Terms and Conditions

Your use of our services is governed by the following terms and conditions, ("User Agreement"). Before you can become a member of Fast Bidding, you must read and accept all of the terms and conditions of this User Agreement and each of the "Additional terms" referred to in this User Agreement. We strongly recommend that you should read through all the terms carefully. The User Agreement constitutes a legally binding agreement between you and Fast Bidding.

Information on Fastbidding such as the "How it works" section are only recommendations and are not intended as guidelines. Fast Bidding is not responsible or liable for the actions of any individuals or users who have read or been informed of such information or any other written material.

This User Agreement is effective from 3rd October 2009, for current users, and upon acceptance for new users.

General and Scope

The following General Terms and Conditions shall apply exclusively to the business relationship between Fastbidding Ltd, Fast Bidding, Fastbidding, www.fastbidding.com and www.penny-auctions.fastbidding.com (hereinafter "Fast Bidding") and our users in the version applicable on the date of use. By participating in Fast Bidding, the User accepts the following General Terms and Conditions, as well as the manner in which Fast Bidding and its “Auto-bid” operate as described on the website www.fastbidding.com. and penny-auctions.fastbidding.com. Fast Bidding does not recognise any terms and conditions set by the User that differ from these unless Fast Bidding has agreed to their validity in writing.

Any special promotions presented by Fast Bidding shall only be valid if they are announced on Fast Bidding's website or by newsletter. Any promotions of a limited duration shall likewise be announced on our website or by newsletter. Upon expiration of the time limit stated, or after the sale(s) that are part of the particular promotion has/have ended, the promotion is deemed to have ended.

All content on the Fast Bidding website is not intended to amount to advice on which reliance should be placed. Fast Bidding disclaims to the fullest extent permitted by law all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on such materials by any visitors to the Fast Bidding website or by anyone who may be informed of any of its contents.

Fast Bidding Participation and Disqualification

You may not use Fast Bidding if you are under the age of 18 or you are not able to form legally binding contracts or if your Fast Bidding membership has been suspended.

Employees and relatives of employees of Fast Bidding are not eligible to participate in any Fast Bidding services.

Only registered users have access to the full functionality of “Fast Bidding”, therefore Fast Bidding recommends that all users register with “Fast Bidding”.

Each user may register only once, using their residential postal address. Non-residential and post office box addresses may not be used for user registration purposes. During the registration process, the User must choose a user name. The user name chosen must not offend standards of common decency or infringe upon the rights of third parties. Additionally, the use of misleading user names is strictly prohibited. Fast Bidding reserves the right to change or delete a user name if it finds user violating Fast Bidding's terms and conditions. The associated password is to be kept secret by the User.

The User has to provide a legitimate U.K email address during the registration process for Fast Bidding to authenticate the User and prevent future misuse of the service. A registration link is sent which the user must use to complete register.

In general, the user shall be liable for all activities that are undertaken using the user account together with the associated password.

Fast Bidding products and services are offered exclusively to private users. We monitor and search for commercial and semi-commercial retailers.

Fast Bidding reserves the right to limit the number of users per household and the number of purchased products per user.

User accounts created during registration are non-transferable. Any abuse of the user account will inevitably result in the disqualification of the User and may lead to criminal proceedings. Fast Bidding may at any time, exercise sole discretion to suspend or permanently exclude users from it’s services. Fast Bidding will decide upon such exclusion if and in so far as, in the reasonable opinion of Fast Bidding, a user has breached a Fast Bidding provision, violated any laws or infringed upon the rights of third parties, or Fast Bidding has another justified interest in such for the protection of other users or to prevent manipulation of any kind, for example if bids are not paid, unauthorised bidding software is used, or several user accounts are set up by the same User.

Fast Bidding has the right to verify the identity of each individual user. In the event of Fast Bidding being unable to verify or authenticate user identity using reasonable endeavours, then Fast Bidding may ask users to provide photo ID, proof of address and other documentation as Fast Bidding requires. Should such proof not be provided, Fast Bidding has the right to suspend or permanently remove such unverified user accounts and withdraw any auctions won by such users.

Furthermore, Fast Bidding reserves the right in its absolute discretion to restrict the number of sales in which a User may participate or may win. These winning restrictions will be made viewable on the website and may be amended at any time.

