Nearbidly Auction Terms and Official Rules

Effective date: October 21, 2026 · Version: 1.0

These Auction Terms and Official Rules ("Auction Terms") apply whenever you register for, pledge in, or bid in an auction on Nearbidly. They work alongside our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Each auction page also lists the details for that auction, its "Auction Details": the prize, its terms and exclusions, the format, the starting price, the bid step, the service area, the close time, the bonus ladder and the participation gift. If an auction's Auction Details conflict with these Auction Terms, the Auction Details apply to that auction, except where these Auction Terms say a rule can't be changed.

Plain-English summary

Bidding is free. You only pay if you win, and only your winning amount.
If you win, you must pay within 24 hours or the prize goes to the next highest bidder.
Every auction has one fixed close time. Bids received after it don't count.
"I'm in at $___" pledges are free and non-binding. They never change who wins.
Every participant who meets the auction's participation requirement gets the participation gift.
The business running the auction is the seller. Nearbidly is the platform.
No luck is involved. There are no drawings, raffles or random winners.

1. Who runs the auction

Each auction is run by an independent business shown on the auction page (the "Business"). The Business:

is the seller of the prize and of any follow-up offers;
is the merchant of record, receiving payment directly through its own Stripe account;
is responsible for delivering the prize as described, honoring its terms, applicable taxes, refunds and customer service.

Local Growth System LLC d/b/a Nearbidly ("Nearbidly") provides the technology platform. It applies these rules, keeps bidding fair, and sends auction alerts. Nearbidly is not the seller and does not hold your money.

2. Eligibility

To take part you must:

be 18 or older;
meet the auction's service area requirement. For example, you live or operate a business in the listed ZIP codes, county, state or radius, or have a shipping address the Business can deliver to;
be able to use the prize as described;
register with a mobile phone number you control and verify it with a one-time code. International participants may verify by email where the auction allows;
accept the registration consent and confirm your eligibility by ticking the required box.

Who can't take part:

One account per person. You may not use more than one account or phone number.
Business insiders. Owners, employees and contractors of the Business, and people acting for them, may not bid or pledge in that Business's auctions.
Nearbidly staff. Nearbidly staff may not bid in any auction.

Checking eligibility. We check eligibility when you register. We check again when you win: you confirm your address before payment. If you're found to be ineligible after paying, the payment is automatically refunded and the prize goes to the runner-up. Location signals such as your IP address or phone area code may be reviewed for fraud, but on their own they won't stop you from bidding.

3. It's free to take part, and no purchase is necessary

Registering, bidding and pledging are always free.
We never sell bid packs, bid credits or paid entries.
You pay only if you win, and only what you bid, or a lower amount if the auction uses uniform pricing (section 5.4).
No purchase is needed to register, bid, pledge or receive the participation gift.

4. How bidding works (all formats)

Bids are made only on the auction page. Bids placed in comments, emails, texts or social posts don't count.
A bid is a binding commitment. By placing a bid, you agree to pay that amount to the Business within the payment window if you win.
Timing uses Nearbidly's servers. A bid counts only if our servers receive it before the close time. Bids received at or after the close don't count, even if they were sent earlier or your device shows time remaining.
Ties go to the earlier bid. If two bids are equal, the one our servers received first wins.
The current leader can't outbid themselves in rising and penny auctions.
Very large bids need confirmation. Bids of 5× the prize's listed value or more require you to confirm.
No proxy or automatic bidding. You must place each bid yourself.
We may reject a bid that doesn't meet the minimum or step rules, and we'll tell you why.
Public display. Your bids appear publicly as your first name and last initial, your city, the amount and the time. Your phone, email and address are never shown publicly.

5. Auction formats

The Auction Details state which format applies.

5.1 Rising auction (standard)

Opening and bid step: bidding opens at the listed starting price (often $1). Each bid must be at least the current top bid plus the listed bid step.
Winner: the highest valid bid at the close wins.

