A Brevard County man who bought an item on Ebay faces $15,000 lawsuit.

Mike Steadman is a small business owner on a tight budget, so he uses Ebay to stretch a buck. "It saves me a lot of money." Imagine Mike's shock when he was sued for 15 thousand dollars by an Ebay seller over the sale of a 44 dollar clock. "I was blindsided. There's no way I could ever see this coming."

Last November, Mike had the winning 44 dollar bid on a used "working" time clock. Mike says that's not what arrived. "When I plugged it in it didn't run, when I opened the box it was in 3 pieces that didn't even fit."

He sent it back but claims the seller at first refused any refund. He said the experience was so bad, he checked negative on Ebay's feedback all buyers are asked for and he wrote, "bad seller---like a used car salesman."

In the lawsuit, the seller claims that single comment lowered his perfect 100 percent positive feedback to just 98 point 6 percent.

Seller Elliot Miller claims that seriously harmed his Ebay reputation, so he wants 15 thousand in damages. He did not return our calls. According to Dade County records Miller is an attorney who lives in a 3 million dollar Miami home on the intercoastal waterway.

Mike Steadman complained to Ebay. "It seems like I'm getting the run-around. They won't communicate with me."

Consumer experts think, if successful, the lawsuit could leave buyers worried about giving their opinions. "It will impact consumers in long run because they'll be afraid to make comments about the transaction," said Better Business Bureau president Judy Pepper.

Mike Steadman says he'll fight this in court and he'll shut down his Ebay account. "I don't think I'd ever buy again. It's not worth the risk, and people need to know that."

Ebay is reviewing the lawsuit. Other cases we found were dismissed after Ebay buyers spent a lot of money on attorneys.