Time To Read: 6 minutes
Hearing Aids are small and expensive, so they ought to be insured. We look at some of your options:
- An ounce of prevention
- Manufacturer insurance
- Contents insurance
- Travel insurance
- Pension/Veteran Card Holders
- Pet care
My rabbit ate my hearing aid…
Well, I was eating cashews in bed while watching something on TV. I took my hearing aid out and the next thing you know…
Don’t worry, at Value Hearing, we’ve heard them all. We can quickly get you refitted with new hearing aids to make sure you’re hearing as well as you possibly can.
But that still doesn’t remove the costly sting of having to replace an expensive set of devices, so we hope you’re reading this before something happens to your hearing aids.
Keep your hearing aid case with you. If you have to take your hearing aids out for any reason, make sure they go straight into their case for safekeeping.
Hearing aids placed into handbags can easily find themselves lost. The same thing can happen when they’re dropped in pockets. We’ve been told by clients about how their hearing aid accidentally found its way into a load of washing!
While we recommend regularly cleaning your hearing aids - the washing machine is definitely not what we mean!
Establishing the habit of keeping hearing aids in their case, when they’re not in your ears, also prevents the heart-pounding panic when you can’t find them when you do need them.
But mishaps will happen, so we recommend insurance for peace of mind.
In addition to the performance warranty of three years on hearing devices, many manufacturers also include a one year loss and damage warranty as well.
Be sure you read the terms and conditions because, like all insurance, there are limitations and exclusions.
There will also be an excess payable on a replacement hearing aid, but it will be substantially less than the cost buying a replacement at full cost.
Check with your insurance company as hearing aid replacements, in the case of loss or theft, may be included in your home contents insurance. But don’t assume that it is!
Even when hearing aids are included, your insurer may have specific qualifications on when they will make a pay out. Other insurers may require you to specifically list hearing aids as a separate item on your insurance policy.
What you may not know is insurers may demand that you go to their provider to have the aids replaced and fitted. When you add hearing aids to your household insurance, also make sure they are covered for travel or loss away from home
If you value freedom of choice, you can ask your current hearing care professional to provide a quote to give to the insurance company for consideration. If the insurance company insists that you see their provider, you are not at all obliged to stay with that provider following the fitment and set up.
When travelling, bring a backup set of working hearing aids with you and double check your insurance covers hearing aid replacement.
If you received your hearing aid under the Federal Government’s Hearing Services Program, you will receive a financial contribution towards replacement hearing aids if they are lost.
You will need to require a Statutory Declaration and detail how your hearing aids were lost.
Fully subsidised hearing aids will require a small payment for the replacement. However, if you made a top-up payment for hearing aids over and above those supplied, there will be a higher fee.
In-the-ear hearing aids are perfectly snack-sized for curious pooches, so keep hearing aids above ‘cruising height’ of pets.
If you fear your pet has swallowed one of your hearing aids, get them to the vet as soon as you can. Swallowing a hearing aid with its battery could very dangerous.
A vet will be able to perform an x-ray for additional peace of mind.
And a reminder, expired batteries can still cause harm, so make sure you effectively dispose of spent batteries.
Ultimately, the best insurance is doing your very best to make sure your hearing aids are well cared for and thoughtfully treated.
