After being dismissed by an eBay seller, buyer discovers the seller is listing restricted medical devices, reports $18,000 worth of violations, leading to the seller's removal: 'eBay has an entire policy banning these'

Author image for Emma Saven
Emma Saven
Aug 15, 2025 6:00 PM EDT

Whilst attempting the harmless purchase of a few calculators online, a buyer on eBay was met with the utmost disrespect by the seller. So, he decided to do a little digging on the entitled calculator-seller…To his surprise, the revenge was practically self-developing at this point. He discovered that he was selling high-ticket medical devices that required FDA approval…and to put it simply: FDA approval he did not have! 

So what better way to get back at this condescending piece of sarcasm than to expose him on his own platform? So after reporting his illegal trading to the site advisors, and after an excessive use of maths (that calculator sure would have helped), he discovered that by blocking the sales, he would ensure the man made a loss of $18,140…ouch, that's got to hurt.

That's certainly the last time we ever disrespect someone on eBay! 

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  • Now we're stuck in this sort of no-mans-land…Of course, there are major ethical issues that come with selling anything illegal online. However, the extent to which this buyer was caught could’ve landed him in a bit of controversy…Perhaps he was caught in a bad second of a bad minute, in a minute of a bad hour, during a bad, bad day…or perhaps you are what you sell, a man just as calculated and unapproved as his products. 


     

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    Cheezburger Image 10541047552
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    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

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    Don’t be a r*de eBay seller

    So I sell on eBay and sometimes buy in bulk to flip. Recently, I spotted a listing for a bunch of TI-Nspire calculators marked as school property. They were listed
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    for parts only with the condition "turns on but needs additional equipment.” I've sold a lot of calculators, and usually if they turn on, they're fine, so I sent the
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    seller a polite message asking why extra equipment was needed. His response? "Just for you to ask to show your intelligence! LOL!!! Bored?"
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    Completely unprovoked. I told him I wasn't being r_de, just curious, and he doubled down:
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    "If you were smart enough to read the description, you wouldn't ask anything. I'm not entitled to 'edicate' you."
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    Then said he's just going to block me so he doesn't waste his time. Normally, I'd roll my eyes and move on but I didn't for this
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    seller. I looked at his negative reviews and apparently he does this to EVERYONE and is very rac t about it. There's even a negative feedback complaining
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    he cancelled an order before shipping and he replied it was because he was a "Honduras scammer" or something like that and makes fun of people who speak "spanglish".
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    So I dig... and I find that his listing descriptions has his phone number. I google that phone number and find that he runs
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    Cheezburger Image 10541044480
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    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

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    another eBay store under a company name that claims to do electronics recycling and refurbishing.
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    Selling different inventory of high-ticket medical devices, like electrotherapy units, ultrasound heads, laser therapy applicators. The kind that require FDA 510(k)
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    clearance and can't be legally sold to the general public without proper authorization. eBay has an entire policy banning these unless you're an approved medical seller.
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    So I spent some time compiling a list of his priciest, clearest violations. I cross-checked them with FDA's device classification database and matched them to
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    eBay's "Medical devices and accessories" restricted list. Then I reported them all through eBay's "Item not allowed" category, attaching the exact model names and classification codes.
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    Fast-forward to this morning: eBay emails me to say six of his most expensive listings are gone. Including multiple $2,000+ medical therapy devices, electrotherapy systems, and vital
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    accessory packs. They even removed some "for parts only" listings, which eBay still bans if they're restricted devices. In fact, the total amount for the listings removed came out to be $13,590.
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    I'm not saying I sank his store... but I probably ruined his week. Moral of the story: If you're going to be smug and block people for
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    asking questions, make sure your business model can survive someone actually reading the rules. EDIT: I actually missed a listing. The total is $18,140
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    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

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    ContemplatingFolly This isn't just petty revenge...it's social justice. Amazing work.
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    Naive_Figure 188 Note to self, do not be r de to BestHD12345
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    Old Tiger_7519 I am in awe! You are a good caution to be kind, you just never know what hornets nest you could be poking. Well done!
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    TheBadGuyBelow I would say to keep ontop of him. He makes all of us sellers look bad. Odds are good he will relist the same items, and when he does, he will get additional strikes if they are taken down again.
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    Majestic-Sea4459 I've heard it said more than once that if you're doing something that's a little shady, don't do c p that brings a spotlight onto yourself. Some people just don't learn
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sales-decrease online overexposed FAIL reporter online shopping bad attitude calculate selling-online medical sales blocked report sarcasm ebay selling
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