Yes this is a very common complaint. The practice is called 'bait and switch' and in eBay terms 'search & browser manipulation' - there is a report linnk for that on every listing page.
The way to avoid these dishonest sellers is to be realistic about the price you should be paying. For example if you know that the retail price in the supermarket is £10 then you won't be getting the same thing on eBay for 99p. Set your search parameters to start at a lower price of, say, £6 and an upper price of whatever suits your budget. When you find a seller manipulating the search results then add their id to your 'exclude' list on the 'more refunements > seller' filter.
