The Corner Penthouse

This is another in a series of articles about eBay, who covers up the deceitful business practices of its sellers, while turning its feedback system into an utter joke. I will do my best to inform the public about eBay's scummy practices and the bad sellers that operate on the platform, so other buyers can avoid them. The bad seller I will be writing about today is Timothy Habif of Minneapolis, Minneapolis, operating under the eBay ID: grimreaper430

On January 16, 2025, I purchased an international-exclusive McDonald's Happy Meal toy from the 2024 Yu-Gi-Oh x Hello Kitty & Friends promotion. The little plush toy cost me $39.60 total, which breaks down to $32.00 for the item + $4.46 for Ground Advantage shipping + $3.14 sales tax).


As there are two parts to this tale, I'll start with the United States Postal Service (USPS) side of things. The package went from Minnesota to New York in just a few days, arriving at the local Valley Stream post office on Friday January 24th at 4:04am, and was put out for delivery at 6:10am. At first, the package was scheduled to be delivered before 1:00pm. When it wasn't, the delivery window was changed to "before 5:30pm". Then, at 2:48pm, instead of delivering the small package, the tracking status was changed to, "Your item was returned to the sender on January 24, 2025 at 2:48pm in Valley Stream, NY 11580 because it could not be delivered as addressed.".

Over the past 12 years, I've lost count of how many times I've complained about the Valley Stream, New York post office, mostly because the carriers would input LIES into the tracking system rather than delivering the packages on time, or at all, to my home. Just a few days earlier was one such occurrence. On Tuesday January 21st, there was a package that was scheduled to be delivered up to 6:20pm. After that time passed, by 6:30pm, the carrier put in a LIE into the system saying that the package couldn't be delivered because the "business was closed", when I live at a RESIDENTIAL address! A half hour later, the carrier came back and delivered the package before I could even complain about it.

So, when I saw that this package was marked "Returned to Sender" (RTS), I figured that it was just another instance of the Valley Stream post office staff playing games. After all, if this package was undeliverable, why was it sitting on a mail truck and taken on the delivery route for 8 HOURS?!? It would have been marked "RTS" after it arrived at the facility. Not only did I want answers, but I also wanted to get this package to IMMEDIATELY change course and stay here in Valley Stream, so it could be delivered to me.

First, I hopped over to the USPS.com E-Mail Us page, as I wanted to lodge a complaint that would be in the USPS system. It made sense to me to use the Package Inquiry form, but it did not make sense to USPS. I was not allowed to send a message about the package as "this tracking number is not yet eligible for a service request. It will become eligible if there is no change in tracking status by January 28, 2025." What sense would it have made to wait four days when I want to get this package taken care of now?!?


To get around this, I used the Postal Facility Inquiry form. This was on January 24th at 3:25pm. I also made a quick phone call to the Valley Stream post office (516-825-8739) at 3:30pm. I spoke to Samantha, who told me that she would check with the carrier and call me back. I told her that I had to step out for the evening, so she could leave a message on my answering machine. When I returned later that night, I saw from the Caller ID that she called back at 5:06pm, but she did not leave a message! The package was not delivered either.

The next day, January 25th at 10:55am, I walked into the Valley Stream post office and met with Kevin Paul. (I think that was his name, as it was the name I glimpsed on his laptop's log-in screen.) He looked up the package and showed me a photograph of it in the USPS system (which I photographed on my phone - see below). That's when I learned that the Valley Stream post office was REFUSING to deliver the package simply because Timothy put Ground Advantage postage on Priority Mail packaging. I tried to ask him why USPS didn't send it back at the origin post office in Minnesota, but he went on and on about the stupid Priority Mail box, never giving me a chance to speak.


If USPS was so concerned about the postage/box mismatch, it wouldn't have spent the money on fuel and manpower to transport the package from Minnesota to New York, and then have it out for delivery for 8 hours. It seems like it's only the staff of the Valley Stream post office that really cares about this non-issue.

