ComplaintsforMaxsold Estate Sales

• Initial Complaint

  15/04/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Placed a bid on maxsold. Watched the bid say winning as it was closing. Bid closed, said that I had win the bid, went to book a time to pick my item up and said I had been outbid on the item! I literally watched the timer expire on my bidding item, said I won but apparently I didn't and some how had lost after the timer had expired. When you are bidding on a high value item to only have it ripped away from you after you've won the bid is not only disheartening but completley wrong for a business to do thatand should have consequences for their actions.

  

  Business response

  16/04/2024

  ****,
  We are sorry to hear about the challenges that you faced during bidding. Our aim is to ensure a smooth and enjoyable experience for all bidders.
  We referred the issue over to the tech team, and it seems like unfortunately there was a technical issue on the site that caused the situation to arise, we do apologize most sincerely for you disappointment.
  The tech team have been working through the issue to ensure that is does not affect future auctions.
  Thank you so much for bringing this feedback forward.
  Team MaxSold

• Initial Complaint

  22/11/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I live in a household with another tennant. we both have/ had accounts with Maxsold. In late October I bid for a car and I put maximum bid on my co-tennant account because my account was blocked because at the time my co-tennant account was blocked and unblocked. Bear with me. After my account was unblocked I put the same maximum bid on my own account so the invoice is issued in my name. The bid at the time was 1350 and my max bid was 2250 on one account and 2300 on the other. My bid went directly to 2300 instead of incrementally increase, and when I complained they said both max bids competed against each other. When I mentioned how when it became to blocking the accounts they treated the 2 accounts as one and demanded to be treated the same when it came to bidding, they blocked me and after few days they blocked the other account. So Maxsold treat the 2 accounts as one when it comes to punishment and blocking but as 2 when it is to their benefit financially. As things stand right now I over paid $700 because they say these are 2 separate accounts with max bids but turned around and blocked my account and that of the co-tennant because we share the same address. They should not be able to have their cake and eat it too. Return my $700 overpayment. See attached how the bid jumped from 1550 to 2250 when normally it should go up but $50 each bid. Every business understandably have rules and standards for customer behavior, but what we see here is arbitrary rules enforced willy nilly at the whimp of its employees without justifications. There is no clear path to escalation or recourse for customer and it feels the customers are at their and their employees mercy, tight or wrong. ********* ******* ******* ***** ********

  

  Business response

  23/11/2023

  Many thanks for the feedback, and we are sorry to hear that you have been left unsatisfied with you MaxSold experience. We certainly are keen to look in to this matter for you, and provide you with the results of an investigation.
  
  If you could kindly share the two email address on the accounts that you used to place the MaxBids, to *************************, we will be able to look in to exactly what MaxBids were on the item at the time, and whether it was indeed only the two or if there were any other bidders that might have also had MaxBids on at the time that would have caused the final price to reach where it did. 

  We always operate with full transparency and once an investigation is complete we will provide you with the information, and take care of any next steps, if applicable.
  
  Once again thanks for providing the feedback and we look forward to being able to help you resolve your issue soon.
  
  Team MaxSold

• Initial Complaint

  31/10/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I have had an active personal credit card on my Maxsold account and have been purchasing items for over 6 months. My transactions have been smooth with only minor bumps along the way. However, over the last month I have been trying to add a business credit card (active and in good standing card) to my account and it won't let me. I entered many times and it says "Transaction Denied". I even took out the personal card thinking maybe it won't accept two cards. Now I can't get either card back on record. I used the chat feature on the website and was told I had to send an email. I sent the email to only get a generic response which did not help my issue. I responded to the email and have heard nothing back. I called the ********** number and the person was less than helpful. First she said it was our bank and to fix it with them. Called the bank, it's not them. Called her back and she had no answer for us. Also, she wasn't paying attention, was laughing at us throughout the conversation and giving us a complete run around. When we asked to speak to a supervisor she said no one was available. After asking multiple times she gave us another number, **********, which is the same as ********** which got us to her! When we said to her it was the same number she just laughed at us again. I then went to an auction pick up location looking for help and although a pleasant person who wanted to help, they had no other avenue of assistance from what I have tried. I can not find any other number to reach additional assistance. I currently have no card on record with them so I can't place any bids and do business with this company. I'm disappointed in the lack of useful & respectful customer service. My favored outcome is to add my two credit cards and be able to do business again. And to have the company make adjustments to their customer service to be productively responsive, and have a respectful & productive customer service staff.

