Bids Kenya
How deposits & refunds work
A small good-faith deposit makes every bid real. If you do not win, you get it all back as soon as the auction closes.
10%
Deposit on your bid
10% of raise
Top-up if you raise
1 refund
Automatic at close
72 hours
Winner pays balance
The deposit
- Place your bid on the auction page, then pay 10% of your bid through M-Pesa from your dashboard. It is a good-faith (earnest money) deposit that keeps out time-wasters.
- Your bid is recorded straight away but goes live only after the payment is verified.
- If you raise your bid, you pay only the extra 10% of the increase. You never pay the full deposit twice.
Refunds
- If you do not win, your full deposit is refunded automatically to your M-Pesa as soon as the auction closes. There is nothing to claim.
- If you win, the deposit counts toward the price and you pay the remaining 90%.
- If a refund fee applies, it is shown before your first deposit and recorded.
- There are no mid-auction refunds. Deposits stay in place until the auction closes.
- A top-up confirmed after you have been outbid stays in your balance for that auction and is refunded at close.
Worked example
- You bid
- KSh 500
- Deposit paid (10%)
- KSh 50
- You raise to
- KSh 1,500
- Top-up due (10% of the KSh 1,000 increase)
- KSh 100
- Total deposit
- KSh 150
- If you win: balance to pay (1,500 − 150)
- KSh 1,350
- If you lose: refunded in one payout
- KSh 150
Forfeiture: please read
- If you win, you have 72 hours to pay the remaining 90% balance.
- If it is not paid and no pause condition applies (open dispute, evidence request, pending payment or outage), your deposit is forfeited to the company.
- Forfeiture never exceeds 10% of the winning price. Any excess is refunded.
- An administrator can reverse a forfeiture with a recorded reason.
- Asking the seller for extra photos, video or proof of condition does not count as forfeiting.