A Practical Telephone Bidding Procedure for Property Auction Teams
How Should Real Estate Agencies Manage Telephone Bidders?
A practical system for registering, assigning, briefing and supporting telephone bidders without losing control of instructions, accepted bids or auction records.
Key Takeaways
- Document authority first. Telephone participation through another person is a representative-bidding arrangement.
- One buyer needs one clear communication channel. Confirm who calls, which number to use and how instructions are acknowledged.
- Plan representative capacity. Auctions Live allows one registered phone bidder per eligible representative per auction.
- Track accepted bids accurately. Do not confuse spoken intent with a bid accepted by the auctioneer.
- Have a failure response. Dropped calls cannot be treated as automatic permission to bid without instructions.
What Is the Operating Model for Telephone Bidding?
In a representative telephone arrangement, the buyer makes the commercial decision but cannot or prefers not to bid physically. A nominated representative communicates with the buyer and places bids on the buyer's behalf using the authorised process.
The representative must understand the buyer's instructions and the auctioneer's accepted bidding position. This is different from a buyer submitting a bid directly through an online platform. The two remote methods can coexist where supported, but their controls are different.
Instructs the representative
The buyer should be available during the live event, understand the conditions and confirm the practical communication arrangement.
Carries out authorised instructions
The representative communicates the accepted bidding position, receives instructions and bids only as authorised.
Controls accepted bids
The auctioneer conducts the auction and determines which bids are accepted under the applicable conditions.
Keeps accurate records
Staff confirm the right legal buyer, authority, representative assignment and bidder-number attribution.
What Must Be Confirmed Before Assigning a Representative?
The team should distinguish a buyer who wants phone bidding from a bidder whose registration is approved and who has a confirmed representative. Authority, identity and the correct purchaser details remain separate review points.
In Auctions Live, the Phone Bidding via an Agency Representative option is an account setting and must also be enabled on an eligible Onsite or Multi-Lot listing. An eligible Office Admin, Office User or Selling Agent may be assigned if their profile has the required contact details. Each representative can be allocated to one registered phone bidder per auction.
- Confirm the intended legal purchaser, and any company, trust or other entity arrangements.
- Obtain applicable written authority and verify the representative's scope of action.
- Confirm the representative is available for the auction and understands the bidder's communication needs.
- Record a reliable number, an alternative contact method if appropriate, and who will initiate the call.
- Clarify how bidding limits, repeated instructions and accepted bids will be communicated.
What Is the Best Step-by-Step Phone Bidding Workflow?
Explain the option
Tell the buyer how representative phone bidding works, how instructions are communicated and what happens if a call fails.
Checkpoint: The buyer chooses the method knowingly.Complete registration and authority
Review identity, legal purchaser details and signed authority where required. Do not treat unverified forms as approval.
Checkpoint: The legal and operational requirements are addressed.Enable and assign the representative
Check account and listing settings, eligible staff profile, one-bidder assignment rule and the approved registration sequence.
Checkpoint: A named representative is assigned before approval.Brief the representative
Share the correct property, auction conditions, buyer contact information and any permitted instructions. Use an approved run sheet if helpful.
Checkpoint: The representative knows the property and who they represent.Test the call
Confirm which person calls and when, the phone number, the auction start time and a repeat-back convention for amounts.
Checkpoint: A functional communication plan is agreed.Conduct and record bidding
Keep the buyer informed of the live position, act only on authorised instructions and attribute accepted bids to the correct registered bidder.
Checkpoint: Instructions and accepted bids are not confused.Complete the handover
Confirm the outcome, required signing and deposit procedures, and any communication incident. Securely retain records according to policy.
