Here you can find out everything you need to know about the railauction.plus marketplace - regardless of whether you are a buyer or a seller. Do you have any further questions? Then feel free to contact our marketplace team
Marketplace
What is the railauction.plus marketplace?
railauction.plus is an EU-wide B2B marketplace for the railway industry, where mainly surplus material is traded.
The offers on the marketplace come from independent sellers who list their items in their own name and on their own account. Delivery is made directly by the seller – either by collection or shipping – and the invoice is also issued in the seller's name. The seller's respective terms and conditions apply.
What is an open auction?
The buyers participating in the auction know what bids have already been placed. The highest bid is binding and wins the auction.
What is a hidden auction?
Buyers participating in the auction only know their own bid. The bids of other buyers remain hidden. At the end of the auction, the seller can decide which bidder is awarded the contract (e.g. this does not necessarily have to be the highest bidder).
What is a direct purchase?
This is not an auction. Buyers can purchase the item immediately at the price set by the seller.
What is a price suggestion?
Buyers can submit their own price proposal. The seller then decides whether to accept or reject the proposal. Important: The buyer's price proposal does not have to match the price specified by the seller – this is only a guideline.
Can i submit requests on railauction.plus?
Yes, that is possible. You can simply contact the marketplace team. You can also find further information about requests here.
How does the search agent work?
The search agent helps you find specific items that are relevant to you – and automatically delivers the results directly to your inbox.
You create a search request, for example for ‘rotary motor’, and automatically receive an email as soon as a new matching offer is posted.
You can set up search requests either for specific item names or for certain categories that are of particular interest to you.
How does the platform protect against fraud?
To offer you maximum security, we manually verify every new customer before they can use our marketplace. Only after this verification does the customer gain access to sensitive information such as prices or address details. This way, we ensure that you can trade in a secure and trustworthy environment.
Buying
How do I become a buyer?
Start by creating a customer account. You can find step-by-step instructions here. We will then check your registration to ensure that everything is correct. Once the check has been successfully completed, you will receive a confirmation email and can get started right away.
Important: railauction.plus is intended exclusively for business customers. Unfortunately, private customers cannot be accepted.
How can I find items that interest me?
There are several ways to do this:
First, use the filter functions in the respective categories to find specific products. In addition, you can use the search bar – as you know from other platforms – to quickly and easily search for specific items.
If your search does not return any results, you can use the form that appears to tell us directly what you are looking for. We will then be happy to check whether a suitable item is available from our customers.
How can I contact sellers if I have questions?
On each product page, you will find detailed contact information for the seller, such as their email address or telephone number. This allows you to contact the seller directly.
Please note: This information is only accessible to users who are logged in to our marketplace.
Can I withdraw a bid?
Price suggestion: You can close your offer. To do so, go to the Buy > Price suggestions section and select Show for the respective suggestion. There you have the option to end the price suggestion.
Hidden auction: It is not possible to withdraw your bid here. However, you can overwrite your bid at any time with a new one, regardless of whether it is higher or lower.
Open auction: It is not possible to withdraw your bid here. However, please note that you are not necessarily required to pay the full amount you bid. Our bidding agent ensures that you only pay as much as is actually required to win the bid. You can find a detailed explanation here: Bidding agent | railauction.plus
What is a bidding agent?
This function helps you to bid automatically. In open auctions, it automatically submits bids for you up to a pre-set maximum amount. You can find the minimum increments in our terms of use. In this way, the bidding agent helps you buy products without immediately exhausting your maximum bid.
What happens if I win the auction?
TAs soon as you have successfully won an auction, you will receive a notification from us by e-mail. The next step is for the seller to contact you directly. When you win the auction, the seller automatically receives your billing information and can immediately prepare the invoice. Please understand that it may take a short while for the seller to contact you.
What happens next when a sale is successful?
