Swoopo - what a rip off...

[Ian1]

What a rip off this is. You have to buy 'bids' which cost about 50p each (depending how many you buy).

Every time you bid on something, you pay 50p even if you don't win that item. As the seconds count down to zero, and someone bids, the auction time goes back to 20 seconds then the countdown starts again. So at about 2 seconds left, 2 or 3 bidders each bid, costing each of them 50p. The price of the item increases by 1p so this goes on forever.

One night I couldn't sleep so at 03.30 I was bidding for a digital camera and still other bidders were there.

Having spent �10 on 20 bids I will steer well clear of this site.

<a target='_blank' href=&quot;http://www.swoopo.co.uk &quot;>Swoopo</a>

[Squitty]

Guess what the first thing I did was...........

[Ethel]

It is made very clear in the terms and conditions, which you must have ticked as being read to register:

http://www.swoopo.co.uk/terms.html

That is how they make their money - selling bids. They don't even have the goods you are bidding for - they come direct from a supplier, so it is win win for swoopo.

One thing is for sure, if there are not enough bids on an item it is eventually cancelled and bid monies returned, in the form of bid credits.

[VHG]

These type of sites are SCAMS, bordering on the criminal.

I am afraid they make money from people like you who dont realise it is all controlled and managed by the web site.

People rarely if ever "win" anything and they are just designed to separate people from their money.

Steer well clear of them.

[Ian1]

Thanks for your answers, I think I'll stick with e-bay.

[Hammer]

I'm not so sure it's a scam, but it is definately a gamble. The way it works is that 99% of people lose and subsidise the lucky 1% who win.

I bought a few bids a while back in the hope of getting a cheap nintendo wii. I watched for a while without bidding and tried to work how to play the system. I eventually used up my bids, won nothing and walked away. Could have saved myself a few quid but didn't.

It was scary watching the same people bid over and over again for the same item at 50p per bid. At the end of each auction I think they show you how much the winner actually spent on bids and that is a real eye-opener on how much money the website makes!

[potterfan3]

You wouldn't have called it a rip off if you won. They make the rules very clear, you chose to take the risk when you joined.

I must say, it's a very good business plan they must make an absolute fortune.

[jsecure7]

I�ve used Swoopo in the past but there are so many using it now it is SO hard to win, bidding against people from other countries as well. I found another one that is launching soon called Doobids. I�d be surprised if anyone knows about it because I have not seen them advertising anywhere yet. They are getting around Facebook as a fan page but they seem a bit different from the others though because they have put extra features on it making the whole process of bidding slightly more transparent, doesn�t look as much like a scam! Theres a security certificate as well which is really important for secure transactions. UK company registered and VAT registered. Might be worth a punt for those that care.