If you ever wanted to know why USPS is losing money, the way they mishandled this package and sent it on THREE additional loops (in total) around the postal system here on Long Island, will make it very clear that USPS does not know how to properly utilize its resources. From Friday January 24th to Sunday January 26th, USPS sent the package around the Long Island Loop for the first additional time:

* January 24, 2025, 4:04 am - Arrived at Post Office - Valley Stream, NY 11580
* January 24, 2025, 6:10 am - Out for Delivery - Valley Stream, NY 11580
* January 24, 2025, 2:48 pm - Return to Sender - Valley Stream, NY 11580
* January 24, 2025, 8:24 pm - Arrived at USPS Regional Destination Facility - Metro NY Distribution Center
* January 25, 2025, 5:32 am - Departed USPS Regional Facility - Metro NY Distribution Center
* January 25, 2025, 6:15 am - Arrived at USPS Regional Facility - Mid NY Distribution Center
* January 26, 2025, 12:14 am - Departed USPS Regional Facility - Mid NY Distribution Center
* January 26, 2025, 1:01 am - Arrived at USPS Regional Facility - Garden City NY Distribution Center
* January 26, 2025, 6:52 am - Departed USPS Regional Facility - Garden City NY Distribution Center
* January 26, 2025, 7:20 am - Arrived at USPS Facility - Valley Stream, NY 11580
* January 26, 2025, 11:17 am - Departed USPS Facility - Valley Stream, NY 11580

Yes, this package that was supposed to go back to Minnesota came back to Valley Stream two days later! At this point, I could tell what was going to happen, so I fired off another e-mail to USPS in an effort to get it to stop. I wanted the item that I paid $40 for on eBay, including a Ground Advantage shipping fee and sales tax.

On Monday January 27th I received phone calls from two different postal service reps in response to the several e-mails I had sent over the past three days. Careen called at 11:40am from 631-391-6527, and Bindu called at 1:55am from 631-755-2855. (Both area codes are for Suffolk County, Long Island, New York.) Although I originally recorded both conversions, there is no need to even keep the recordings as neither rep told me anything that I didn't already know. Careen thought I was inquiring about a different package that was delivered to me that morning. I had to explain to her what package the issue was with, and what exactly the issue was. She told me that if USPS had delivered the package to me, I would have to pay a Priority Mail rate for it. I told her that I would not do that, as I already paid a shipping fee to the eBay seller. Also, USPS didn't handle this package like it was Priority Mail, so why should I pay a Priority Mail rate when they didn't treat the package as such?!? It also needs to be said that neither rep could give me an answer as for why USPS transported the package halfway across the United States if it cared so much about it being in a Priority Mail box.

Over the next several days, the package would do the Long Island Loop several more times. The tracking history on the package is a mile-long due to USPS inefficiency and ineptitude. In total, it came to Valley Stream FOUR times:

* January 24, 2025, 4:04 am - Arrived at Post Office - Valley Stream, NY 11580
* January 26, 2025, 7:20 am - Arrived at USPS Facility - Valley Stream, NY 11580
* January 28, 2025, 7:34 am - Arrived at Post Office - Valley Stream, NY 11580
* January 30, 2025, 2:43 am - Arrived at USPS Facility - Valley Stream, NY 11580


During this time, I got several e-mails from USPS and eBay telling me that the package was "out for delivery". Below is a collage of those e-mails, which when taken together like this, looks like a cruel joke.


By Thursday January 30th, I think the staff at the Valley Stream post office got sick and tired of the package continually coming back and finally delivered it to me, as they should have done a week before. I was not asked to pay any additional postage on it. It's interesting to note that somewhere around the Long Island Loop the "RTS" sticker was removed.


Now, let's look at the eBay side of this matter and see why Timothy Habif is a bad seller. Obviously, the first piece of evidence is the fact that he used Priority Mail packaging for a Ground Advantage package. Not only does it say "PRIORITY MAIL" in big print on the box, but it even says "PRIORITY MAIL SMALL FLAT RATE POSTAGE REQUIRED". Had Timothy not tried to steal from the postal service with the unauthorized use of this box, I wouldn't have had to endure the stress and aggravation that I went through over the past week.

Another reason why Timothy is a bad seller is that he RARELY replies to messages. Of the SIX messages I sent to him over the past week, he only replied to TWO of them.

* MESSAGE TO TIMOTHY #1 (Fri. 1/24) - After the package was returned to sender, I messaged Timothy to let him know.

* TIMOTHY'S REPLY - None.

