General Auction Queries

1. What are nearly free Auctions and how do they work?
2. Who can sign up to the nearly free website and is there a membership fee?
3. Are these products available for purchase directly from nearly free without having to participate in an auction?
4. What do I need to be aware of before I participate in nearly free Auctions?
5. How do I know when an auction starts or ends?
6. Can an auction close before the End Date OR remain open after the End Date has passed?
7. What does it mean if "Closing Soon" appears in an auction description?
8. Can I review a history of the bids that I have made or the auctions I have entered??
9. How many items are made available for each auction?

Bidding Queries

1. Can I make more than one bid on the same auction?
2. How do I know if my bid was successfully submitted or accepted?
3. Is the number of bids made on an Auction announced on the site whilst the auction is open?
4. How do I find out if I have won an auction or view the results from an auction?
5. What happens if there is no Unique Bid?

Money Matters

1. What is the Admin Fee?
2. At which point in the auction process will I be required to pay the Admin Fee?
3. What are the cancellation and refund terms?
4. What payment options are available to me when paying my Admin Fees?
5. How do I know that my Credit Card information will be secure on your website?
6. How do I receive the product/service that I have won and am I liable for the shipping costs?

Technical Questions

1. Which browser can I use to view the nearly free website?
2. What can I do if I experience difficulty logging onto the website using my membership password?

What are nearly free Auctions and how do they work?
Please view our Nearly free Help page 

Who can sign up to the nearly free website and is there a membership fee?
Anyone above the age of 18 can sign up to the nearly free Auction website free of charge. You must be a member to participate in an auction.

Are these products available for purchase directly from nearly free without having to participate in an auction?
No. You must participate in the auctions in order to win the right to buy a product based on your Bid.

What do I need to be aware of before I participate in nearly free Auctions?
Although products may be put up for auction at a lesser value than their regular retail price, for every bid you place, you will also be required to pay a small Administration & Handling Fee. This fee is non-refundable.

Nearly free cannot guarantee that you will win the auction based on the amount that you bid. You can win the auction if your Bid is the highest unique bid and you have answered all the Qualifying Questions correctly. The highest unique bid is the only bid at that amount and the highest such bid. Your Bid will then become the winning Bid.

How do I know when an auction starts or ends?
Nearly free does not notify members when an auction starts. However, all participating members are notified by email when an auction has closed.

Can an auction close before the End Date OR remain open after the End Date has passed?
Yes. If the Required Number of Bids is met before the stipulated End Date then an auction may close, regardless of the specified End Date. If the Required Bids is not reached by the original End Date of the auction, then the auction may be extended and a new End Date will then be set.

What does it mean if "Closing Soon" appears in an auction description?
This icon appears if the number of bids on the auction has exceeded 75% of the Required Bids /
Maximum Number of Bids, which therefore means that the auction will be closing soon.

Can I review a history of the bids that I have made or the auctions I have entered??
Yes, you can but this facility is currently restricted to only viewing a recent history of your activity on the site. 

How many items are made available for each auction?
A quantity of one or more items may be made available in any given Nearly free Auction. Learn more about Multiple Quantity Auctions.

Can I make more than one bid on the same auction?
Yes, you are allowed to make multiple bids, based on the Maximum Number of Bids per auction which is indicated on the specific auction description page.

How do I know if my bid was successfully submitted or accepted?
You will be notified via email once your Bid has been submitted into our database and accepted.

Is the number of bids made on an Auction announced on the site whilst the auction is open?
No. The number of bids that have been received are not disclosed whilst an auction is open but the "Closing Soon" icon, which is displayed once 75% of the bids for an auction have been received, will give you an indication of the current bidding status.

How do I find out if I have won an auction or view the results from an auction?
All participants will be notified via email once the Results are posted on the site. Results are usually announced within 3 working days following the successful close of an Auction. The winner with the winning bid will be highlighted on the list of Bids.

What happens if there is no Unique Bid?
In the event of there being no Unique Bid in a specific auction, the Winner will be determined by the highest Bid Amount with exactly two Bids. Where there is no Bid Amount with exactly 2 Bids, the process is repeated for the highest Bid Amount with exactly three Bids and so on until a Winner can be identified.

What is the Admin Fee?
Each Bid placed on a particular auction is charged an amount for the Administration & Handling Fee. The fee may vary between auctions and is indicated on the specific auction description page. This fee is non-refundable, provided that there is a winner on the auction. Learn more here.

At which point in the auction process will I be required to pay the Admin Fee?
The Admin Fee is charged at the same time that your bid is placed. However, if the auction does not end successfully then you will be given the option of a refund.

What are the cancellation and refund terms?
The cancellation of bids is not permitted after the bids have been submitted and accepted. The Admin Fee is only refunded if an auction is unsuccessful.

What payment options are available to me when paying my Admin Fees?
At present, you can only pay by bank transfer. To pay via the bank transfer you will be given bank details in step 3 of the bidding process in order to do a transfer.

How do I know that my Credit Card information will be secure on your website?
To ensure the protection of your information, nearly free employs internet security methods which are of the highest industry standard. This includes, but is not limited to, multiple levels of password control and firewall access to our systems, as well as SSL encryption, backed by Pay Gate and Geo Trust, for the transfer of sensitive information over the Internet.

How do I receive the product/service that I have won and am I liable for the shipping costs?
The shipping terms are stated in the auction description. Unless otherwise stated in the auction description, shipping costs are usually paid by nearly free.

Which browser can I use to view the nearly free website?
You can view the website using any of the following browsers:

• Internet Explorer 5 and above
• Netscape Navigator 5 and above
• Mozilla Firefox
• Safari Version 2.0.2

What can I do if I experience difficulty logging onto the website using my membership password?
Check that you have cookies enabled on your browser. As this can also be a problem with certain AOL browsers, if you are using an AOL browser we recommend that you minimise this browser and open Internet Explorer, Netscape or another alternative browser and try again. Passwords are case sensitive, so please make sure your password is correct. To verify this, please click on “Forgot Password” on the login screen.