Marketplace Rules

Terms and Conditions for the Bidbuylocal.com.au online auction:

1. Bidbuylocal.com.au reserves the right to update and change these terms as required.

2. Bidding is only open to residents of Australia. Additional costs for delivery of the item at the cost of the winning bidder. The charge for this can be requested and obtained from the participating vendors, and should be made prior to bidding.

3. The Geelong Advertiser is providing bidbuylocal.com.au as a meeting place for local vendors to advertise goods and services that you can place bids on. The Geelong Advertiser is not a contractor or agent in any of the transactions entered into the bidbuylocal.com.au auction. The Geelong Advertiser is not involved in the purchase, sale, exchange or business with the items at bidbuylocal.com.au. The Geelong Advertiser neither collects nor enters the orders on behalf of the vendors. The Geelong Advertiser does not charge any fee to the vendors to list their items at bidbuylocal.com.au, nor do the winning bidders in bidbuylocal.com.au pay any fee.

4. The Geelong Advertiser will receive payment for the item from the winning bidders. In any other case the bidder will be informed about how the payment will need to be made.

5. All items in the bidbuylocal.com.au auction are brand new, unless otherwise indicated, and they are delivered with appropriate warranties as determined by the participating vendor. The goods and services offered by Bidbuylocal.com.au are provided by the participating vendors in current condition.

6. The Geelong Advertiser is not the seller of the items and does not take responsibility for the items in any aspect. The Geelong Advertiser is not a representative of the vendor and leave no warranties. Each participating vendor is fully responsible for the sale of their item(s), including the title and description of the item on the auction website, as well as the condition of the item, valuation, authenticity and price.

7. All items in the bidbuylocal.com.au can be seen at each of the participating retailer stores, according to the information at the auction website www.bidbuylocal.com.au. The bidder should view the item, which they intend to bid on before bidding.

8. The bidbuylocal.com.au auction is open for those who are 18 years or older. Employees of participating vendors may bid, but not on items from their employer.

9. It is prohibited to use any method, technique, device or software to affect bidbuylocal.com.au and the functionality of the auction website. The Geelong Advertiser has the right to decide, freely and without any notice, to suspend users from the bidbuylocal.com.au auction website.

10. All content on bidbuylocal.com.au is owned by The Geelong Advertiser or participating vendors. The Geelong Advertiser assign a limited license to each user of bidbuylocal.com.au for personal use. Any other use, including copying, modification, distribution, transmission or presentation of the content on this website is strictly prohibited.

11. Australian law is applicable for bidbuylocal.com.au. You agree to comply with the laws, statutes and regulations regarding participation in the auction on bidbuylocal.com.au.

12. Bid Buy Local is exempt from withdrawal under current legislation.

13. Bidding can be done via the auction website

14. The auction begins at www.bidbuylocal.com.au on 12th August 2011 and closes on 14th August 2011. The start and end time is determined by the site clock. Bids will be accepted only within this time period. The Geelong Advertiser reserve the right to, without notice, extend, terminate or change the auction website in the event of unforeseen technical problems that alter/affect the function of bidbuylocal.com.au

15. Bids can be submitted online at all hours on www.bidbuylocal.com.au, between the auction start date and time and the auction end date and time, or for a limited time during this period through emails to the auction support if you have access to an email address.

16. Bidbuylocal.com.au will set a start price for each item. The start price is the minimum bid required to participate in the bidding for this item.

17. Each item also has a reserve price. This is the minimum bid required to win the item when the auction ends. The reservation price is typically 50 percent of the item's retail value, except for cars and real estate, where the reserve price may be higher.

18. Each item has a reserve price status, which indicates one of the following values:

Reserve price not met - The highest secret maximum bid is lower than the reserve price and the item will not be sold when the auction closes.

Reserve price met - The highest secret maximum bid is equal to or above the reserve price and the item will be sold to the bidder with the highest bid when the auction closes.

19. The 'minimum price' is the lowest bid that a bidder can add to the system to have the chance to win the item. Before any bid is submitted on the item, the 'minimum price' is equal to the starting price.