* MESSAGE TO TIMOTHY #2 (Sat. 1/25) - Having seen a photo of the "RTS"-marked package, I send it to Timothy. At this point, I thought that USPS would send the package directly back to him, so I was agreeable on waiting for him to get it in order to send it back to me with the proper postage or in the proper packaging.

* TIMOTHY'S REPLY (Sat. 1/25) - "Hey there! I am so sorry about this. When I went to the post office they told me that package would be fine (all they had) so they approved it shipping. So dumb. I'll get it shipped back ASAP when I receive it. I'm so sorry about this. I had also hoped after seeing your first message they would have kept it in house long enough to hand it off to you."


There are a few things that can be learned here.

1. Timothy flat-out admits that he saw my first message, but chose to IGNORE it; hoping that the problem would go away all by itself. That is a bad seller.

2. Timothy listed an item for sale without having a box to ship it in.

3. If he had to ask them at his post office if it was okay to use the Priority Mail box, then he clearly knew that he SHOULDN'T be using it. So, he is purposely at fault for causing this problem.

If Timothy is to be believed, his local post office in Minnesota actually approved the use of Ground Advantage postage on a Priority Mail box. That's insane, but not totally unbelievable considering that USPS transported it from Minnesota to New York, and then had it out for delivery for eight hours, without anyone thinking twice about it. Of course, Timothy knew better than to use the Priority Mail box, which says "PRIORITY MAIL SMALL FLAT RATE POSTAGE REQUIRED" on it.

* MESSAGE TO TIMOTHY #3 (Sun. 1/26) - At this point, I noticed that the package had looped back around to Valley Stream. I was sure that USPS would loop it around, possible for weeks, instead of sending it back to Minnesota. So, I opened an eBay Item Not Received report. As I wrote in the report: "While USPS plays games with the package, I don't have the item that I paid for. Since the seller has 3 more (according to the listing), I would like for the seller to send another one out to me, in the PROPER box. When USPS finally sends the original package back to the seller, assuming it doesn't float around the USPS system for a few more weeks, he can relist it. I shouldn't have to wait and deal with these games due to the seller using the wrong box/postage combination."

* TIMOTHY'S REPLY - None.

* MESSAGE TO TIMOTHY #4 (Mon. 1/27) - By now I was quite annoyed at Timothy for ignoring me; refusing to take responsibility for the problem he caused. I knew that he didn't send out a replacement, but I asked, anyway, if he did. As I told him, "If you have not sent out another one yet, then you need to mail it out either today or tomorrow. If you want to make things right, send it out Priority Mail - which will let you use that Priority Mail packing box - so that I get it by the end of this week, before eBay needs to get involved in the matter. I spoke to several USPS reps on the phone today who made it quite clear that they will NOT deliver the first package to me because you used the wrong box/postage combination. So, a new one needs to be sent out IMMEDIATELY and it needs to go out with the proper box and postage."

* TIMOTHY'S REPLY (Mon. 1/27) - "Hey! Thanks for reaching out again and escalating the matter. Unfortunately I will not be able to send out another package until the original is returned to me. Once returned, I will review the contents, repackage/send and update you with the new tracking number. I'll keep you updated as we proceed, as of now it looks to be in transit still in NY."


* MESSAGE TO TIMOTHY #5 (Mon. 1/27) - That was unacceptable, and I let Timothy know with a very sternly-worded message demanding that he make things right, immediately!

* TIMOTHY'S REPLY - None.

* MESSAGE TO TIMOTHY #6 (Tue. 1/28) - My final message to Timothy was: "FYI: Instead of sending the package back to Minnesota, USPS has been sending it on an endless loop around the postal system here on Long Island for several days now. It could be WEEKS before USPS actually gets the package back to Minnesota. That's a burden that YOU should bear, not me. As I said, you need to send me a replacement NOW, and ensure that I get it before the end of the week. That's good customer service. Otherwise, I *WILL* escalate this matter with eBay."

* TIMOTHY'S REPLY - None.

At this point, I was fully ready to escalate the matter to eBay and get my money back once I was allowed to do so on January 31st. Surprisingly, the package was finally delivered to me on January 30th. I wasn't very happy when I opened it up and found that this "New" item was opened, and the box had some wear on it. At this point, I am keeping it, as I want nothing more to do with Timothy Habif.


