After Costco Hearing Aid Return Had Appointment Issues

Hey mate, given that high frequencies are crucial in helping us discern speech in noise I don’t see you ever having much success in a noisy restaurant given that you essentially have unaidable hearing above 2 kHz. I could be wrong, but it’s unlikely. Do Costco do QSiN testing (quick speech in noise)? That can give some indication of how you’d do in the more complex listening environments. You may need to couple a hearing aid with a remote mic system like a Roger Select/ON to have a decent chance but unfortunately you’re loss is a particularly difficult one for noisy environments.

Just tell them you want LE Audio. The old Rextons won’t get that new feature.

@user168 said:

Does the new Rexton Reach have LE Audio ?

It has the necessary hardware which will be activated by a firmware upgrade in the future.

I’ve been to Costcos for service in 3 different parts of the US. They all found my records. I returned one pair of HAs, but that was basically an exchange. I was told that a 2nd return might cause a problem. After the one return, I’ve had no difficulty getting an appointment or service.

Costco definitely does have a national database where they can see that you have trialed and returned HAs.

After I trialed and returned two pairs I was told they could not help me and I should go to a private audi. I had to beg them to let me have a short trial with a third pair. I returned those also, so I don’t imagine Costco will ever sell me another pair again.

Costco’s sales model is designed to get customers in, sell them a pair of HAs, have them back in for one or maybe two more adjustments, and then on to the next customer. This works well for most people, but serving a challenging patient quickly becomes unprofitable for Costco.

I’d suggest being very nice and friendly to your Costco audi. They do have some discretion, but their default seems to be to cut you off forever after you return two pairs.

@ziploc said:

Costco’s sales model is designed to get customers in, sell them a pair of HAs, have them back in for one or maybe two more adjustments, and then on to the next customer.

My audiologist at Costco said pretty much that without saying that he begrudges the extra work he’s doing in my case. I think he takes his profession seriously. He hasn’t put a hard limit on how many returns he’s prepared to tolerate, but the lines of communication are open.

I don’t believe so. They are in the difficult situation where their lows are normal/mild but their highs are profound so a super or ultra powered aid would overamplify the lows.

@Louie said:

lows are normal/mild but their highs are profound so a super or ultra powered aid would overamplify the lows.

This is a perfect situation for frequency lowering technology. I am sure you know all about this but others might not.

This technology worked great for me until my low frequency hearing got worse.

My jaded view. I’ve been wearing hearing aids and following the forum for 8 years now. My take is just about everybody (including many “normal” hearing people) has trouble in restaurants/small groups. During the entire 8 years I’ve been on the forum hearing aid manufacturers have promised great improvements in speech in noise. Most people still aren’t happy. For the best chance of understanding speech in noise, get a remote microphone. Nobody is going to let you trial aids indefinitely looking for a solution to speech in noise issues.

I’ve had the Rexton Reach HAs from Costco for close to 180 days. I’m seriously considering returning them before the end of the returnable period because they don’t seem to help much in noisy environments and I have found that my old Pocket Talker 2 works better than the HAs for small group discussions and out-door gatherings. I also need to use the Pocket Talker to hear folks speaking softly in a large room. The large room hearing improved slightly after my most recent adjustment, but I’m not sure it’s enough to justify the greater cost. Besides, it seems that the only way to prevent the HAs from popping out of my narrow and twisty ear canals (especially on the left) may be custom molds costing an additional couple hundred CAD. On the other hand, my husband claims that I mishear words less frequently using the HAs, and listening to podcasts via Bluetooth on noisy transit works better with the HAs than with the sport earphones that I’m also trialing, since the HAs let me hear even when I plug my ears against outside noise….

What’s the problem? The return should be very easy, as long as you do it within the return period. Once you do the return, you can probably try Philips, Jabra, Sennheiser, and maybe Soundgearamp.

If I couldn’t get an appointment, I’d call the store manager or just go to the service desk and request a refund.

I suppose some Costco locations don’t accept returned hearing aids. I mean they will take it, but it’s frowned upon. I know this, because it has happened to me when I returned the Jabra’s. I am told that they incur a penalty whenever there is a return, and when returns do occur, the hearing aids are disposed of due to strict hygiene and device regulations, as well as high administrative costs, since they cannot be resold. Ever since I returned them, I have been treated differently. Regardless of which Costco you visit to return the hearing aids, the original fitter will be notified.