20. As the auction runs for several days (as opposed to a regular action), you can not always respond immediately when someone places a higher bid at the same item. For this reason, a system called proxy bidding is used on Bid Buy Local . You choose how much you are willing to pay for an item. This is your secret maximum bid that only you and the bidding software knows about. The bidding software places the lowest bid, as required for your bid to become leading, according to the available bidding ladder. If someone else places a bid on the item that you bid on and their secret maximum bid is lower than yours, the bidding software automatically raises your bid in the range of the bidding ladder (see the bidding ladder in 'How it Works') until you are again the leading bidder, or your secret maximum bid is reached. Your bid will never exceed your secret maximum bid unless you place a new, higher secret maximum bid. A higher secret maximum bid does not affect the bid submitted on your behalf unless your previous bid is between two steps in the available bidding ladder.

21. If your secret maximum bid will be the first bid on an item, it must at least be as high as the start price of the item. If someone already has placed a bid on the available quantity of the item, your secret maximum bid must be higher than the currently leading bid plus one step in the bidding ladder for that item (see the bidding ladder in 'How it Works'). For example, if the current leading bid is $3,500 on an item worth $5,000 with an available quantity of 1, your secret maximum bid must be at least $3,550.

22. Based on your secret maximum bid, the bidding software will place the lowest possible bid on your behalf, which makes you the leading bidder.
Example: If your bid is the first bid on an item, a bid will be placed on your behalf corresponding to the start price of the item. If your secret maximum bid is higher than the reserve price of the item, the bidding software will place a bid equal to the reserve price.

23. If another bidder places a secret maximum bid on an item, you have bid on, and if your secret maximum bid on this item is higher than his/hers secret maximum bid, the bidding software will automatically place a bid on your behalf, which is so much higher than the bidding ladder indicates. This, to ensure that you remain the leading bidder. For items with a value of $10,000 - $14,999.99 the system will increase the bid with $100. For items $15,000 or more, it will increase the bid with $500. For items with a value less than $100 it will increase with $1. (see the bidding ladder in 'How it Works'). The bidding software will continue to bid this way until one of the following three things happens:

- No other bids are higher than yours.
- Your secret maximum bid is reached.
- You have become the winning bidder at the auction's closing.

24. It is your responsibility to monitor the outcome and the status of your bids at Bid Buy Local. If someone has outbid you with a higher secret maximum bid, you decide whether you should continue to bid on the item. If someone with a higher secret maximum bid outbids you, you must add a new secret maximum bid to continue your bidding on the item. The new bid must be at least $10 higher for items whose value is $100.00 - $999.99; $25 or higher for items worth $1000 - 4,999.99; $50 or higher for items worth $5,000 - $9,999.99; $100 or higher for items worth $10,000 - $14,999.99; $500 or higher for items more than $15,000  (see the bidding ladder in 'How it Works'). The quantity upon which you bid must be the same or higher than your previous bid.

25. If your secret maximum bid is exactly the same as a bid that has been placed earlier on the same item, the bidder that placed the bid first is declared to be the leading bidder.

26. If the quantity of an item is more than one, you can bid on more than one of these items (this is the quantity you specify when you place your bid). For example, you can bid on one, two or three of an item where the quantity is three. The quantity you are assigned to buy may be as many as your specified quantity or fewer (but never more), depending on whether there were previous bids from other bidders at the same amount, or a subsequent bid at a higher amount. Your assigned quantity may be modified during the auction if another bidder places a bid higher than yours, it is therefore not certain that you will get the quantity you bid on.

27. In cases of a dispute between bidders or between bidders and the Geelong Advertiser, or in case of doubt or dispute as to the validity of a bid, the Geelong Advertiser own the right to decide who is the winning bidder. All decisions taken by the newspapers are final and binding.

28. The Geelong Advertiser are not responsible for any bid that has been lost, misplaced, found incomplete or illegible. Neither weak or distorted computer transmissions, nor technical failures of any kind such as technical failure of the network, hardware or software that limits the bidder to participate in the Bid Buy Local auction. Proof that something has been submitted is no evidence that the Geelong Advertiser has received it. The Geelong Advertiser is not responsible for any costs of internet, phone calls or other costs that may incur in connection with participation in the Bid Buy Local auction.

29. During the auction you will receive confirmation via email of the bids you have placed, if you have been outbid by another bidder, or if you have won the auction. These emails are only for your information. If you get them or not makes no difference as to the status of your bid or other bidders bids. Only the list of bids contained in the system at Bid Buy Local , as presented on the auction site, is the current bid list used by the bidding software to determine the winning bidder when the auction closes.

