Ask these before the item starts, not while the clock is running.
1. "What is the worst thing about it?"
The most efficient question available. A straight answer describes the item; a dodge describes the seller.
Nothing else you can type in ten seconds tells you as much, and it works on every category.
2. "Can you turn it over and tilt it to the light?"
Two requests in one. The back holds the repairs and the marks; the angle reveals surface wear that is invisible head-on.
Asking for movement beats asking for description — the seller is holding the thing. How to judge an item through a camera
3. "What are the measurements?"
A measured length, width or insole is a fact. A size label is an opinion that varies by maker, and sizing is behind a large share of all returns.
For anything worn or anything that has to fit a space, this is the question that prevents the problem.
4. "What came with it, and how has it been stored?"
Paperwork, boxes, certificates — the parts that carry value and the parts that are missing. And storage, which for anything with glue, foam, paper or textile in it matters more than age. What is provenance?
5. "What does delivery cost to my PIN code?"
The one people forget until after they have won. A cheap win and an expensive parcel is not cheap, and delivery is shown before you pay — but it is better known before you bid. How delivery is charged
The question to ask yourself, which outranks all five
What is my ceiling?
Decide it before the item comes up. The last ten seconds are not when judgement is at its best, and the clock keeps being given back as long as people keep bidding — so there is no natural stopping point except the one you set. The last ten seconds
A bid is a promise to buy at that price. Is a bid legally binding?
When not to bid at all
No straight answer to question 1.
Catalogue photographs on a second-hand item. The clearest red flag there is. Can I use the manufacturer's photo?
Anyone suggesting you pay outside Metzee. Refuse and report it.
You cannot tell what it is. There will be another one, and the discipline of letting it go is what makes the one you win a good buy.
More: how to ask a seller about an item, live, how do I know the price is fair, should I bid with a seller who has no sales yet.