosehill Online Auction is a small seller that cannot afford to offer such easy return policies. As such our return policy is very limited. We offer a 7 day return policy where the buyer must submit a request to return the item via email within 7 days of picking the item up. The item can be considered acceptable for a return ONLY if the item was misrepresented by us or it is listed as functional and it is not.
It is therefore the bidders due diligence to know what they are bidding on. Failing not to read or misreading the description of the product before bidding can result in winning an item you did not intend to purchase. Also, if you buy the item as a gift or plan on opening the item later you run the risk of not being able to return it as you have passed the return eligibility time.
Buyers remorse is the number one reason people seek to make a return. Not wanting the item anymore, changing your mind, disappointed with the items quality even though it was exactly represented, or feeling you paid too much for the item are not valid reasons for return.
Large Online Retailers can offer warranties and guarantees on most products.
Rosehill Online Auction as third party sellers cannot offer any form of warranty or guarantees.

Lets Begin…

Registering

First, you need to register with us and setup an account. This involves creating a unique username that has no spaces and is preferably not your email address as other buyers see your username. You also have to register a valid credit card. The credit card is required to ensure the bids are going to be honoured if you win. The registered card information is held by STRIPE payment where your card information is held at the highest security. Your card is only charged after the auction closes. Rosehill Online has no access to your cards information. Please ensure you have enough credit on your card before bidding or risk having your card declined and if not corrected possibly being restricted from bidding on our site.

Now that you are a registered buyer you need to log onto our site with your username and password. Take a look around the site first to get used to where everything is. Read the Terms & Conditions page. The main areas to be aware of are My Auctions and My Account.

In My Auctions you can find the auctions that are Upcoming, Current and Closed.

In My Account you can find all your invoices and your personal information. You can also edit, add or change your credit card information here along with manually paying your invoices.

Upcoming Auctions are events that are in preview mode. The event is available to view items and add items to your watch list but no bids are being accepted.

Current Auctions are open for bidding. Items are active and you will notice the current price, winning bid, number of people watching the item and the time remaining before the item closes for bidding.

Closed Auctions are finished for bidding and are in the process of being picked up. Closed Auctions are still open to viewing if want to see what items were on the auction and how much there winning bid was.

Previewing and starting a Watch List. Due Diligence.

For Upcoming auctions and Current Auctions you can start by building a Watch List of items your are interested in. This is the time to do some investigating and research by reading over descriptions and educating yourself on items before you bid. If you are unsure of any items description or representation please email us using the Contact Us link. We will respond to you inquiries Mon - Sat 10am - 5pm

We open and inspect items before we put them ‘on the floor’. We note the condition of the items and you can see what designation we consider the item to be in. Here are the conditions defined and also found in our Terms & Condition.

BRAND NEW - An unused, undamaged item. Because we may inspect items original seal may be broken. Packaging could be damaged although the comntenets are untouched and undamaged.
This item may have been undeliverable or not accepted by original purchaser. The item could be a discontinued item or overstock but not sold or used.
NEW - an item deemed New cannot be considered Brand New because it has been opened by another consumer. There is no sign of wear or damage. The packaging and manuals are present but the packaging could be damaged. The product has been removed from the packaging but placed back in it to return. Items in this category are returned, for example, because it was the wrong model, the colour was incorrect, size was wrong or changed their mind.
NEW CONDITION - an item considered in New Condition has been used but wouldn't be considered Used by definition because the item is in excellent condition. The item then can be considered lightly used with possible light wear marks but functions exactly as intended with no missing or malfunctioned parts.
NEW CONDITION - NOT TESTED - reserved for items that appear to be in excellent condition but are not able to be tested. This would include, but not exclusively; electronics, computers, instruments and gauges, motors and any item that shows all the signs of being operable but, without testing ability, we cannot certify that it works as intended. If winning this item it is up to the bidder to test the item as soon as possible and if not working request for a return.
NEW OTHER - this condition is the same as a NEW item as described above, but with a flaw that is described in the product description. This could be a new item that has been damaged in transit, or has a blemish that may not be of concern to some buyers, a dent or mark that doesn’t render the item inoperable. We will always note the reason the item is
OPEN BOX - an item that has been returned or may have been a demonstration or display model. The original box or packaging is not present. A product that has been assembled or assembled then disassembled before retuning. Manuals maybe missing. Though all or any of these conditions are true we consider the item to be in excellent condition with no or very little wear or signs of use.
OPEN BOX - Scratch & Dent - The product may or may not be in the original package or in the case of appliances and furniture not in a box at all. The item has some cosmetic damage from transport or mishandling but does not affect the function of the product. These flaws are shown in the photos of the image. Manufacturers warranty may still apply - see details
REFURBISHED - An item that has been professionally restored to working order by a manufacturer or manufacturer-approved vendor. This means the product has been inspected, cleaned, and repaired to meet manufacturer specifications and is in excellent condition. This item may or may not be in the original packaging. See product description for full details.
USED - An item that has been used previously. The item will have visible signs of being used but is fully operational and functions as intended. See the description for full details.. An item listed as Used cannot be returned.
SALVAGE - An item that may not function as intended and may not be fully operational. This includes items that are defective in ways that render them difficult to use, items that require service or repair, items that are locked or can't be activated, or items missing essential components. This item may be good for parts only. See the description for full details. Items listed as Salvage cannot be returned.
AS IS - The item is considered ‘As Is’ when the item may or may not operate as intended and the quality or condition of integrity cannot be guaranteed. We will state why we are listing it “As Is” to the best of our ability, but even then cannot be held responsible for its condition. Bidder is taking a risk when buying in this category as we do not accept returns.

