Skip to content
HearingTracker
Log in

My Audi clinic, Columbus Speech & Hearing, went out of business. Phonak is not responding to my requests. What to do?

29 replies882 viewsLast reply

Jump
Link to this topic
Reply

My Audi clinic, Columbus Speech & Hearing, went out of business. Phonak is not responding to my requests. What to do?

My Audiology clinic, Columbus Speech & Hearing, in Columbus, Ohio went out of business after over 100 years. This includes all 3 of their locations. I bought my Phonak Infinio Sphere 90s for $6,798 with the clinic on Feb 4, 2026 with 3 yrs of service. CSHC went out of business on Feb 13, 9 days later. So I am left high and dry with no service and no c-shells for which molds were already made. The clinic does not respond to emails, certified mail, etc. And there is no one at any of the locations. The cost was US$6,798 so a lot of money for me.

After waiting a week and trying to contact audiologist directly, I decided to call Phonak (Sonova) direct number at 800 679 4871. But Phonak is not responding to my reasonable requests: 1) see if my are under warranty (I gave the Sonova rep the serial #s of the I Sphere 90’s.) and 2) if the molds made at CSHC arrived at Phonak/Sonova center to make the c-shells that came with my order at CSHC. In my call with Phonak/Sonova, the rep told me that they could not answer either of my questions. I needed to go thru a clinic near my home. The Phonak/Sonova gave me the names, but no luck on getting a clinic to take me up as a patient yet. Later the Phonak/Sonova supervisor called me and told me the same thing. He said the Phonak/Sonova data base is maintained by Phonak/Sonova , but the ones that have access are the local clinics. This sure seems strange to me.

What should I do to breakthrough and solve this dilemma ?

15 people in this conversation11 min readJump to latest

I put a partial dispute for the service portion with Capital One. They immediately gave me credit for the service part of the total $2,995 that I was able to justify by documents. Now the issue is to get the c-shells that are being made (hopefully if the CSHC clinic sent the molds to Phonak before the Clinic went out of business) and get them fitted to my ears. And to get at least some basic service and supplies from a new Audiology clinic in Columbus area. Does any one know where c-shells are made for Phonak ? And who keeps the US DataBase of the Phonak HA serial #s and if they have been sold and if they are under warranty?

I am very satisfied with the quality of sound from these Infinio Sphere 90’s. So I do not want to return the ’s. Have said that, i have a 30 day period in Ohio state law where I can return the HAs for full reimbursement. (minus a $375 charge in the Purchase Agreement with CSHC clinic.) this is a nuclear option I do not want to take, but may be necessary b/c another provider may be glad to sell me HAs and service and c-shells if they get the whole package. BUT not if they just get the c-shell part and a bit of service part of the purchase package. What do you all recommend?

This possibility is one of many reasons consumers should refuse to purchase as bundled services.

There’s no reason for you to split the bundle. Best option is likely to return and start again. That price seems high so you can likely find another option at a similar or lower price and the practice will be around to provide services.

You could dispute the $375 fee and likely prevail as the return is not for standard reasons. Realistically there is no one to process the return and you’ll probably get a full refund without return but be prepared to return if they tell you what to do. You may be stuck in limbo for a bit but if you request return under state law you’ll get a refund at least from the bank.

Closing and abandoning patients violates their professional license. You may also want to make a complaint to the state licensing board.

Edited

In reply to @dennis.hurley8

In my opinion, it would be best to request a full refund. This appears to be a complicated situation that I would rather avoid after spending a significant amount of money.

If you’re looking for a new audiologist (not all audiologists accept patients who purchased hearing aids elsewhere), they’re most likely to perform the entire process from scratch, including fitting, programming, and so on. They’ll charge you a new patient fee ($500??) plus a la carte services. I wouldn’t expect a clinician to trust the work done by someone they don’t know, especially considering the liability involved. Plus they are not going to hunt for your molds for free either. It’s like going to a new doctor and say “my previous doctor said I had an infection, give me an antibiotic”: The new doctor is going to do a full examination (and charge accordingly).

IMHO I think it was a mistake to request a partial refund because if you decide to go nuclear, it may complicate the negotiation with the CC company.

At the same time, $4000 is not bad for a pair of Spheres if you can .