Checkpoint: A clear post-auction account is available.What Should Happen if the Telephone Connection Fails?
| Issue | Immediate consideration | Appropriate team response |
|---|---|---|
| Call drops before bidding | The buyer may not be hearing the live auction. | Attempt agreed reconnection and alert the auctioneer when participation is materially affected. |
| Bid instruction is unclear | The representative cannot safely infer a price. | Repeat back the instruction and obtain confirmation before acting. |
| Buyer and representative hear different numbers | A livestream or telephone path may lag. | Clarify the accepted bidding position through the auctioneer. |
| Representative becomes unavailable | An assigned bidder may lose their nominated channel. | Follow the supported change-of-representative process and complete any required approval. |
| Venue internet fails | Mobile Console access may be affected even when the telephone call works. | Follow tested contingency procedures; do not assume the call itself provides an authorised offline bidding mechanism. |
Critical boundary: A representative should never improvise a bid because the buyer's call has dropped, or assume an unacknowledged instruction was accepted. The auctioneer determines how proceedings respond under the conditions and law.
What Do Australia and New Zealand Require for Telephone Authority?
NSW: A person bidding for another individual or company generally needs the applicable letter of authority or qualifying agency authority. NSW specifically addresses people bidding on someone's telephone instructions. Company authority has additional requirements, including the company letterhead and relevant ABN information.
Queensland: The bidder registration rule addresses a person making bids on telephone instructions and requires relevant names and addresses to be provided. The proper registered bidder identifier still matters.
New Zealand: The Real Estate Authority says a licensee who bids by telephone on a buyer's behalf should receive written permission, generally through a telephone bidding authority, and provide it to the auctioneer. It also recommends confirming who calls whom, when, and discussing the buyer's maximum instructions.
Official guidance: NSW authority to bid | Queensland registration rules | NZ telephone bidding guidance
How Can the Agency Review Representative Performance?
After the auction, compare the assigned representatives with the bidder registrations and accepted bid record. Check whether telephone access was established on time, whether the team received any unclear instructions and whether any representative changed during proceedings.
Do not assume the telephone conversations were recorded by the auction platform. Call recording, where used separately, needs its own lawful consent, privacy and retention arrangements. A clean bid history is useful, but it is not proof that every spoken instruction was heard or acted upon.
Example: If two buyers want to bid by telephone at one Onsite auction using Auctions Live's representative feature, plan for two eligible, separately assigned representatives. One representative cannot be assigned to both for that auction.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can an agency representative bid without written authority?
The required authority depends on the jurisdiction and circumstances. NSW has specific letter-of-authority rules; NZ REA recommends written permission for a licensee bidding on behalf of the buyer.
Can one Auctions Live representative handle two phone bidders at the same auction?
No. The representative feature permits only one registered phone bidder per eligible representative per auction.
Can a phone bidder be approved before a representative is assigned?
Under the Auctions Live representative workflow, no. Staff may complete other vetting and mark it pending, but the representative must be selected before final approval.
Is a phone call automatically a backup for failed online bidding?
No. The representative must be authorised and the alternative process properly established; any digital console used by the representative may also require internet.
How are accepted phone bids recorded?
The auction team should record accepted bids against the correct approved bidder, not the representative as personal purchaser, using the supported bidding process.
How Does Auctions Live Support Phone Bidding Through an Agency Representative?
The product workflow is designed to distinguish registration, representative assignment and live bidding.
Auction Infrastructure That Supports the Process
Auctions Live supports Phone Bidding via an Agency Representative for configured Onsite and Multi-Lot auctions. Eligible staff are assigned in the PC Console, and the representative can access the buyer through the Mobile Console to place bids on their behalf. The buyer cannot be approved under this workflow until the representative is assigned.
The platform also offers a run sheet and a supported process for changing an assigned representative. The agency must still obtain the appropriate authority, manage the telephone conversation and ensure correct bid attribution. Features remain dependent on account and listing settings.
Explore Auctions LiveRelated Auctions Live Knowledge Hub Guides
These related resources provide more detailed platform instructions without repeating those procedures in this article.
Important information: This article provides general operational information for real estate professionals, not legal or regulatory advice. Auction registration, identification, authority, privacy, record keeping and professional requirements vary by jurisdiction and sale circumstances. Australian AML/CTF customer due diligence for designated real estate services is separate from statutory auction registration. Agencies should check current guidance, obtain professional advice where needed and apply their own documented procedures. Product features depend on the relevant listing configuration and account settings. No technology guarantees a sale, higher price, clearance rate, more bidders or uninterrupted operation. Information reviewed October 2026.
Posted 31st October, 2026