  

  Business response

  03/11/2022

  ***,

  Many thanks for reaching out with your feedback, and please let me apologize initially for the slight delay in the response. I had asked the team to investigate fully and get back to me with their findings. I would like to address the credit card issue first, and the the team member behavior.

  In terms of the card, we ran some backcheck on our gateway that day, and all was in order. I understand that the bank saw no issues on their end also. It is sometimes the case that things fail to register even though systems are all up. I feel that the team member you spoke to should have escalated the issue there for you to another department who would have been able to help. We have spoken with this team member and their lead, so that in future they follow all of our escalation processes and get to what should always be the core aim - to resolve your issue.

  In terms of the team members behavior, I certainly see that this fell below the standards we expect. I was particularly concerned to hear that they had laughed during the call. I personally listened to the call as well as other members of the team, and whilst we feel that the laugh was at something going on at the contact center, as opposed to at you, it is totally unacceptable to me that they would be focused elsewhere - and would be engaged in something else at the same time as serving you. There were certainly other concerns that I have with the call in general, including the amount of dead air time, and the lack of engagement that was shown towards you. The team member will be going through an intensive retraining course around our expected standards.

  In order to assist in resolving in the card issue, one of the managers will be reaching out to you today to see how we can assist on that.

  I will also be asking them to send you out a voucher, post call both to apologize for the bad experience and also as a way of thanking you for helping us provide a better service through feedback.

  ****

• Initial Complaint

  30/08/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I would like to make serious complaint about my recent pickup experience. I drove 50 miles one-way to the pickup place around 11:40am to check whether I can pick up my lots, or small items first. From my previous experience, your stuff is good to discuss and accommodating if situation allows. This is real life and no one can act like machine. I may also need disassembly time and would like to check the lot status in advance. In case I miss some tools, I can have some time to fix. So, I come earlier than scheduled time. The worst case is to wait a little bit. However, this time the maxsold staff in charge (Wendy?) is very hostile from the beginning and speaks with tone of command that I have to come at the exact scheduled time, not even one minute earlier. I understand that there’s china cabinet in my lots and it’s better to have the porcelain picked up first and then move the cabinet. But I don't understand why she was so offensive to speak to me with such arrogant attitude. By now I only ask one question politely. I thought she may have bad mood now. Then I left for lunch. Later around 1pm I stopped by again to check the status of that china cabinet in my lots. After I ring the doorbell but have no chance to speak to Wendy while she was standing inside. Wendy did not speak to me but instead call police. I feel very insulted to be treated like criminal. The attitude she talked to me from the beginning is like I’m refugee begging master for food. At the same time, your stuff Wendy acted like Queen to abuse buyers. I do not owe you anything. I recall that about half year ago in another pickup, this Wendy is also very hostile from the beginning. At that time, I thought she may not happy due to personal emotion and just forget about it. But from today's experience, she's consistently hostile to me that I cannot understand. I would only think that this is consistent discrimination against minority races and treated me with contempt. See attachment for more.

  

  Business response

  31/08/2022

  Good morning ***

  We are so sorry to read in this complaint that we fell short of expectations for you. Our aim is to provide a positive experience every time and I apologize that we did not meet that standard for you during your recent auction pick up. We take complaints of this nature very seriously and I would like to offer to speak with you directly today so that we may adequately address your concerns. 

  Kind regards

   

  **** ***** ******** **** *******

  Customer response

  06/09/2022

  
  ********** ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  Thank you for addressing this issue quickly. However, I don't get clear apology in writing and no compensation for the loss. I heard from ******* that their VP has written response to ***? Unfortunately, I don't have access until now. I drove almost 2 hours one way and wasted one day for this pickup (not to mention bridge tolls, gas, traffic, etc.) but received nothing except frustration and unreasonable suspension due to Maxsold employee's false accusation. I appreciate ******* from Maxsold received my call and issued the refund for the lots I cannot access. But so far my account is still suspended, my loss is not properly addressed, and I do need formal apology in writing.

