In January, 2015 my 89 year old father was sold a set of hearing aids with a 30 day money-back guarentee. In Feb, he began a precipitous health and mental decline before the grace period ended on Feb. 28th. He complained that the hearing aids were not working, but we were more concerned about his rapid weight loss, diminished cognitive capacity and were not aware that he had entered this time-sensitive contractual agreement. He himself was unable to manage his affairs.
He underwent numerous medical consultations and tests and finally on March 31st was admitted to hospice care because he was "actively dying," basically one month after the unknown (to his children) grace period had ended. As I took over his financial management, I found out about the hearing aid purchase and that it had been financed through a bank and that he had missed a payment. I promptly brought the payment up to date.
I called AccuQuest in Lancaster PA informing them that my father had been admitted to hospice, that he had missed the grace period deadline because of his deteriorating health and our preoccupation with finding out what was wrong with him. I requested to return the hearing aids which had never improved my dad's hearing and asked for a refund. I was told that it was a month beyond the grace period and they would not refund the money. I then wrote a letter outlining the timeline of dying process and again appealed to their fairness and compassion, particularly since the hearing aids had never worked. A response date was included and that date has passed. I have heard nothing from the company.
While one could argue about whether this was predatory salesmanship to and exploitation of an 89 year old man with diminished cognitive capacity, one cannot miss the corporate greed at insisting on full payment for hearing aids that never worked for a man who was placed in Hospice care one month after the grace period ended.
My 92 year old mother, Pauline Smith spent nearly $6000 at Appalachian hearing aid in Knoxville TN. Since the initial purchase she has had to returned to the center numerous times due to constant beeping in one of her hearing aids. It has been returned to Accuquest at least four times. Accuquest has been unable to resolve the issue. My mother is extremely frustrated. The company apparently does not have the technology, resources or resolve to fix their own problem. We have ask for mothers money back and Appalachain Hearing center in Knoxville has refused saying it is a Accuquest issue. They sell the product although they indicated they barely do anymore but would not reveal why? I am not sure if Accuquest will ever read this but they need to man up.
Is there less than 1 star? I paid $4700.00 for hearing aids and had no Accuquest support 3 months later. They left Ky. and said they did not have an audiologist to work in Ky. I had to drive to Greenwood IN. months later to just get an adjustment from Accuquest. They sell but offer no support afterwards. I understand now they have become HEARING LIFE. I hope they offer more to their customers buying these expensive devices. Never falling for this kind of hard pressure sell again. What a waste of money.
The hearing aids I got cost 7,000.00 dollars Got $1000.00 of during a promotion. I do need good hearing aids, but these I got from Accuquest are driving me mad. The left ear one is 100% louder than the right. I went and had it adjusted several times but they say I needed the volume because of my hearing loss in that left ear. I have to lower the volume several steps down to be able to feel comfortable with it and then I still hear background noises that drive me crazy. Can't hear anyone talking beside me can't make out what people say on TV. They don't listen to anything I say. It's always quiet in their office, but the minute you step outside it's all over. I will never again pay that amount of money for a hearing aide. I will demand I get to wear them for 30 days before I give them a cent.
I would like to file a complaint against AccuQuest in Natick, MA. Jim Lakos, the hearing instrument specialist used my mild hearing loss as a pawn to to convince me that a pair of $4900 hearing aids was well worth the expense. I am now embroiled in a fight to retrieve the entire $2000 cash deposit I put down on November 19, 2012. I wore them every day for about two weeks but I didnt notice any improvement in my hearing. Despite the adjustments Jim made during subsequent office visits, I returned the hearing aids within two weeks of receiving them.
Being the persuasive salesman, Jim was so confident that in-the-canal hearing aids would help my hearing loss. He tends to rave about the Starkey products he sells and is overconfident about their performance, even though he is not hearing impaired. The price of the new devices was also...$4900, which I thought was an odd coincidence.
When the customized in-the-canal aids were fitted, I immediately didnt like them. They felt heavy and were nothing more than cheap ear plugs with an amplifier, microphone and computer chip. Consequently, I left the office without any hearing aids. At this point in the process, AccuQuest still had my $2000 and I lost all trust in Jims ability to fit me with proper hearing aids. The exorbitant price was becoming a great concern to me.
The next day I called Jim to cancel the entire order. He used his persuasive selling skills again and was sure that he could find a pair of hearing aids that would work for me if I gave him another chance. Reluctantly, I did. He did some research on his own and called me a few days later. I told him not to do any more work or process anything more until after my doctors appointment at Mass Eye and Ear on Tuesday, January 15, 2013.
After my appointment, I called and spoke to his receptionist. I firmly stated that I want to cancel my order and did not want her to transfer my call to Jim. On Wednesday, January 16 around 5:30p.m. she left me a voicemail stating that it was no problem to cancel the order and have a refund processed and that Jim would call with the details on Thursday. He called at noon and said that the refund will be processed--less the 10% restocking fee off of the full $4900 price! The thought of losing $490 to was totally unacceptable to me! I strongly believe that I am entitled to a full refund under Massachusetts law 265 CMR 8.00. I returned the only pair of hearing aids that I used within the 30-day trial and AccuQuest has held my $2000 since November 19, 2012.
So many hearing-impaired consumers are being duped, ripped off or scammed into purchasing costly hearing aids when less expensive ones may work just as well. Retailers charge thousands of dollars for incredibly small devices that cost so little to manufacture...because they can. Profits of 400-500% are common. Its time to blow the hearing aids dispensers' cover and expose them for unethical business practices in an unregulated industry.