Fast Bidding has the right to disqualify a user and/or his winnings if Fast Bidding deems that a particular user or users have used unfair means to win an auction. This includes and is not limited to collusion bidding where the same family member from the same household /address or relative from another household/address bid on the same auction item or items. Fast Bidding shall neither be liable to return any bids, purchased or non-purchased, nor is Fast Bidding liable to reimburse any monies that have been used to purchase bids or products. This is to protect the right of its users and Fast Bidding itself.

Fastbidding has the right to move any auctions listed to a new start time or day. This is generally only done to avoid conjestion of auctions and is also based on the server loading.

You will not hold Fast Bidding responsible for any loss you may incur as a result of Fast Bidding taking any of the actions outlined above.

Bidding rights, so-called “bids”, have to be purchased by Users prior to online bidding. Only registered Users can submit the convenient online bids, which can be purchased in packages (so-called “Bid Packs”) at the currently applicable prices, which can be viewed under “Bid Packs” on www.penny-auctions.fastbidding.com.

Bidding on auctions is only open to residents of the UK.

The bids must be paid for in advance. Users should check carefully that they have selected the correct intended bid package that they are purchasing. Purchased Bid Packs are refundable  but only when non have been used and a refund has to be claimed on the day of purchase. Should any bid from a bid pack be used then the whole pack becomes non-refundable and hence Users should buy only as many bids as they are willing to spend on the bidding process in a monthly (30 day) period. Payment can be made by a valid debit card or credit card.

When the bids are purchased they are instantly deposited into the User’s Fast Bidding account, upon Fastbidding receiving a successful payment indicator back from the payment processor.  At this point a contract for the purchase of the bids is created. Should for any reason the bids not be added to the user account then the user should contact info@fastbidding.com.

Users/purchasers should be aware that they are not purchasing any products when purchasing bids and the purchase of bids/bid packages does not ensure that any product will be provided unless the user is the final winning bidder.

Should a bid payment not be honoured by a user’s financial institution a returned payment fee will be charged to the user to cover the additional administrative costs incurred by Fast Bidding. Fast Bidding reserves the right to block access to the user account until payment in full of the invoice amount, including any fees due for returned payment, etc, and to withhold any outstanding deliveries until payment in full. Fast Bidding also reserves the right to temporarily block access to unverified user accounts that appear to be abusing the spirit of Fast Bidding by purchasing large volumes of bids until identification has been verified.

Bidding, Autobid and Daily Bids

For online bidding, either an individual bid can be submitted through the bidding functionality, or the Auto-bid function can be used. Once a bid has been submitted, it is deducted from the User’s account and cannot be retracted.

The Auto-bid facility allows bidders to bid in a sale even if they are not online at that time. Only registered Users can submit bids automatically with one or more Auto-bids. The Auto-bid automatically submits bids according to the parameters set in advance by the User. The User can read about precisely how the Auto-bid operates in the “FAQ” section. or the "How it works" section. The User is prohibited from using bidding software not authorised by Fast Bidding, and doing so will result in immediate disqualification without refund from Fast Bidding's sites and services.

A daily bid can be collected once per day by clicking on the "Claim your daily bid!" button. Daily bids can be claimed by any User who has purchased a bid package of any size in the last 30 days. Please note that the daily bid starts on the first of every month therefore if you buy bids on day 15 you will have 15 days of daily bids to claim before a reset occurs.

The Bidding Process

With each bid submitted online, the price of the item on which the User is bidding increases  generally by 1 pence but can be up to 50p although this is stated on each auction or decreases by 1 pence or more unless the auction is a "Double Credit" auction in which the bidding is increased by 2 pence and 2 bids are deducted from the user bid bank per bid.

A bid submitted by the User constitutes an offer from that User to Fast Bidding to conclude a contract to purchase the item. A contract to purchase the item is not completed until the auction is finished and the last/winning bidder has followed all the steps provided to complete the sale. Each new bid starts off a new auction time for the product. The Auction Time for each of the auctions is shown on the screen. Fast Bidding reserves the right to change the auction times at any time. Fast Bidding can add or remove products from the fastbidding.com website at anytime without notice, including auctions which are already in progress.

The auction ends when the auction time has expired. The User who is the last to bid wins the product. All other bids on the item expire and will not be refunded.

