Not an electronic auction, but at a real auction, what happens when someone wins but doesn't pay or is unable to?
Depending on the auction it's usually played by ear. It can be held as a verbal contract or they can go to the next highest bidder if they are still around or they can put it back up on the chopping block if things are still going up. It depends.
Depends on the auction house. If it's "Ye Olde Barn Auction" then they'll grumble and then probably put the item back in the queue for the next auction. If it's a more serious pro auction house then they may hold you to the verbal contract- you may even be asked to sign an agreement when registering for the auction.
i would imagine that the item will go to the next highest bidder or back to the auction block. the bidder could suffer some kind of consequences other than not being able to claim the item that they "won"
By placing a bid you are entered into a finical contract to pay up to but not exceeding the amount of your bid. Often times one must sign a contract/waiver to partake in bidding of higher tier items(ie. art, really old stuff, cars, houses). You may also be charged a fee.
+1 It depends a lot on the auction, but for things like land, acceptance of your bid formalises the contract IIRC and therefore you can be sued for breach of contract. Again, IIRC, in land auctions you often have to pay the deposit by the end of the day of the auction. If you don't you'd likely be sued for the costs of holding another auction and possibly for more if the next auction didn't reach a figure as higher as the bid just under yours.
Hi. Generally people don't do that. At least not twice. To avoid getting banned there's the option to convince the second bidder to buy the lot/item/whatever and pay up the balance. No way any auctioneer will let the item slip for a reduced price just because someone refuses to pay. There's a certain rules about auctions, some written and some unwritten and:" Don't bid unless You can pay" is on them both. Regards Sam