That's right, I have been banned from buying from a particular seller. Here's what happened.

I won a razor in an auction that ended on a Sunday. The shipping fee listed was $5.
The following Tuesday (a week and two days later), I messaged the seller, asking if the razor had been shipped and via what method. I also asked for tracking information if there was any.
Wednesday (the next day) I received a message saying that the buyer thought it had been shipped the previous Saturday, and the seller was surprised it had not arrived. Note the lack of information I requested. But the razor also arrived that day.

So I left positive feedback. I mentioned that shipping was overcharged (the envelope it arrived in said $1.51) and that shipping was delayed, but that the razor arrived as described.

Subsequently, I received a message from the seller asking why I bid knowing that was the shipping charge, why I said the shipping charge was too high, and why I said the shipping was delayed (the seller seemed to thing that receiving an item within ten days was satisfactory). The seller asked if I thought I was being fair and remarked that he/she was glad I didn't leave a negative feedback, since the stars affect his/her fees.

I responded. I noted the difference in the actual shipping charges and what I was charged. I mentioned that I assumed the razor would be shipped in a manner that spent the $5, such as a box, or with more protection that would cost more money (padded envelope and a little bubble wrap were used). I commented that a I considered shipping an item five business days after an auction ends to be slow shipping. I mentioned that I wanted to make sure my feedback reflected my experience, and I tried my best with the limited number of characters ebay allows.

I received another message from the seller. He/she remarked that expecting to pay actual shipping charges is unreasonable because gas and time are not free where he/she lives. He/she asked if they were free where I live. I was informed that receiving items within ten days was good, and that I could expect to be leaving a lot of negatives if I expected items faster. The seller said that he/she thought my comments were unwarranted and that he/she would have asked me not to bid on his/her items. But he/she thought that is was not a fair person, so he/she banned me from bidding on his/her items. The seller said I should not have bid if I thought $5 for shipping was too high, and concluded by wishing me good luck.


I must say, I was rather taken aback. Regarding the shipping costs, I expected to get what I was paying for, but the seller did not come through on that point. The seller also took a whole week to ship the item, which is unacceptable to me. I've shipped many razors, and I always have them out the day after I receive payment unless there is some serious reason I cannot do so. I notify buyers when I expect to have razors shipped, and again when I actually ship them.
I'm also not sure why the seller thought I was being unfair. It's not as if I left negative feedback without explaining myself. I didn't even leave negative feedback; it was positive! (Though looking back on it, neutral would have probably been more accurate, and after his/her responses I wish I could change it to negative.) I posted about the transaction as I thought it occurred and explained myself in response to the seller's questions. Based on the seller's response, I don't think he/she paid much attention to what I said; his/her response disregarded my attempts to explain my feedback and was unnecessarily sarcastic. On top of that, I've never heard of banning an ebay member from bidding on auctions.


Had this transaction occurred on SRP, or any other forum I have bought/sold items on, I would promptly contact the moderators. Seeing as this is ebay and I'll likely never even want to buy from this seller again, it's really not worth it. Should any of you want to know this seller's account name, I will provide it via PM. I don't want to trash anyone's reputation, but I believe the truth should be known. This seller clearly has low expectations and does not understand the point of feedback.