This is (part of) why I . And why I’m always skeptical of anyone who insists on a “bundled” prepayment for future services that may not be necessary or even possible. But @OcramSagev is right. If you’re not comfortable with DIY, you’ll have to find a new audi. You’ll have a much easier time doing that if you buy the aids from the new audi. Ask around see if somebody will match the original price you paid. If yes, then return the ones you already bought. The new audi should be able to talk to Phonak and figure out what’s going on with the cShells, and hopefully they’ll be willing to do that if you just bought a pair of Spheres from them. 30 days is almost up, though, so you need to do that in the next day or two.

In reply to @dennis.hurley8

Put the whole amount in dispute, and process the return. Keep all documentation.

You are taking a big chance by keeping the hearing aids. The company that you bought the hearing aid from probably owes Phonak money for the hearing aids So expect Phonak to want them back and for them not to left a single finger to help you. This could leave you holding the bag!!!

Don’t not dally. Put the whole amount in dispute now!

Edited

In reply to @user990

@user990 said:

The company that you bought the hearing aid from probably owes Phonak money for the hearing aids So expect Phonak to want them back and for them not to left a single finger to help you. This could leave you holding the bag!!!

Is that a possibility? OP paid but I Phonak could consider them unpaid/stolen. Regardless, returning is best option to avoid unnecessary complexity.

OP document all your efforts to return. Dispute the full amount paid and see what happens.

@user490 said:

Is that a possibility?

Very common in business dealings are terms of a deal called “30 days net” or “60 days net” where the seller bills after shipment and the buyer has 30 or 60 days to make full payment. It is not just possible, it is most likely, unless someone has knowledge of Phonak’s normal business terms in the US.

Net D

Net 10, net 15, net 30 and net 60 (often hyphenated "net-" and/or followed by "days", e.g., "net 10 days") are payment terms for trade credit, which specify that the net amount (the total outstanding on the invoice) is expected to be paid in full by the buyer within 10, 15, 30 or 60 days of the date when the goods are dispatched or the service is completed. Net 30 or net 60 terms are often coupled with a credit for early payment. The word net in this sense means "total after all discounts". It o...

WH

What a blotch on the reputation of Phonac/Sonova. I will definitely remember the shoddy treatment received by you when choosing a new hearing aid.

To be honest I think this is the industry in general and not just sonova. They don’t interact with patients directly, in general, and rely on the to carry the burden of support.

WH

Phonak does have a support line for veterans for connectivity issues, and it works pretty well. But they are pretty clear they don’t veer from their lane.

WH

Edited

The article says they ran a large deficit in 2024. I doubt they ran a profit in 2025. A business usually requires cash. When the cash runs out, they can’t pay staff or their vendors or their lenders. The vendors and lenders fight over what little cash remains in the till. By prepaying for service, a customer becomes a lender.

Why not return the whole shebang and start over with another Phonak dealer? I bet your CC bank will refund the whole amount, including the restocking fee.

What bothers me most in this type of situation is that the distributor just washes their hands. I think I’d want Phonak to find you another supplier who will service you. I would expect to pay for the service, but distributors of medical equipment should support their end users, even if they have to pay something to the new provider.

I’d like to see folks write their congresspeople, their state legislators, their local office holders asking for legislative relief in the future. I understand that would mess with tradition, but it’s a lousy tradition. Look, the new provider can and should be empowered to require a hearing test. The new provider can and should be empowered to charge and hourly fee for service or sell a prepaid service plan. I.m sure there are other practical issues that would have to resolved. But if you buy a Maserati, any Maserati dealer will service it. Why should be different?

I really don’t understand clinics’ refusal to support users who didn’t buy from them. The fees for service could be very lucrative.

In reply to @WhiteHat

It seems then that manufacturers of hearing aids evidently have an arms length, a few steps away, I still can’t hear you! view, of the customers that they try so hard to persuade with marketing.

If the consumer is concerned that their clinic may go under, with the consumer holding the bag, then the consumer may choose to deal with the strongest and biggest and least likely to fail clinic. Enter, Costco.

In reply to @philbob57

@philbob57 said:

I really don’t understand clinics’ refusal to support users who didn’t buy from them. The fees for service could be very lucrative.

I would love to hear the opinion of the audiologist /fitters in this forum about this. I imagine the main reason is financial but I don’t know if there are other issues .

Last time I needed help with aids that I bought from eBay: I had to call 7 offices (I think 7 , I can’t remember the exact number ) until I found one that was willing to touch them. I shared this story in another thread .

I wonder if people tend to come with the “I already paid for this!” attitude. Even if they pay, it might be with an attitude.

WH

Related discussions