What's Included When You Buy Hearing Aids?

Today I want to help you understand what’s included with a hearing aid purchase. Some people ask, "How in the world can a little device that sits behind your ear cost upwards of several thousand dollars?" The bottom line is that the device alone doesn’t cost that much.  It’s usually about half of the total bill.The other half is what I call the fit and care package, which includes such things as:

• The initial hearing test.  We don’t charge for this up front so that we can get to know you and your needs first.
• The hearing aid test drive.  Again, you aren’t charged for this initially so that you can experience the benefits of hearing aids before you make a decision about purchasing.
• Helping you select appropriate hearing aids for your ears and lifestyle.
• Quality control checks on your new hearing aids to make sure they are working up to spec.
• Custom fitting and fine tuning of your new hearing aids at the time of purchase so that you hear your best.
• The followup care to help you adapt to hearing all the new sounds in your world.
• The followup care to help you maintain your devices for as long as you have them.  Yes, they do require maintenance!
• The retesting and re-tuning of your hearing aids while you own them.  This is key to your ongoing success as hearing needs change over time!

At the risk of sounding like a late night infomercial, I should also say, “But wait, there’s more!”.

• 3 year repair warranty on most hearing aids.
• 2-3 year loss and damage insurance policy in case you lose or destroy your new hearing aids.
• Most times we include FREE batteries during the warranty period.
• Depending on the technology level of the hearing aids (meaning how much they cost and how many features they have)  there may be various accessories included (bluetooth phone and TV connectors, remote controls, rechargeable options, remote microphones, etc.)

So, as a savvy shopper you are now asking, “What’s not included”?Good question. Glad you asked!Here are some things that might cost you extra.

• Repairs outside of the repair warranty.  Sometimes a small fee for a part replaced in office or a few hundred dollars if the device needs to be sent to the manufacturer for repair.
• Accessories that may not have been included with the original purchase if so desired.
• Batteries outside of the warranty period.
• A deductible of several hundred dollars should you need to claim on the loss and damage policy.
• The latest and greatest next set of hearing aids.  

So, as you can see, there's lots of stuff included with hearing aids and there's some that is not. Our goal is to help you understand all the options as they apply to your unique situation!