Bidding
First, bidding is not like making an offer or like buying something in the usual retail manner. Bidding is for keeps and means you are placing a price that you are contractually bound to pay if the bid ends up winning. This means you need to be certain when you place a bid that you know what you are bidding on and second that you have enough funds on your registered credit card to pay for the winning bid.

All bids are entered in the box beside the item picture. First you will notice there are no reserves. All items start their bid at $1. Next, you have to bid a minimum of at least the increment defined which increases as the price does.

Below are the increments for our auctions:

Price Level Bid Increment

$0.00 - $24.99 $1.00

$25.00 - $99.99 $2.50

$100.00 - $199.99 $5.00

$200.00 - $999.99 $10.00

$1000.00 - $4999.99 $25.00

$5000.00 - $9999.99 $50.00

$10000.00 and above $100.00

Proxy Bidding
A proxy is to place a bid that is higher than increment required and the system, the online software, will place bids for you, incrementally higher by the increments shown above beating out counter bids until it reaches the limit you place in the bid box.

Example.

The lot has a bid of $28 as a winning bid. Instead of just adding an incremental bid, or Quick Bid as the system indicates, you place a higher bid, one that is higher than the increment, in this case $45. The system will automatically make you the winning bidder BUT only by the increment and NOT the high bid you placed. So your winning bid is showing as $30.50 or $2.50 higher than the $28 posted. Other bidders cannot see your proxy bid but will know you have a higher proxy bid if they were to counter with a bid of $33. The system would indicate they are not the winning bid and then place you bid $2.50 higher keeping you above their bid automatically. Your new winning bid would now be $35.50. This would continue automatically without you doing anything until and if your proxy bid of $45 was beat. At that time you would be notified by email that you were outbid and could decide to bid again.
So correspondingly, if you were to place a bid on a lot and the system indicated you are NOT the winning bidder you know that there is a proxy bid existing and you will need to continue with higher bids to try and beat their bid.

Soft Close
All our auctions close ‘soft’. What this means is that auctions BEGIN to close, in our case, at 7pm on closing day in small groups. We allot 12 items to close every two minutes. This gives bidders a chance to manage their bidding buy focusing on a small lot of items that are closing soon and not the entire auction. Our auctions can have over a thousand items in them pushing the final close of the last group of items 3 hours after the auction begins to close.

Auto-extend
Once the auction begins to close bidding will begin to increase. By nature most of the active bidding takes place in the last few minutes/seconds. To accommodate a chance for a counter offer 2 minutes is added to the close time of the lot bid on each time a successful bid is entered. This allows for a counter bid and at the same time prevents bidders from timing their bid placing the bid in the last seconds blocking out any chance of any counter bid. This is called sniping and is NOT allowed on our auction. If two minutes has passed without a counter bid than the lot closes and the winner is notified they have won.

Winning Bids
Once you have won a lot you will be emailed a confirmation email confirming you indeed won the bid. You will receive an email for all the lots you have won. After the auction finally closes and all lots have closed you credit card will be automatically charged for all the lots you have won. Added to the total is a 16% buyers premium plus HST (13% tax). So a winning bid of $45 will be charged $45.00 + $4.50 (premium) + $6.44(HST) = $55.94
If the card you registered has failed to complete the transaction you will be notified the next day to rectify the situation by making room on your card for more credit and manually processing the payment, adding a new credit card to your account and manually processing the payment or finally notifying us you will pay by cash on pickup.
To manually process a payment and/or add a new credit card to your account, you first need to click on My Account and go to Invoices found on the lefthand side of the screen. Choose the invoice by clicking on the invoice number and you will find at the top of the invoice a place to add a new card and process a payment.