AccuQuest Hearing Centers Reviews
In January, 2015 my 89 year old father was sold a set of hearing aids with a 30 day money-back guarentee. In Feb, he began a precipitous health and mental decline before the grace period ended on Feb. 28th. He complained that the hearing aids were not working, but we were more concerned about his rapid weight loss, diminished cognitive capacity and were not aware that he had entered this time-sensitive contractual agreement. He himself was unable to manage his affairs.
He underwent numerous medical consultations and tests and finally on March 31st was admitted to hospice care because he was "actively dying," basically one month after the unknown (to his children) grace period had ended. As I took over his financial management, I found out about the hearing aid purchase and that it had been financed through a bank and that he had missed a payment. I promptly brought the payment up to date.
I called AccuQuest in Lancaster PA informing them that my father had been admitted to hospice, that he had missed the grace period deadline because of his deteriorating health and our preoccupation with finding out what was wrong with him. I requested to return the hearing aids which had never improved my dad's hearing and asked for a refund. I was told that it was a month beyond the grace period and they would not refund the money. I then wrote a letter outlining the timeline of dying process and again appealed to their fairness and compassion, particularly since the hearing aids had never worked. A response date was included and that date has passed. I have heard nothing from the company.
While one could argue about whether this was predatory salesmanship to and exploitation of an 89 year old man with diminished cognitive capacity, one cannot miss the corporate greed at insisting on full payment for hearing aids that never worked for a man who was placed in Hospice care one month after the grace period ended.
My 92 year old mother, Pauline Smith spent nearly $6000 at Appalachian hearing aid in Knoxville TN. Since the initial purchase she has had to returned to the center numerous times due to constant beeping in one of her hearing aids. It has been returned to Accuquest at least four times. Accuquest has been unable to resolve the issue. My mother is extremely frustrated. The company apparently does not have the technology, resources or resolve to fix their own problem. We have ask for mothers money back and Appalachain Hearing center in Knoxville has refused saying it is a Accuquest issue. They sell the product although they indicated they barely do anymore but would not reveal why? I am not sure if Accuquest will ever read this but they need to man up.
Paul E. Smith
Knoxville mailing
Thank you for this. Just received an offer from these people on free exam, etc. Glad to know it is a hoax.
Research needed before purchase
Is there less than 1 star? I paid $4700.00 for hearing aids and had no Accuquest support 3 months later. They left Ky. and said they did not have an audiologist to work in Ky. I had to drive to Greenwood IN. months later to just get an adjustment from Accuquest. They sell but offer no support afterwards. I understand now they have become HEARING LIFE. I hope they offer more to their customers buying these expensive devices. Never falling for this kind of hard pressure sell again. What a waste of money.
Hearing Aide
The hearing aids I got cost 7,000.00 dollars Got $1000.00 of during a promotion. I do need good hearing aids, but these I got from Accuquest are driving me mad. The left ear one is 100% louder than the right. I went and had it adjusted several times but they say I needed the volume because of my hearing loss in that left ear. I have to lower the volume several steps down to be able to feel comfortable with it and then I still hear background noises that drive me crazy. Can't hear anyone talking beside me can't make out what people say on TV. They don't listen to anything I say. It's always quiet in their office, but the minute you step outside it's all over. I will never again pay that amount of money for a hearing aide. I will demand I get to wear them for 30 days before I give them a cent.
I would like to file a complaint against AccuQuest in Natick, MA. Jim Lakos, the hearing instrument specialist used my mild hearing loss as a pawn to to convince me that a pair of $4900 hearing aids was well worth the expense. I am now embroiled in a fight to retrieve the entire $2000 cash deposit I put down on November 19, 2012. I wore them every day for about two weeks but I didnt notice any improvement in my hearing. Despite the adjustments Jim made during subsequent office visits, I returned the hearing aids within two weeks of receiving them.
Being the persuasive salesman, Jim was so confident that in-the-canal hearing aids would help my hearing loss. He tends to rave about the Starkey products he sells and is overconfident about their performance, even though he is not hearing impaired. The price of the new devices was also...$4900, which I thought was an odd coincidence.
When the customized in-the-canal aids were fitted, I immediately didnt like them. They felt heavy and were nothing more than cheap ear plugs with an amplifier, microphone and computer chip. Consequently, I left the office without any hearing aids. At this point in the process, AccuQuest still had my $2000 and I lost all trust in Jims ability to fit me with proper hearing aids. The exorbitant price was becoming a great concern to me.
The next day I called Jim to cancel the entire order. He used his persuasive selling skills again and was sure that he could find a pair of hearing aids that would work for me if I gave him another chance. Reluctantly, I did. He did some research on his own and called me a few days later. I told him not to do any more work or process anything more until after my doctors appointment at Mass Eye and Ear on Tuesday, January 15, 2013.
After my appointment, I called and spoke to his receptionist. I firmly stated that I want to cancel my order and did not want her to transfer my call to Jim. On Wednesday, January 16 around 5:30p.m. she left me a voicemail stating that it was no problem to cancel the order and have a refund processed and that Jim would call with the details on Thursday. He called at noon and said that the refund will be processed--less the 10% restocking fee off of the full $4900 price! The thought of losing $490 to was totally unacceptable to me! I strongly believe that I am entitled to a full refund under Massachusetts law 265 CMR 8.00. I returned the only pair of hearing aids that I used within the 30-day trial and AccuQuest has held my $2000 since November 19, 2012.
So many hearing-impaired consumers are being duped, ripped off or scammed into purchasing costly hearing aids when less expensive ones may work just as well. Retailers charge thousands of dollars for incredibly small devices that cost so little to manufacture...because they can. Profits of 400-500% are common. Its time to blow the hearing aids dispensers' cover and expose them for unethical business practices in an unregulated industry.