The last bidder is determined by Fast Bidding's database. In the event of any dispute occurring, it is Fast Bidding's decision on who is the last bidder which shall be final.

We cannot guarantee continuous access to our services, and operations of our sites may be interfered with by numerous factors outside of our control. While we will use our reasonable endeavours to maintain an uninterrupted service, we cannot guarantee this and we do not give any promises or warranties (whether express or implied) about the availability of our services. In the event of any technical problem (third party or other) affecting the fastbidding.com auction platform, the countdown timers for all (or some) live auctions will be paused until the issue has been resolved. Auctions will continue once the system is brought back up. Should auctions close prematurely due to any technical problem, affected auctions may be restarted. The auctions’ countdown timers will be continued from the same point in time they were at prior to the technical problem.

Alternatively, Fast Bidding has the right to restart all auctions from the beginning, once the technical problem has been rectified.

Fast Bidding. may attempt to return purchased bids (not free bids) placed on auctions that had to be paused and then restarted from the beginning due to third party technical problem.

Should Fast Bidding suspect that an unlawful action(s) or action(s) against its terms and conditions brought the service down; it has the right to investigate the matter and take legal action against perpetrators.

An auction is deemed to be completed when the timer reaches zero, a checking process has been undertaken and an on screen notification of "Sold" and or" Ended" is shown.

The auction time is the time used on Fast Bidding servers. Sometimes the time may differ from our servers to users web browsers. A users web browser time should only be used as an indication of the auction time. Possible time differences may be caused by slow internet connections or differing web browsers. This means that the browser may show zero even when there is time left on an auction. This does not mean that the auction is over. Similarly, the user browser may lay the server by a few seconds. The auction is only over when concluded by the Fast Bidding servers.

Bids only become valid when they are entered into the Fast Bidding database and registered into the system. Fast Bidding are not responsible for disruptions in the user's connection and any errors that may occur because of this. This includes but is not limited to, incorrect countdown of the remaining auction time, non browser response from the users pc or connection blips, outdated user software and or any connection interference between the user and the fast Bidding servers.

The value of goods shown as R.R.P does not signify that the product cannot be obtained at a cheaper price than quoted on the Fast bidding website.

When an auction closes, a notification is automatically sent by email to the final bidder. Since auctions may close prematurely due to technical error, this notification is not considered a binding contract. If an auction has closed due to a technical error, Fast Bidding reserves the right to void the notification, return any money paid for the item and resume or restart the auction. This mechanism exists to maintain the fairness of the auction to all users who may have been prevented or discouraged from continuing to bid in the auction. Once the item has shipped the formal invoice will be available via Fast Bidding.

After the auction has ended, if the last bidder is online (“Winner”), they have access to all of the important sale information such as the total price (sale price plus shipping costs), and payment options.

The winning User must actively confirm the win by following the steps indicated.

Fast Bidding reserves the right to withdraw an offer after 10 days unless the winner contacts Fast Bidding with a reason to delay payment and Fast Bidding agrees to hold the item. In the event that the winner has not paid nor confirmed an interest to exercise the option to purchase the product within 30 days of the auction ending, the option to purchase the product expires.  This excluses all forms of bid pack auctions which have to be paid for within 5 days. In the event of the expiration of the option to purchase the product, the winning user’s right to ownership and delivery of the item will be permanently revoked. There is no entitlement to refund bids once the auction has ended, even if the winner does not exercise their option to purchase.

The winning bidder will also receive a notification of the win by e-mail or SMS with a request for payment.

The User must pay the total price (sale price plus VAT and shipping and handling costs) no later than 10 working days after the notification of the win is sent. After this deadline has passed, Fast Bidding can set aside and rescind the purchase contract with the User, and the User’s right to ownership and delivery of the item will be permanently revoked. The winner has no entitlement to a refund of bids.

The item or items may not sent to the User until the total price of the item and any outstanding bid payments or bids won by auctions, before or after any won auctions have been paid to Fast Bidding. In such a case, any incomplete payment received from the winning bidder will be regarded firstly as payments towards the bids and then as payment towards the total sale price. A right of retention shall be exercised with regard to the item purchased at auction until all bids and the total price has been paid for in full. Fast Bidding reserves the right to charge the winner reasonable storage charges for items won through Fast Bidding auction but not yet paid for.