Payment Policies

NOTE: All sales are final. This means that the bidder who wins the auction is tied to the purchase.

1. When the auction closes, Bid Buy Local will determine who is the winning bidder (the buyer) for each item and contact the buyer via email and / or phone within five days, to provide the information that he / she is the winning bidder and request payment. The bid is binding, and the winning bidder has to pay the entire winning price within 72 hours from the end of the auction. If a winner of the auction can not be contacted, or if the entire winning price is not paid within 72 hours from the end of the auction, the Geelong Advertiser has the right to disqualify the winner and contact the second-highest bidder of the item and make him / her the new winner. As a new buyer you can not withdraw your bid and you agree to pay the entire winning bid price within two days after the notice from the Geelong Advertiser. If the second-highest bidder can not be contacted, or if the entire winning price is not paid within two days after the notice from the Geelong Advertiser, the Geelong Advertiser owns the right to continue the disqualification and contact process, or to remove the item from the auction

2. The entire winning price for an item (for each winning bidder) is defined as the leading bid for the item when the auction ends, multiplied with the quantity of item that the bidder has acquired. In the event that a bidder is disqualified, and the item is offered to the second-highest bidder, the total winning price will be the second-highest bidder's secret maximum bid multiplied with the quantity of items that bidder has acquired.

3. The buyer must pay the entire winning price to Bid Buy Local which receives the money on behalf of the vendor. In some cases, however, the buyer pays the entire winning price directly to the vendor. Specific payment instructions for each item is included in the email sent to the winning bidder after the auction ended.

4. It is the vendor's and the winning bidder's responsibility to obtain appropriate or necessary licenses, registrations, warranties or other forms of approval for the sold items and pay fees associated with this.

5. When the payment for the item is done, you can print the proof of purchase and a receipt on the Bid Buy Local auction website under the heading "My page". The proof of purchase proves the acquisition of the item and shall be presented to the vendor when collecting the item. All delivery arrangements must be made with each vendor. Delivery may involve additional costs beyond the winning price and is negotiated separately between the buyer and the vendor.

6. If you as a buyer do not meet these requirements, including the obligation to pay the entire winning price within 72 hours after the end of the auction, the vendor is able to cancel the purchase. In that case, you will be required to pay interest and legal fees and expenses that occur in connection with recovery of these amounts. The Geelong Advertiser and the vendor can choose to offer the item for sale again or sell it privately and hold the buyer responsible for costs and losses that affects the newspapers or the vendor.

7. As stated in these rules, all sales are final. But if an item at Bid Buy Local is not correctly presented, a refund can be made. You may not collect your item to be entitled for refund through Bid Buy Local and you must submit your request within forty-eight (48) hours after you have paid. Please read more in the 'Contact us' link for information on where to send your request. We will only notify you via email about the status of your refund once we have received, reviewed and processed your request. You can expect a refund in the same form of payment used in the original payment within 7-14 business days after we have received and accepted your request. If more than 48 hours has elapsed since the acquisition, or if you already have collected the item the request of refund must be sent to the vendor directly.

Privacy Policy

1. To place a bid you must be registered. The registration requires your full name, address, phone number and email address. This information will be used to contact you in case you are the winning bidder. The information will also be served to the Geelong Advertiser and the vendor selling the item. You log on to the auction website with your email address and password. Each bidder also gets a unique username (alias), which gives you the opportunity to follow the bids of the auction site. NOTE! Your username (alias) can, under certain circumstances be identified by other participants in the auction. The potential for this to happen, however, is insignificant. If you do not wish to be identified, you should not participate in the Bid Buy Local auction.

2. When you fill out the registration form, you can voluntarily choose if you want to receive further promotional offers. By checking the box you will receive promotional offers from participating vendors and/or The Geelong Advertiser.

3. Those who register are also asked to provide information about age and sex, and some additional questions. This information is gathered and used exclusively for statistical purposes.

4. When payment for a winning bid is done, additional information such as credit card number is requested from the bidder. This information is only intended to give the bidder the option to pay for the item. Credit card information is not stored on Bid Buy Local after the transaction is complete.

5. All information collected is only intended for the newspaper's and the participating vendor's behalf. Information will not be communicated to third parties without a written consent.