Hearing aid warranties explained – Healthy Hearing

Hearing aids are small, fragile and expensive. That’s a tough combo: If things go wrong, it can be a pricey proposition. 

Hearing aids are expensive. Warranty
options can provide peace of mind.

Fortunately, when you purchase your hearing aids, they come with a warranty. Here’s what you need to know—and why you may want to opt for an extended warranty, as well as additional loss and damage insurance.  

Hearing aids have a warranty by default

As soon as you purchase your hearing aid, the device is covered. 

The manufacturer provides at least one year of comprehensive loss, damage, and repair coverage. For hearing aids with more complex technology, the warranty is longer, often lasting up to three years, says audiologist Michelle Matyko.

While the coverage is from the hearing aid manufacturer, it’s your clinician that fulfills the contract, Matyko says. If you have issues with hearing aids while you’re under warranty, reach out to your audiologist or hearing aid provider first, she says. 

Wax and moisture from the ear canals are the most common reasons hearing aids need repairs, Matyko says. “For behind-the-ear hearing aids, the audiologist or hearing aid provider can usually replace things like a tube or wire in the office, through supplies they have on hand,” she says. 

With in-the-ear hearing aids or custom hearing aids, where the wax causes the hearing aid to become distorted or work intermittently, the process is more time-consuming, she says. “In this case the hearing aid would need to be sent back to the manufacturer for repair which usually has a turn-around time of approximately a week,” Matyko explains. 

Whether repairs occur in the office or require the devices to be sent out, the costs are covered. “The warranty usually includes office visits at no charge during the warranty time,” Matyko says, although she notes this can vary from one hearing aid provider to another. 

Loss and damage policies are covered during the initial warranty

It’s quite common to lose a hearing aid (or two).

Usually, it’s just a matter of misplacing them, says Mike Eckert, senior vice president of business development at ESCO, which provides extended warranties and loss and damage coverage for hearing aids. Since the pandemic, the other common reason for hearing aids being lost is face masks, since the ear loops can easily hook on the devices, tugging them out a person’s ear, Eckert says. This now accounts for 17 percent of hearing aid losses, he says. 

If you lose your hearing aid—or they are damaged beyond repair—you can take advantage of the one-time replacement coverage. (That’s per ear—if you lost your right …….

Source: https://www.healthyhearing.com/report/53293-Warranty-hearing-aids-extended-why-good-idea-explainer