How to Bid

Only registered users can place bids on lots through the StatVIN service. A dealer license is not required.

To become a participant and start bidding:

1) Register
2) Enter all personal information and the vehicle delivery country, and upload an identification document
3) Place a refundable deposit of $600 or more via bank transfer
4) Wait until the deposit is credited to your account

Once all of the above steps are completed, you will be able to place bids.

We recommend placing your maximum bid during the Pre-Bidding stage. In this case, the Copart BID4U feature and a similar system used by IAAI will automatically place incremental bids on your behalf for the selected vehicle. If your bid is outbid, you will receive an email notification and will have the opportunity to place another bid.

You can also purchase vehicles using the “Buy Now” option, which is available in the “Bid Information” section on the lot page.

Note: Once a “Buy Now” offer is submitted, the buyer is obligated to pay the offered amount (plus all applicable fees) that they submitted or approved.

When you place a bid, make an offer, or use the “Buy Now” option, you agree to purchase the item. A bid/offer cannot be lowered or withdrawn.

No. All bids and offers are binding and final.

After submitting a bid or offer, the bidder is obligated to pay the amount of any bid (plus all applicable fees) that they submitted or approved (or otherwise submitted or approved under their Member Account), if the bid is accepted. This applies to all bids placed during pre-bidding and live auctions, regardless of how and where the bid was made.

Note: The “bid by mistake” option is available during pre-bidding. It allows you to reduce your maximum bid, if placed in error, down to the current bid amount.

Can I cancel or lower my offer (if the winning lot is pending seller approval)?

No. Once an offer is made, it cannot be withdrawn or deleted. If your bid or offer is accepted, you will be required to purchase the vehicle by paying the bid amount plus applicable auction fees and StatVIN fees.

The seller may also make a counteroffer, in which case you can either accept it or submit another offer. If the seller rejects your offer, you are not required to make any payment.

If the seller does not accept your offer within 48 business hours after it is placed, you are not obligated to pay.

Note: If a vehicle is listed in a live auction, it does not cancel your offer; your offer remains valid for 48 business hours from the time it was submitted.

I became the highest bidder “On Minimum,” but the seller’s reserve price was not met. Can I cancel?

No. Only the seller can accept or reject the final bid.

Each auction consists of two stages: Pre-Bidding and Live Auction.

Stage 1: Pre-Bidding

When Copart or IAAI receives a new vehicle, it is assigned a sale date and becomes available for pre-bidding. Vehicles may be listed as “Place Bid” or “Buy Now.”

Place Bid — enter your maximum price for the vehicle. If you are the highest bidder during pre-bidding and your maximum bid has not been reached, StatVIN will automatically increase bids on your behalf during the live auction (Stage 2) until your maximum bid is reached or you win. If your bid is outbid during the pre-bidding stage, you will receive an email notification and will have the option to increase your maximum bid.

Buy Now — for some vehicles, the seller offers the option to purchase the vehicle at a fixed price without going through the auction process.

Lots are available for bidding until one hour before the Live Auction begins. The highest bid during pre-bidding becomes the starting bid for the live auction.

Note: Once a bid, offer, or “Buy Now” request is submitted, it cannot be withdrawn or canceled. If your bid or offer is accepted, you are obligated to purchase the vehicle at your bid/offer price plus all applicable auction and StatVIN fees.

Stage 2: Live Auction

When the sale date arrives, the Live Auction begins. Live auctions move very quickly and usually last only a few minutes.

Bid — this is an additional bid you place in real time after the live auction starts. You may also increase your bid amount.

StatVIN will help maintain your position as the highest bidder by placing only one incremental increase above the current bid. This allows you to potentially purchase the vehicle below your maximum bid if the bidding does not reach or exceed your maximum.

Pre-bids during the Live Auction — you may place a pre-bid during the live auction no later than two minutes before the vehicle appears in the auction lane. Your pre-bid will be entered into the live auction and may become the winning bid if no other participant places a higher bid during either the pre-bidding stage or the live auction.

Note: If a  pre-bid and a live bid are equal, the live (in-lane) bidder is given priority as the highest bidder.

The sale status indicates the type of auction for a particular lot and can be found in the “Bid Information” section on the lot page.