Direct purchase: Once you have completed your shopping basket, you will immediately receive a confirmation email. At the same time, the seller will receive your billing details and can begin invoicing. They will send you the invoice promptly and contact you directly if they have any questions about delivery, collection or other details. If you have any questions in advance, you can find the seller's contact details on the item page at any time.
Hidden and open auctions and price suggestions:
The process is similar here, but after the seller has accepted your bid or you have automatically won an open auction, you still need to complete the checkout process in your user account. After you have received the notification of your win by email, simply log in to your account and navigate via the menu to Buy > Bids / Hidden bids or Price suggestions – depending on the type of sale. There you can add the purchase directly to your shopping basket and complete the transaction.
Selling
How do I become a seller?
First of all, you need a customer account on our marketplace. With just one more step, you can become a seller: fill out the ‘Seller Profile’ in your customer account. You can find brief instructions on how to do this here. And then you're ready to start selling!
How do I determine a starting price?
It is best to discuss pricing with your specialist departments. Important to know: Only in open auctions is the starting price actually a minimum price – bids cannot be lower than this.
In hidden auctions and price suggestions, the amount specified is only a guide price. It is therefore advisable not to set the price too low in order to leave sufficient room for negotiation.
What if I don’t want to specify a price?
If you prefer not to set a fixed price, simply choose the “Price suggestion” sales type and use the option “Do not specify price”.
Please note: To receive more realistic and market-oriented offers, we recommend to enter a price.
What happens next when a sale is successful?
Once the buyer has completed checkout, you, as the seller, will receive a confirmation email from us. You can then log in to your user account and view the buyer's billing information under Sell > Orders. Next, create the invoice and send it directly to the buyer. You can also coordinate further details of the sale, such as collection or delivery dates, directly with the buyer.
What if my auction had no bidders?
Sadly auctions don't always work out first time. But using the copy function makes it quick and easy to post the product on the marketplace again.
I want to offer the same product again. How can I repost it on the marketplace?
It's quick and easy to post the same item again: go to the sales section and select the sale you want to copy. On the details page for each sale, you will find a button marked "copy".
I have a large number of products I would like to offer. Is there a way to import these to the marketplace?
We are happy to help you. If you have a large number of products, we offer a complimentary import service. Contact our marketplace team directly: Contact"
What fees do I have to pay as a seller?
We provide you with our marketplace, ensure a secure environment and support you with targeted marketing so that your products are sold successfully. We charge sales fees for this service – but only when a sale is actually made. Listing your products is free of charge at first, so you don't take any risks.
You can find a detailed breakdown of the fees here: Seller Fees. They are based on the amount of the sale.
How long will my product stay online?
It's your decision. When posting your product on the marketplace, you will be asked how long you want it to be online. Your open and hidden auctions can be online for up to a month. Direct purchases and price suggestions can be online for up to 6 months.
My Account
I have not received an activation e-mail
Please check your spam folder first. Sometimes our e-mail ends up there. If you can't find the e-mail there either, please contact our marketplace team.
Can I change my e-mail address?
Yes, you can change your e-mail address yourself in your customer account. Go to your dashboard (first page in your customer account), where you will find the option to change the e-mail address.
Can I change my password?
Yes, you can do this easily via the "Change password" function in your customer account. Go to the "Account information" section, where you will find the option to change your password.
I’ve forgotten my password, how do I reset it?
Go to the "login" page, i.e. where you normally log in. There you will find the "Forgotten password" function. You can then enter the e-mail address for your account. We will automatically send you an e-mail with a link to reset your password. Still having problems? Then feel free to contact our marketplace team.
I can't log in. What can I do?
We're happy to help you: You can try to create a new password by clicking "Forgot your password". If this doesn't work, please contact our marketplace team. Note: If you just registered on our marketplace, it is possible that you can not log in because your account is still locked. Please wait a little longer - we will check your registration shortly.
Can I deactivate my customer account?
You can deactivate your account at any time. You can find this option in your customer account.