5.2 Penny auction

Opening and bid step: bidding starts at $0.01. Each bid must be exactly one cent (or the listed increment) above the current top bid.
Winner: the last valid bid received before the close wins.
Always free to bid: penny auctions on Nearbidly never charge any fee to bid.

5.3 Dutch (falling-price) auction

How the price falls: the price starts high and drops by the listed amount at listed intervals. The current price is calculated from the published schedule.
Winner: the first person to press "MINE" wins at the price shown at that moment, and the auction ends immediately. Later presses are declined.
If nobody claims it: the Business sets a private minimum price. If no one claims the prize before the price reaches that minimum, the auction ends unsold.
Last call: if the person who claimed the prize doesn't pay in time, the prize is offered for 24 hours at the same claimed price to everyone registered for the auction. The first person to pay wins.

5.4 Multi-winner (top N) auction

Winners: the listed number (N) of highest bidders each win one prize. One prize per person.
Bidding to get into the winning group: to enter it, your bid must beat the lowest bid currently in it by at least the bid step (until N bidders have bid, the starting price applies). Each new bid you place must be higher than your own previous bid.
What winners pay: each winner pays their own bid (pay-your-bid), unless the Auction Details say all winners pay the same price (uniform price, set by the lowest winning bid at close).
Ties: at the cutoff, ties go to the earlier bid.

6. Close time, pauses and extensions

Every auction has one fixed close time, shown in the auction's time zone (Eastern Time unless stated otherwise). Once an auction is live, its close time doesn't change, except in a technical incident as described below.
Incident clause: "If Nearbidly has a technical outage, we may pause bidding and extend the close by the length of the outage plus 15 minutes. We'll notify every registered bidder."
During a pause: bids aren't accepted, and the page says bidding is paused.
Cancellation: Nearbidly may cancel an auction in rare cases, such as a serious incident, fraud, or a Business being unable to deliver the prize. If an auction is cancelled, no one is charged, and anyone already charged is refunded.

7. Winning, paying and forfeiting

Winner notice. After the close we notify the winner(s) by text (if you agreed to texts) and by email, with a secure link to the award page.

Quiet hours.

Held notices: if a winner or runner-up notice would arrive between 9:00 PM and 8:00 AM in your local time, we hold it until 8:00 AM.
Other alerts at night: these go by email only.

24-hour payment window.

When it runs: you have 24 hours from the time the winner notice is delivered to confirm your details and pay. If the notice was held for quiet hours, the 24 hours start at 8:00 AM.
Grace period: a payment that completes within a checkout session that was open when the window ended is accepted for up to 30 minutes after the window ends.
Extensions: the Business may extend a winner's window once, by up to 24 hours, at its discretion.

Payment.

How you pay: checkout happens on the Business's Stripe account. Accepted methods for prizes are card and Stripe-supported wallets such as Apple Pay, Google Pay and Link.
Installments: where the Auction Details offer them, you agree to the listed schedule. It ends automatically after the listed number of payments.
Card details: Nearbidly never sees your full card details.

Forfeiting.

If you don't pay in time: you forfeit the prize, and it is offered to the next highest eligible bidder at that bidder's own bid, with a new 24-hour window.
If you pay after forfeiting: a payment that arrives after you've forfeited is refunded automatically, and the prize isn't reinstated.
Repeated forfeits: after three forfeits on the same prize, the Business may handle the award manually or end the auction unsold.

Runner-up offers. Being offered a prize as a runner-up doesn't oblige you to buy it. Bids are binding only for the winning position you're offered. Paying is how you accept it.