As has been illustrated, both Timothy Habif and USPS are at fault for this ordeal. This package should have just been put into my mailbox on Friday January 24th, and that would have been the end of it.

[UPDATE - 1/31/2025]
Right after writing this article, I left well-deserved negative feedback for Timothy, as I told him I would do. Due to the 500 character limit, I had to make it concise and to the point, pointing people to this article to get all of the details.


As expected, Timothy did not like that I left him negative feedback. He posted a reply to my feedback that is FILLED WITH LIES!


I do not, for one minute, believe that Timothy "worked and communicated with USPS to get the item delivered". The package wouldn't have gone around in a loop THREE times if he did. Not to mention the fact that Timothy has no power with USPS, so why would they "listen" to him.

He is making a 100% FALSE claim that I "berat[ed] the staff, after also rejecting the shipment from being delivered". That is a fucking lie! I never once berated USPS staff, and I certainly did not reject the shipment. As this article proves, it was USPS who marked the package "RETURN TO SENDER" because Timothy made UNAUTHORIZED USE OF PRIORITY MAIL PACKAGING FOR A GROUND ADVANTAGE PACKAGE. I actually went through a lot of stress and aggravation due to this matter. As the buyer, I should NEVER have been put in a position to even need to contact USPS. I wouldn't have had to if Timothy had used the proper packaging.

Timothy sent a request asking that I revised the feedback, and that request was filled with more LIES!


Let's unpack all of the lies, starting with the reason for the revision request: "The seller was able to resolve a problem you had with this transaction." Timothy didn't do jack shit to resolve this problem. The only reason I got the package - a week later, mind you - was because the staff at the Valley Stream post office got tired of the packaging continually coming back to them. After originally arriving in Valley Stream on January 24th, the package went through THREE additional loops around the postal system.

Timothy then says that "in his messages he mentioned not leaving negative feedback or posting on his blog about the incident". That's 100% false. On January 27th, after Timothy refused to send out a replacement right away, in my sternly-worded reply, I specifically told him that if he did not make things right, I would escalate the matter to eBay (which I didn't need to do), leave negative feedback, and write this article about him as part of my series about bad eBay sellers.

He then adds to the lies by saying that I "was aggressive, threatening and cyber bullying". Given that Timothy ignored most of my messages since the very first one, refused to immediately make things right for the problem that he caused, and caused me undue stress and aggravation, I had just cause to be a bit aggressive. I was never threatening. I sometimes write in a stern manner, and maybe Timothy mistook that for threatening. As for "cyber bullying", does Timothy even know what cyber bullying even is? If he thinks that this article is "cyber bullying", he clearly does not know what it is. As a member of the press, specializing in consumer affairs, I am within in my legal rights to write articles about all of the bad eBay sellers that I had the displeasure of dealing with.

He keeps saying that I "harassed USPS staff". Where the fuck is he getting this from?!? I never did such a thing. I have called out the fact that the USPS staff at the Valley Stream post office has, many times over the past 12 years, failed to do their jobs properly. That's not harassment.

Finally, he says that "Even though the issue was resolved, he still opted to go down this route." Timothy NEVER resolved the issue. As I said, the only reason I got the package - a week later, mind you - was because the staff at the Valley Stream post office got tired of the packaging continually coming back to them. Timothy did nothing to solve the problem HE created by misusing the Priority Mail packaging. Leaving him negative feedback was 100% deserved.

Of course, I denied the revision request. Here is a screenshot of what I wrote:


As far as I'm concerned, this matter is over with. I hope to never have to deal with Timothy Habif ever again. I would advise you not to, either.

[UPDATE - 2/5/2025]
I just checked Timothy's feedback page to see if he pulled any shenanigans after I denied his request to revise it, and he sure did! He had my negative feedback COMPLETELY REMOVED! It looks like it was never there in the first place. His feedback page now shows him as having a bogus "100% positive" feedback rating - though all of the comments that are there are for him as a buyer, not a seller.


As was done in February 2024 and January 2025, eBay covered up his wrongdoings, specifically his crime of stealing U.S. government property. He's able to get away with a squeaky clean record and look like he did nothing wrong. This is more proof that the eBay feedback system is an absolute joke.  Doesn't the braintrust at eBay realize that by covering up his crime, eBay is complicit in stealing from the U.S. government?