Pure Sale

The seller has not set a reserve price, and the lot will be awarded to the highest bidder at the end of the live auction.

On Approval

The seller reserves the right to approve the final High Bid from the live auction. The seller has until 6:00 PM PST on the next business day after the sale date to either accept the High Bid or decline the sale.

Minimum Bid

The seller has set a minimum reserve price for the auction. If the reserve price is not met during the live auction, the seller has until 6:00 PM PST on the next business day after the sale date to either accept the High Bid or decline the sale.

The seller’s reserve price is not displayed during the auction. However, if you are the High Bidder when the auction ends, the reserve price will be shown.

Note: If you place the High Bid on a lot with a “Minimum Bid” or “On Approval” status, you must wait for the seller to accept, counter, or reject your bid.

At any time during the approval process, you may: increase your bid to the next acceptable amount, keep your current bid (without increasing it), or accept the seller’s reserve price. You can increase your bid or accept the seller’s offer on your bid status page. If the seller accepts your High Bid within the specified time, you will be required to purchase the vehicle.

Night Sale

This occurs when a vehicle is not sold during the live auction because it did not meet the reserve price. In this case, the vehicle enters a pre-bidding period that continues until the next “Night Sale.” Like an auction, the Night Sale continues until the final bid.

Four Night Sales take place simultaneously, each covering a specific region: Pacific (including HI and AK), Mountain, Central, and Eastern.

Night Sale schedule: Monday – Thursday at 6:00 PM Pacific Time.

Your bid will participate in the live auction if it is not outbid before the live auction begins.

You may also increase your maximum bid before the live auction; however, you cannot participate directly in real-time bidding during the live auction. We will represent you in the live auction and automatically place incremental bids on your behalf during the bidding process.

You can place or update your maximum bid for the live auction no later than two lots before the current lot is auctioned.

The seller’s minimum bid may be available on the website and is displayed based on our internal analytics. It is not available for all lots and is not exact, and may differ from the actual reserve price.

However, if you place the highest bid at the end of the auction, the seller’s minimum price will be disclosed to you.

If you are the highest bidder on an auction with the status “On Minimum” or “On Approval,” you must wait for the seller to accept, counter, or reject your high bid.
 

• For auctions marked with the “Minimum Bid” status, the seller has until 19:45 PM PST on the next business day after the auction ends to: accept your bid, make a counteroffer, or reject your bid.
  
   
• For auctions marked with the “On Approval” status, the seller has until 19:45 PM PST on the next business day after the auction ends to: accept your bid, make a counteroffer, or reject your bid.

At any time during the approval process, you may: increase your bid to the next highest amount, keep your current bid (without increasing it), or accept the seller’s minimum price. You can increase your bid or accept the seller’s offer directly from the auction page. If the seller accepts your high bid within the approval window, you will be required to purchase the vehicle.

To start bidding, you must:

Upload a valid government-issued ID.

Note: If no passport or ID is uploaded, the participant will receive an error message during bidding.

Place a minimum security deposit of $600.

Note: a $600 security deposit covers only one active bid. If you plan to bid on two items, the required deposit is $1200 or 10% of the intended bid amount for each item.

If all conditions are met, please contact customer support.

Sometimes Copart or IAAI does not specify a sale date when listing a vehicle for auction. In such cases, we display “Future Sale” or “Expected Sale Date” as temporary information until Copart or IAAI provides the actual sale date.

If you have added the vehicle to your “Watchlist,” you will receive an email update as soon as the sale date becomes available.

The seller has 2 business days from the time the offer is submitted to notify Copart or IAAI of their decision to accept the offer.

Once you have submitted a “Make an Offer,” it cannot be withdrawn or canceled. If your offer is accepted, you will be required to purchase the vehicle at your offered price plus any applicable auction fees and StatVIN fees.

The buyer can make a counteroffer to the seller directly from the vehicle lot page. You have three options available: 

• “Increase Bid” ,
• “Keep Bid” ,
• “Accept Minimum Price”.

When you become the auction winner, your account will be updated, and a notification with an attached invoice will be sent to the email address on file.

To view the auction results in “My Account,” log in and go to the “Won Bids” tab in the main menu.