All Ears Hearing Aid Center

First of all, let me set the record straight: I am not a doctor.
I am a state licensed hearing aid dispenser.The client was referred to me by an ENT in August
2012. After we received Medi-Cal approval, she was  fit with appropriate hearing aids for her
hearing loss: [redacted] behind...

the ear digital, programmable hearing aids. She
signed the contract 10-15-2012, and I told her to come and see me for any
problems. According to the contract she had 30 days to return or exchange the
aids. I did not see her again until 1-19-2013 when she wanted to exchange the
BTE hearing aids for in the ear hearing aids. In my opinion they were not optimal
for her hearing loss due to the anatomy of her ear canals and the amount of ear
wax I had observed in her ears. She was also 60 days  past the 30 day exchange period per the
contract. I counseled her and she said she would try to work with the aids.
Thirteen days later she was back in the office, mad and demanding I get her
what she wanted.In an attempt to satisfy her, I  made an exception to the 30 day exchange
period and told her if she paid me $100 (for the ear molds that could not be returned)
then she could keep the custom molds and I would get the aids she wanted. However,
I warned her of the pitfalls of this style of hearing aid. She paid the $100 and
I fit her with the new [redacted] canal aids on 2-16-2013. Once again I instructed
her on proper care and maintenance of the hearing aids. On 3-6-2013 she came back
in angry and claiming these aids were no good and quit working less than a
month after she got them. When I checked them, they were full of wax. Again I
showed her how to clean the hearing aids. She has been in many times since then,
and usually the problem is wax in the aid. When I clean the aids I take them in
the back where I can use my tools. On two occasions when I brought  them back out working, she accused me of
switching the aids. She got mad and says, "These aren't my aids!" I
would never do that,  they are custom fit
for her ears and have serial numbers that are on her contract.On 5-22-2014, I had the right aid re-cased as a courtesy as
it was 7 months out of warranty.Most recently, on 4-15-2015, she came in demanding that I
repair her right aid. I told her it had to be repaired by the manufacturer and that
we needed Medi-Cal approval. This usually takes more than a month. She
demanded that I send it for repair immediately because she could not wait. I gave
her the option to pay for the repair herself instead of waiting for approval so
that it could be back from the manufacturer within a week. At that point, she
left the aid, but was unhappy doing so. The same thing happened with the other aid on 8-17-2015.
She left the office mad once again. I got that aid approved for repair and back
in less than a month . In every instance, these aids have failed due to wax in
the receiver. When I can't fix them in the office, the factory has to replace
the receiver that is plugged full of wax.The client's daughter called me on 10-20-2015
and gives me a laundry list of all the things her mother claims I have done or
not done. She states she is filing complaints with everybody. We both agree her
mother would be better served by seeing another dispenser. I have been in
business 23 years, seen tens of thousands of clients and have never, that I
know of, had a complaint filed with the Revdex.com or any other agency. I guess it had
to happen. This client will have to find another hearing aid dispenser. In summary, these aids are not defective. The client comes
in mad looking for someone to blame for the difficulty she is having due to her
inability to properly keep the aids clear of wax. She would not be having this
problem is she had learned how to use the aids I initially fit on 10-15-2012. The aids cannot be exchanged three years later. If she would like new hearing aids, she will have to go to another provider.

Review: I am filing a complaint of behalf of my great-grandmother, [redacted], who is elderly. She received a hearing aid through All Ears Hearing Aid Center, address [redacted], from Doctor [redacted] through Medi-Cal. The hearing AID she received does not function properly and she constantly is having issues with it's functionality, therefore effecting her ability to use the device and hear properly. However, when she attempts to call the office, they dismiss her concerns often rudely by saying she does not know what she is talking about and even hanging up on her. She is in need of hearing aid device and the one they issued her is malfunctioning however they are not willing to accept any flaws in the device and/or issue her another one or even allow her to schedule another appointment to come into the office to have the device checked. As the device is funded through Medi-Cal she cannot go to another office without having to pay out of pocket for another device which she cannot afford. Any assistant with handling this issue would be much appreciated. Thank you.Desired Settlement: We would like to exchange the faulty device for a device that functions properly.

Business

Response:

First of all, let me set the record straight: I am not a doctor.

I am a state licensed hearing aid dispenser.The client was referred to me by an ENT in August

2012. After we received Medi-Cal approval, she was fit with appropriate hearing aids for her

hearing loss: [redacted] behind the ear digital, programmable hearing aids. She

signed the contract 10-15-2012, and I told her to come and see me for any

problems. According to the contract she had 30 days to return or exchange the

aids. I did not see her again until 1-19-2013 when she wanted to exchange the

BTE hearing aids for in the ear hearing aids. In my opinion they were not optimal

for her hearing loss due to the anatomy of her ear canals and the amount of ear

wax I had observed in her ears. She was also 60 days past the 30 day exchange period per the

contract. I counseled her and she said she would try to work with the aids.

Thirteen days later she was back in the office, mad and demanding I get her

what she wanted.In an attempt to satisfy her, I made an exception to the 30 day exchange

period and told her if she paid me $100 (for the ear molds that could not be returned)

then she could keep the custom molds and I would get the aids she wanted. However,

I warned her of the pitfalls of this style of hearing aid. She paid the $100 and

I fit her with the new [redacted] canal aids on 2-16-2013. Once again I instructed

her on proper care and maintenance of the hearing aids. On 3-6-2013 she came back

in angry and claiming these aids were no good and quit working less than a

month after she got them. When I checked them, they were full of wax. Again I

showed her how to clean the hearing aids. She has been in many times since then,

and usually the problem is wax in the aid. When I clean the aids I take them in

the back where I can use my tools. On two occasions when I brought them back out working, she accused me of

switching the aids. She got mad and says, "These aren't my aids!" I

would never do that, they are custom fit

for her ears and have serial numbers that are on her contract.On 5-22-2014, I had the right aid re-cased as a courtesy as

it was 7 months out of warranty.Most recently, on 4-15-2015, she came in demanding that I

repair her right aid. I told her it had to be repaired by the manufacturer and that

we needed Medi-Cal approval. This usually takes more than a month. She

demanded that I send it for repair immediately because she could not wait. I gave

her the option to pay for the repair herself instead of waiting for approval so

that it could be back from the manufacturer within a week. At that point, she

left the aid, but was unhappy doing so. The same thing happened with the other aid on 8-17-2015.

She left the office mad once again. I got that aid approved for repair and back

in less than a month . In every instance, these aids have failed due to wax in

the receiver. When I can't fix them in the office, the factory has to replace

the receiver that is plugged full of wax.The client's daughter called me on 10-20-2015

and gives me a laundry list of all the things her mother claims I have done or

not done. She states she is filing complaints with everybody. We both agree her

mother would be better served by seeing another dispenser. I have been in

business 23 years, seen tens of thousands of clients and have never, that I

know of, had a complaint filed with the Revdex.com or any other agency. I guess it had

to happen. This client will have to find another hearing aid dispenser. In summary, these aids are not defective. The client comes

in mad looking for someone to blame for the difficulty she is having due to her

inability to properly keep the aids clear of wax. She would not be having this

problem is she had learned how to use the aids I initially fit on 10-15-2012. The aids cannot be exchanged three years later. If she would like new hearing aids, she will have to go to another provider.