Bid for free auctions must be paid for within 5 days of the end of the auction . If the value of the finished bid 4 free auction is above £20 then users may not be allowed to bid on other bid 4 free auctions until this amount is paid for. This is to stop people registering just to bid and not pay. and to avoid users using bid for free auctions as a blocking tool. Fastbidding may temporarily suspend accounts until payment is received.

Cancellation and Rescission

Fast Bidding grants to the User ordering for personal purposes the right to cancel in accordance with statutory provisions on mail order sales and e-commerce.

The right to cancel does not cover purchase of audio and video recordings or of software, if and to the extent that the security seal on the delivered media has been broken by the consumer. This does not affect the consumer’s statutory rights.

Purchase contracts with parties who are not retail consumers are treated by Fast Bidding as international supply agreements and, therefore such parties do not have rights to cancel concluded contracts (unless agreed to in writing by Fast Bidding (or required by law).

Cancellation Instructions

You may cancel your contract within two weeks in written form (e.g. letter, fax, e-mail) or by returning the auction items, without stating your reasons. This period is extended to one month if you are not informed of these instructions until after you have concluded the contract.

The cancellation period begins no earlier than when the item and these instructions are received. To meet the cancellation requirements, it is sufficient to send the cancellation notice or return the item in a timely manner. Cancellation is to be sent to the address given in the contact details page on this website:

E-Mail: info @fastbidding.com

Consequences of Cancellation

In the case of a valid cancellation, both parties must return what has been received in performance of the contract and the benefits derived there from (e.g. interest) as applicable.

If the User is unable to return to us the service or product received or is only able to return it in part or in a depreciated condition, the User will have to pay compensation to Fast Bidding, to cover the loss of value, unless the deterioration resulted from unavoidable use or as a result of a manufacturing fault.

In other respects, the User may avoid this duty to pay compensation by not using the item(s) as the User would his own property, and by refraining from any action that would detract from its value. Items that have been delivered via Royal Mail or another carrier should be returned via the same method in the original packaging where possible. In these cases, return is free of charge for the User. Items that cannot be returned via this method will be collected by Fast Bidding's agents through co-ordination with the User. The User must pay any compensation as required by depreciation of auction items delivered to the User, within 30 days after sending notice of cancellation.

If the User cancels by the deadline of two weeks, they are not obliged to take delivery of the item. Fast Bidding will refund the purchase price already paid. There is no entitlement to a refund or replacement of the bid(s) used in the auction process.

If the customer decides to cancel after delivery and no misrepresentation has been made about the item by Fast Bidding or any of its partners on fastbidding.com, the customer is responsible for the costs of the return shipment if total final auction price (auction closing price including VAT and shipping and handling) of the returned item does not exceed a sum of £40.00, or, if the item price is greater than £40 and the partial or total item price has not been paid by the winning bidder/user.

Should Fast Bidding incur additional costs for insufficient postage on the returned item, or for a COD shipment, or for courier shipments and other irregular shipping methods that are over and above reasonable postal delivery costs, these costs will be deducted from any refund paid to the customer. Sets/boxed  items can only be returned in their entirety.

Delivery

Unless otherwise specified, delivery will be made from our supplier’s warehouse or from our warehouse to the registered address provided by the User.

Deliveries are made solely within the UK including Northern Ireland (exclusively on the mainland, otherwise only upon inquiry).

As Fast Bidding works with trusted delivery partners to ensure the best possible service and widest reach, all delivery estimates are for information only and do not constitute binding agreements. Obvious damage to the item or packaging during transit should be reported to the carrier by the winning user, if the item is damaged it should be refused, not signed for. If you wish to claim for concealed defects or damage after signing for an item, you must inform us  in  writing about the damaged or faulty goods within 5 days of receipt. Fast Bidding cannot accept responsibility for damaged or faulty goods once 5 days have lapsed. In all cases you must inspect your item either before or immediately after delivery. Failure to raise a query in writing with Fast Bidding concerning, a damaged or incorrect item within 5 days of delivery constitutes acceptance of the item as is. Fast Bidding does not accept liability for damage or failure of products due to neglect or misuse by the recipient.

In the event that Fast Bidding's delivery partners are not able to deliver the item within a reasonable time, Fast Bidding shall be entitled to offer the winning user a substitute item with comparable or better features, or to set aside the contract and offer a refund of any payments received for the auction item. This does not affect the User’s statutory rights.