8. Pledges ("I'm in at $___")

What a pledge is: you can name a number below the current top bid to show what the prize is worth to you. A pledge is free and non-binding.
What it doesn't do: it doesn't appear on the leaderboard, doesn't trigger outbid alerts, and never affects who wins or what anyone pays.
Minimum: each auction sets a minimum pledge (by default $5 or 0.5% of the prize value, whichever is greater).
Raising and converting: you can raise your pledge at any time before the close. A pledge equal to or above what would beat the top bid becomes a bid only if you confirm that you want to bid.
Levels and display: pledges may show a fun level badge (for example "Fan", "Contender", "High Roller") and appear in the live feed as your alias, city and amount.
Dutch price alerts: in Dutch auctions, a pledge can work as a price alert. We'll tell you when the price reaches your number.
Penny auctions: pledges aren't available.

9. Participation gift, bonuses and group unlocks

Participation gift: everyone who places a valid bid or a valid pledge receives the participation gift described on the auction page. The gift is provided by the Business, usually by email or text from the Business.
Bonus ladder: bonuses unlock for the winner when the top bid passes the listed amounts.
Group unlocks: some bonuses unlock for every participant when the number of participants reaches a listed milestone.
Delivery: gifts and bonuses are provided by the Business as described, aren't redeemable for cash, and can't be transferred unless stated.

10. No element of chance

Nearbidly auctions are decided only by bids under these rules. There are no drawings, random winners, lotteries or sweepstakes, and no prize depends on luck.

11. Follow-up offers from the Business

After an auction, the Business may offer other bidders and participants related packages. Some may include the same or similar items as the prize. The Business must first record the winner's permission. Any offer that includes the prize itself will never be priced below the winning bid. Follow-up offers come from the Business's own phone number and email, not from Nearbidly's alert number.

12. Fair play, fraud and voided bids

Nearbidly may void bids, cancel registrations, withhold or reverse awards, and suspend accounts if we reasonably believe someone has:

broken these Auction Terms;
used multiple accounts;
bid for or on behalf of the Business (shill bidding);
used bots;
misrepresented their eligibility;
engaged in fraud.

How we handle a voided bid:

Record: a voided bid is removed from the results, the reason is recorded, and the leaderboard is recalculated.
After the close: if a void affects an award after close, unpaid awards may be reassigned under these rules. A paid award is never reassigned automatically. Nearbidly and the Business will review it, and refunds are made where appropriate.
Notice: affected bidders are notified.

13. Messages and privacy

By registering you agree to auction texts and emails from Nearbidly, and follow-up texts, calls and emails, possibly sent with automated technology, from the Business named on the page. See our SMS Messaging Terms. You can opt out at any time by replying STOP or DELETE, or by unsubscribing. Opting out after you register doesn't remove your bids or pledges, and doesn't change your obligation to pay if you win. Your information is handled under our Privacy Policy.

14. Refunds, delivery and disputes about the prize

The Business's responsibility: prize delivery, scheduling, quality, warranties, refunds and taxes are the Business's responsibility under the prize terms on the auction page. Contact the Business first.
Refunds Nearbidly triggers: we trigger refunds automatically in the cases these rules describe (ineligible winner, late payment after a forfeit, cancellation).
Disputes: card disputes are handled through the Business's Stripe account.
Our help: you can contact support@nearbidly.com for help with an auction or if a Business isn't responding. We'll help where we reasonably can.

15. Limitation of liability

To the extent the law allows, Nearbidly isn't responsible for:

a Business's prize, services or conduct;
bids or messages delayed or lost by networks, carriers or devices outside our control;
losses from events beyond our reasonable control.

The disclaimers and liability limits in the Terms of Use apply to auctions. Nothing in these Auction Terms limits rights you have under consumer-protection law that can't be waived.

16. Governing law and disputes

These Auction Terms are governed by the laws of the State of New York. Disputes are handled as set out in the Terms of Use, including the arbitration provision.

17. Changes

We may update these Auction Terms. The version in effect when an auction opens applies to that auction.

18. Contact

Local Growth System LLC d/b/a Nearbidly · 54 State Street, Ste 804 #16621, Albany, NY 12207 · support@nearbidly.com · nearbidly.com/help