  
  Sincerely,
  
  *** ***

  

  Business response

  07/09/2022

  We feel that our response has been adequate.

  
  Following an in depth investigation we have decided to take the difficult decision to ban the customer account, due to hostile behavior towards the team members. We consistently provide coaching to our team members, and have looked at this incident. We also however have a certain expectation of customer behavior that we feel to have been breached on this occasion.

  The customer has been refunded for items that they were unable to collect due to out need to call the police over team safety concerns.

  At this stage we feel the matter is closed.

  Kind regards.

  Customer response

  07/09/2022

  
  ********** ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because: It's a pity that Maxsold goes back on their own words from the initial contact. In their last week's voice call, they said they will apologize on this incident and improve their training. They have no reason to ban me due to this pickup. Now they deny what they have promised.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *** ***

• Initial Complaint

  02/08/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I purchased an authenticated painting in 2020 via Maxsold. The seller had it appriased by **** *******. Immediately after purchase, I spoke to ******* who confirmed he had appraised the painting, and assured me that counterfeit items never passed through Maxsold's strict fraud standards. This year, I tried to sell the same painting through Maxsold, but it has been put on their "do not sell" list due to problems with counterfeit paintings being sold. I spoke to a customer service rep in June, who encouraged me to have the painting re:appraised and ensured me that Maxsold had a strict no fraud guarantee and that they would resolve the issue to my satisfaction. It took some time to find someone to reappraise, but I eventually did, and the painting was appraised as a fake. Maxsold now says that it is the sole responsibility of the sellers to ensure that their product is real and that they have no responsibility to me as a customer. They gave me contact information for the appraiser, but the appraiser still maintains that this painting is real. It was my impression that businesses in Canada were liable against selling counterfeit items.

  

  Business response

  02/08/2022

  *****,

  Many thanks for raising your concerns, as per our original response to your complaint through our support team, we have noted that sellers are responsible for the photos, descriptions and any appraisals that they put forward on a seller managed sale. The sellers are aware of this responsibility when they sign the contracts.

  We have provided the details of the seller, and the appraiser from the sale in 2020, and have contacted them to let them know your concern, and they provided permission for us to send those details to you for you to contact them.
  

  You have noted to us in communication that you have taken the concern around the appraisal directly to the appraiser **** ******* and he has confirmed his appraisal, if you feel that he has incorrectly appraised the item you would need to discuss that directly with Mr. *******, along with the seller who sold the item back in 2020.

  We are truly sorry that our previous communication with you has not resolved your disappointment, but would again advise that you connect with the seller directly on the issue.

  Kind Regards,

   

   

• Initial Complaint

  04/07/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On Thursday, June 9 2022, I placed a bid an on-line auction with MaxSold Inc. **** ******* *** ********* ** *** **** and won the lot for a total of $36.39. The items included in my lot were a tripod and approximately 80 stretcher bars for stretching canvas artwork. The pickup date was Sunday, June 12 2022. I went to pick them up at the scheduled time, driving one hour each way to Kingston from my home in Picton Ontario. When I arrived I was told that the tripod was available but there were no stretcher bars. I called MaxSold asking about sellers that withhold product. They said there could be a penalty to the seller, but to my knowledge they did not pursue this. MaxSold refunded my payment, which I told them not to do; the stretcher bars had a value of approximately $1200. Though both the agents at the pickup and the MaxSold representatives said the seller would get in touch with me directly, the seller never contacted me. The stretcher bars were large and heavy. It's clear that they were not lost; but that the seller decided to keep the product.

  

  Business response

  05/07/2022

  ****Many thanks for sending feedback. We are sorry to hear that you had a bad experience at a recent pickup. Unfortunately, on the rare occasion that items are not available at pick up, we can not provide the item, but do as you noted refund in full for the item. I understand the situation is disappointing. I have spoken with the team today and we had left a message with the seller, but we can not guarantee that  they will respond to us. We will certainly send another follow up to them on your behalf.