Offsetting, Withholding Payment and Retention of Title

The User shall only have the right to offset if his or her counterclaims have been upheld by a court of law or are not disputed by Fast Bidding.

The User shall only be entitled to exercise a right to withhold payment to the extent that his or her counterclaim is based on the same contractual relationship.

The item delivered shall remain Fast Bidding's property until payment in full of the total price and the bids used in the sales activity. Until such time as payment has been made in full the User undertakes to store the item safely and securely, including insuring the item against fire, theft and damage. Fast Bidding shall have full rights of access to the place where the item is located during normal business hours to take possession of it.

Damages, Reimbursement of Expenses and Limits on Liability

Claims for damages by the User against Fast Bidding, its legal representatives, employees, vicarious agents or parties who assist in performance are prohibited.

In particular, Fast Bidding shall not be liable for faulty operation of the telephone or computer hardware or software during bid submission and for incorrect or overly slow transmission of bidding data by the telephone or Internet Service Provider. Should such an event occur, the bidder shall have no legal rights over the item.

This shall not apply in the case of damage that is due to the deliberate or grossly negligent conduct of Fast Bidding, its legal representatives, or parties assisting it in performance. This shall also not apply if Fast Bidding expressly provided the guarantee for an item’s features in writing or a defect was fraudulently concealed.

Insofar as Fast Bidding is insured for its liability for any damage, Fast Bidding can also assign any entitlement to insurance settlement to the injured party. The User shall be obligated to accept this assignment.

Liability for reimbursement of expenses shall likewise only be assumed in accordance with the stipulations above.

Liability for damage arising from loss of life and limb, health, or well being, and that according to product liability law shall not be affected hereby.

Guarantee and Return policy

The items are supplied on the basis that they are reasonably fit for any reasonable purpose to which the winner may put them and subject to what is authorised by the manufacturer in the instruction manual. All other warranties or conditions (whether express or implied) as to quality, condition or description (whether statutory or otherwise) are excluded to the fullest extent permitted by law.

The item descriptions on Fast Bidding are provided according to the best of Fast Bidding's knowledge and belief do not constitute contractually stipulated features and characteristics, but rather serve only to provide information to the User. Images of products on the fastbidding. website may differ from those actually supplied.

In the event that the User is sent a replacement product for an item already delivered, the User shall be obligated to return to Fast Bidding the item already delivered within 30 days at Fast Bidding's expense. Fast Bidding reserves the right to assert damages under the conditions set down by law.

The User have the right to return a faulty item within a reasonable period of time. The User must keep all the manufacturer’s warranty information that accompanies the item as this may be needed should there be a fault. In the unlikely event that you have a faulty item, the User may find it quicker and easier to contact the manufacturer directly so that they can rectify the problem.

If the User chooses to return the item to us, please email to our Returns Support Centre (within 10 days of receipt) returns@fastbidding.com

If you find that Fast Bidding has sent you an incorrect item, please contact us at the above email address. A Fast Bidding representative will then contact you with instructions on how to return the item. If the instructions provided by Fast Bidding are followed there will be no charge for the return. Fast Bidding will send the User the replacement as soon as the original item is received by Fast Bidding.

The User must return the original item to fastbidding.com within 30 days of our email confirming the issue of the replacement item. In case of delays Fast Bidding holds the right to cancel the issue of replacement.

Buy It Now Terms and Conditions (added 13th March 2010)

When you elect to buy a product using the  "Buy It Now" option on auctions that have this facility  enabled, then you are entering a binding contract at the point of clicking the "Buy It Now" button. The total price you pay is the R.R.P. (Recommended Retail Price) of the product as stated on the auction plus the shipping and handling charge, plus any taxes shown, minus the discount shown which is based upon  a percentage of the the amount of bids you have placed, multiplied by the price per bid less any bids obtained as part of offers.

Payment for Buy It Now auctions must be made within 3 days of committing to buy the product or your account will become suspended automatically for non-payment. The suspension can only be lifted by payment being made. If payment is not made  7 days after account suspension we reserve the right to offer the product again for auction and the outstanding invoice amount may be passed on or sold to a collection agency.

Fastbidding Ltd.