Picking up your winning lots

Curbside Pickup

Pickup location is at 1047 Cooke Blvd. Burlington ON LT7 4A8. The purchaser can pick up their items with a paid receipt. Items can not be picked up until the invoice is paid. Government issue ID is required to pick up items by the original purchaser or by a representative added to your account as an Alternate Pick-up Person. Removal shall be at the expense, liability, and risk of the purchaser. Do not bid if you are unable to have your items picked up.

Pickup Times:

Are detailed on the paid invoice emailed to you. All items must be removed from the auction property within 7 days after the event ends unless pre-authorized by the auction. All items not picked up within 14 days following the event will be considered abandoned and reclaimed by the auction. Items transferred to one of our other locations have 7 days after receiving transferred items have arrived automated email.

Locations:

Burlington - 1047 Cooke Blvd, Burlington ON L7R 3N8

Fort Erie - 1754 Garrison Rd, Fort Erie ON L2A 5M4

What to bring:
Your paid invoice, Government Photo ID and a vehicle large enough to hold your items. The invoice can be a printed out copy or the emailed version on your smartphone.

An alternate pickup person needs their information added to the account to be authorized for pickups.

Contact us once you have arrived:

Use the posted phone number found on the sign in each parking spot to text us your invoice number and the parking space you are parked at.

Stay put! Please don't come in the building and respect social distancing with our staff and others.

Our staff will process your lots and bring them out to your vehicle. If the item(s) are small we will place the items in your vehicle for you. If its a larger order we will leave the order by your vehicle for you to load.

Our staff will not be able to help you with loading unless the item is large and heavy, like an appliance, then we will instruct you to bring your vehicle to the large door where our staff will load your item.

Note, we are not responsible for securing your items in any way. Please bring tie downs etc to secure your items if necessary.

Delivery:

We are offering curbside delivery for large items, like appliances and furniture. Please contact us by email to arrange times and delivery charges.

Understanding Our Return Policy

Unlike online shopping participating in an auction has a different sets of rules. First, to understand the main difference from online shopping, with auctions you are bidding against other individuals for an item. With bidding you are contractually committing to the price you agree upon once you send in the bid online.

Because you are bidding against other people your bid must be final. If you were allowed to change your mind on the bid it would allow bids to be non contractual and the integrity of the auction would be lost.

The only reason an item can be returned and a refund granted is if the auction did not represent the item accurately. There are only two parameters that we consider with regards to misrepresentation. One, is the accuracy of the items description. If you won a pair of boots that we listed as size 9 and the boots were actually size 10 then this is a valid reason to return the item. If we described an item as black but the manufacture described it as charcoal grey then this is a valid reason for a return. If we stated there was 4 chairs and indeed there were only 2 then this too is a valid reason for a return.

The second valid reason for returns is if we misrepresented the Condition of the item. All our items listed come with a status of their condition. If we have stated an item is Brand New and the item has clearly been used then this is a valid reason for a return.

We do not however consider the issue of Quality as a valid reason for a return. The following are three examples to illustrate the difference between Quality & Condition.

An item is listed as tan coloured by the manufacturer. On inspection the bidder feels the item is more brown than tan and is not happy with the item and wants to return it. This is not a valid reason for a return. If the auction has stated the colour as noted by the manufacturer then we have represented the item accurately. Note, photos of the item can vary a lot when colours are concerned due to lighting and different computer screens representation.
A bidder wins a wood cabinet and then on inspection is not happy with the construction. If the item is constructed in a manner as designed by the manufacturer then it is what it is. Whether the bidder thinks the item should be a certain quality is irrelevant.
A pair of shoes is listed as size 9 but the shoes do not fit a well as the bidder would like. As long as the auction listed the item as a size 9 shoe then the item does not qualify for a return.

As you can see, the above examples are all issue related to subjective reasons for a return based on the winning bidders likes or dislikes. These do not warrant reasons for a return.

Rosehill Online is processing returns in a more efficient manner. To begin the process you will need to access your invoice either by clicking the link on your paid invoice email notification OR by signing into the website, going to My Account dropdown, selecting My Account Home and on the left sidebar finding Invoices link.

On the invoice on the top left you will see a Return button with a time clock beside it. The time clock keeps the Return Request button active for 7 days after pickup. So if you are past the 7 day return limit the Return Request button will be deactivated and a refund will not be accepted.

We appreciate your participation and business and will do our best to make the auction a positive experience.

Please follow the rules and know we will hold to these rules for the fairness of all and the integrity of the auction.

*This policy is highlighted in our Terms & Conditions, on all invoices and in all auto generated emails.

That's it! We hope the above makes sense and will help make your experience bidding more fun and successful. Keep an eye open for upcoming auctions. Thank you for your time and good luck!