  I do note that you had to drive a distance to collect the items, so if it is agreeable please reach out to me at **************** and I will arrange for a $50 gift voucher to be sent to you as way of an apology for making the trip only to face disappointment.

  Once again we are truly sorry for the frustration this has caused you.

  ****

• Initial Complaint

  05/06/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  We contacted MaxSold on April 21, 2022 to inquire about a downsizing auction. We had just called a few antique dealers because my wife had china from Italy and the antique place told us they could only offer $25 a place setting which in their eyes was an insult to us. When we spoke with MaxSold we relayed that information and was told that they had thousands of buyers and collectors so it will most likely sell. We were told that they handle the pictures, the listings and the pickup for $700 plus 30%. We thought that it meant that they would be picking up the items that sold and sending them to the buyers. We did not find out that it was a local auction and that the buyers would be coming to the house to pick up their items until after we signed the contract and were emailing questions back and forth. The auction occurred and the china sold for $4. It was a setting for at least 12. That was an insult. The sales team should really explain more when the people inquire about the company. If we knew it was local only we would never have done it. We were told they had a 96% rate of sales. Our rate of sale was 75% and most things went for the dollar opening bid. We didnt even make enough on the auction to cover the fee. There were no bidding wars as were suggested by MaxSold. We had hoped to make some money on the auction to use in moving in the next few months. Now we owe them money. They were very misleading in the first phone call. This was a terrible experience and we would and will never recommend this company to anyone. We also sent a complaint to their legal email address and never got a response. The listings had barely any information on them. We know we could have edited the lisiting descriptions but we left it up to the company since they had such a great record.

  

  Business response

  02/07/2022

  Dear ****, 
  
  I’m sorry to hear about your experience. We have reviewed the original call and email exchange, and agree that there was some miscommunication.
  

  MaxSold is an online auction platform with a local pickup and the auction was advertised to the local community.

  The 95% is the average of all completed auctions, and our results are public  and published on our website. I am sorry that the bidding activity was not as competitive as you would have liked.
  

  Going forward, we will ensure our sales agents explain our process in better detail to avoid a situation like this coming up again.

  We would like to offer you the full proceeds of the auction as a goodwill gesture. 
  

  We have a dedicated customer support team here ready to help you in any way we can. In the future, you can contact us directly for a quicker response and resolution at: [email protected]. 
  

  Thank you for your honest feedback, we appreciate each one as they really help us improve.
  

  
  

  Customer response

  04/07/2022

   
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********* and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Sincerely,
  **** ******

• Initial Complaint

  22/11/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Hi I have been a loyal customer of MaxSold for about 3 years, with no trouble or issues. One time upon pickup of items from MaxSold location, an electric cable was misplaced by somebody. Eventually my account was suspended immediately, so I contacted MaxSold customer service to resolve the matter, but the MaxSold Service Dept resolved the matter swiftly, and my account was activated. Then afterwards, upon pickup of other material from a location set by MaxSold, an employee from MaxSold started to behave rudely inciting the incident of the missing cable and how he got into trouble with MaxSold management, and threatened many times to suspend my account. I got home, and contacted the customer service of MaxSold, and eventually I got an apology from MaxSold team with $25 gift card. All is good, until my account got suspended for the second time, citing problems from my part that never happened, as I have minimum interaction with any employee of MaxSold. In-spite of my repetitive attempts to resolve the matter, but came with no avail, with reminders from MaxSold marketing kept flowing into my email for viewing their items and bidding on them. Finally, I do not understand the behaviour of MaxSold team, one team apologizes and provides a gift card, and another is rude, citing misleading incidents by the customers which never happended.

  

  Business response

  26/11/2021

  Hello,

   

  The buyer account was suspended in error on September 2, 2021.  This has been corrected and the account has been reinstated.  Provided the buyer follows all rules, and abides by the terms and conditions of our site their account will remain in good standing.

