Their Online Auctions are a sham - they already know who’s winning the bid

I was really unhappy a couple of weeks ago, I visited a branch in Jhb South were an exceptional sales person helped me. He even took my calls after he had knocked off to help me through the registration process for an auction that had only a few hours left to close.

I placed a bid for R79000.00 @ 40 minutes to the closing time, the next bidder bid R79500.00 a few minutes later. I then bid R80000.00 @ 20 minutes left to closing time. I was the highest bidder right up until their timer was at 00seconds left. But, guess what... as I waited for the email that confirmed I was the highest biddy a few minutes later than the timer stopped at 00 seconds still showing that I was the highest bidder (which I took a screenshot of) the email never came. Then at about 6 minutes later after the closing time, the salesperson Sydney, went and checked why I hadn’t received my email only to find that a ‘dealer’ had won the bid, and not me. Now the question was how and when did that happen. At what point or interval of the 00 seconds left on my screenshot did the ‘dealer’ suddenly win the bid. We are been made fools of here, waste of petrol, time effort and bank charges for deposit payment for a **** where this company has deals with dealers!!! Not to mention that even their footage will show that the car I was bidding for was driven off the floor before the close of the bidding time as I watched and asked myself where was it going now? the bid was to close at 12h00 but the car was taken from the floor about 15 minutes before 12h00(suppose to the ‘new dealer owner’) . This is pathetic and was just a waste of my time after I had escalated. Where someone was supposed to come back to me, but no one did. I had to drive back to the branch to get some feedback seen as no one called me back as they were supposed to. When I got to the branch, they simply dismissed me to their head offices in Pretoria which was also a waste of time and petrol all the way fro Vereeniging. The manager at Jhb South then called me from Sydney the salesman’s phone to tell me that IT says there was a latency on my side of the network.. but no proof could be given to me as he said there were fica information of the buyer on that IT report and that would be against the POPI act. So, I asked... how is it that there was latency on my side while the time kept on going right up until it reached 00 seconds an still say I’m the highest bidder at that point in time as per the screenshot I shared with them. Also, I had clicked on their automatic increase of R500.00 to outbid the other bidder if they placed another bid after me a few seconds I placed my bid for R80000.00 (which was at 20 minutes before 12h00). That automatic outbid was set up by the same IT that says there was a latency on my side of the network!!! What happened to my automatic outbid which I set, wasn’t it supposed to kick in once the ‘dealer’ bid R80500.00? Cz that’s what it shows that the so called dealer got it for. Wasn’t it that once he outbid me by R500.00 after I had bid R80000.00, it was supposed to kick in and up the bid to R81000.00? I am so disappointed and upset with the waste and inconvenience and poor service I got sies maan. To think I was going to bid up to R120000 for that car and ‘dealers’ get way with it and in the process the company itself loses cz I knew no dealer would bid that high for that car as they would have to sell it and make a profit. Up till Malcom (manager at head office in Pta) said he would follow up and get back to me. I’d just like to get my refund of the R5000.00 ASAP