   

  Regards,

   

   

• Initial Complaint

  18/11/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Maxsold has ceased communication with me after I requested a partial refund due to all items being smoke damaged and covered in rodent excrements. No so much as a courtesy email to acknowledge my concerns (aside from the canned auto response from initial complaint.

  

  Business response

  26/11/2021

  Hello,

   

  Our refund policy is clearly stated for all buyers. If anything is not as expected the buyer has the opportunity to discuss it on site, and leave the items for a full refund, or accept a partial refund at that time. 

  Mr. ****** did not follow this process and requested a 100% refund after taking the items from the location.  It can take up to 72 hours to respond to a request, and all buyers are to inspect the items prior to leaving the location.
  

   

  This matter has since been resolved as of Tuesday November 23rd, we have processed a one time courtesy refund of 50% against the policy, $141.08 after-tax.

   

  Regards,

   

   

  Customer response

  29/11/2021

  
  Complaint: ********
  
  I was not asking for 100% refund in my initial complaint to the BBB.  My complaint stated that Maxsold would not respond to any of my messages from my initial request starting November 8.  Today’s unsigned response from Maxsold seems to be putting the blame on me for not understanding the refund policy, so I feel compelled to respond and correct the multitude of errors in their message. First off, with regards to their reference of the refund policy, I am aware of the refund policy.  Again, that wasn’t the subject of my complaint.  But the situation was unique.  It should be noted that in the past when I have picked up my auction items and returned home, I have found parts missing, or items described as "new" that weren't, I called Maxsold immediately and was given a refund without reporting to the staff at time of pick up.  So the refund policy statement is a moot point.  Second. I did not request a "100% refund".  I requested a refund for 18/19 items which comes out to a 94% refund totalling $210.06 before premium and taxes are added.  Maxsold did give me a 50% “courtesy” refund of $140 of my total invoice, and until I read the response today on this forum, I was just going to let it go even though I had to burn and throw out everything except 1 item.  Lastly, the statement from Maxsold "it can take UP to 72 hours to respond to a request” is a ridiculous and irrelevant response.  My initial request for refund was November 8, date of auction pick up.  On November 12, 96 hours past my request I had not had any response, I called MaxSold and was told it had to be done via my account online.   So on November 12 I asked for an update on my account via online, with again no response. On November 17, 9 days after the initial request I sent in a complaint to the BBB about lack of response from MaxSold regarding my refund.  November 20, 12 days/288 hours past my initial request, and way beyond the 72 hour frame MaxSold just stated, I updated my account once again asking for MaxSold to respond.  On November 22, 14 days past my initial request I finally received a response from MaxSold and on November 23, I received an offer for a 50% refund via email.  I assume it was a result from my BBB complaint.   It is should be noted that the reason I was requesting a 94% refund was because the home in which the auction was held stunk like urine and feces, and most items were heavily covered in smoke and stained with nicotine.  That was not noted as part of the description on any of my items and I didn’t even consider the magnitude of damage until I returned home. The some of the maxsold staff, who I have known for several years, were taking breaks outside of the home due to the smell and smoke.  If I would have known it was a smoking and mouse infested house I would not have bid on any items.   I will accept the refund offer of $140 from Maxsold, which as said was not the point of my complaint.  I am a long time buyer with Maxsold and will note if I do another auction to thoroughly inspect every inch of my items.  And if it isn't exactly as described I will be requesting a refund at the site of the auction. 
  
  **** ******

• Initial Complaint

  25/10/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I purchased a lot of 2 art works Invoice ******* (over $260 worth), for a pick up on Oct.23, 2021. The pick up was to happen between 10 am and noon. I was coming from another city and due to traffic and road closures I was at the premises at 12:30pm. Unfortunately, it was a storage facility and there was no one there already. I immediately contacted MaxSold both by phone and via email apologizing and requesting to contact the seller to arrange another day for a pick up. However, I was told that since I'd "abandoned" my items, I have basically lost my items. I DID NOT abandon my items. I was merely late and quite apologetic. Things happen. Sometimes beyond buyer's control. * **** * **** ******* **** ******* *** ***** ******* **** **** ** ************* ************* ** *** * ******* ********* *** * ****** **** ***

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