HEARING AID LEMON LAW
Hearing Aid Warranty Laws and the Hearing Aid Lemon Law
Are you having a difficult time getting your hearing aids to work correctly? Have you had the dealer try to repair them? Are they still broken? In Oklahoma, by law, if your hearing aids are out of service for at least 30 days within the written hearing aid warranty period, the manufacturer must provide you with your choice of a full refund or a brand new replacement hearing aids!
While many people have heard about the lemon law for cars, many people don’t know that there is a Hearing Aid Lemon Law in Oklahoma, just like there is in many other states. The law actually applies to all “assistive devices,” which includes hearing aids. Under the law, people with disabilities who purchase hearing aids that don’t work can get them replaced or refunded.
Hopefully, there is no need for you to hire an attorney. The law is structured so that consumers should be able to obtain relief without the help of a lawyer. However, when manufacturers don’t comply with the law, the Oklahoma Defective Assistive Device Act provides that the manufacturer of the defective hearing aids must pay for your lawyer, allowing you to hire us without any cost to you!
There are actually 2 Oklahoma consumer protection laws that apply to hearing aid purchases. First, you have an unconditional right to return your hearing aids to the person who sold them to you in the first 30 days of ownership, provided you return them in substantially the same condition. If you return them, you are entitled to receive a refund of at least 90% of the purchase price. The remaining amount, no more than 10% of the purchase price or $150 per aid, whichever is less, may be kept by the hearing aid provider as a cancellation fee. If a dealer is telling you something different, call us for free legal assistance. Your right to a 30 day refund policy should have been printed on your receipt or hearing aid contract near your signature in ALL BOLD CAPS. Check your receipts and let us know if it’s missing. If your hearing aids are over 30 days old, but still within the warranty period, you may qualify under the Oklahoma Defective Assistive Device Act.
The Oklahoma Defective Assistive Device Act is the Hearing Aid Lemon Law.
Here’s the Lemon-Law Procedure–what you need to do in order to see if you qualify under the law:
1. Check your written warranty. If your hearing aids are still within the written hearing aid warranty provided by the manufacturer, then the law applies. The Phonak Warranty may differ from the Starkey Warranty. The Siemens Warranty may be different. If the hearing aids are outside of the warranty period, call us. You still may have remedies available to you under federal warranty laws.
2. Have your hearing aids been repaired at least 4 times for the same problem and the problem still exists? If so, you are eligible for a refund or a replacement.
OR
3. Have your hearing aids been out of service (in repair) for at least 30 days during the written warranty period? (Note: 30 days do not need to be cumulative). If so, you are eligible for a refund or a replacement.
4. If either No. 3 or No. 4 above applies to you, you must send the manufacturer (not the dealer) a certified letter. (Very Important Tip: Make a copy of the letter after you sign it, and ask for delivery confirmation so you know they received it!) This letter may be handwritten and needs to only contain the following:
- Clearly write your name, address, and serial number of your hearing aids;
- Offer to transfer the your hearing aids back to them, and
- Demand they provide you with a refund or a replacement under the Oklahoma Defective Assistive Device Act.
- IMPORTANT: Make a copy of your letter before you send it and ask the post office for delivery confirmation. Save the delivery confirmation with your copy of the letter when you receive it.
- Once the manufacturer receives your letter, it has only 30 days to provide you with a refund or a replacement. Only after the manufacturer has provided the refund to must you give your hearing aids back to them.
No state agency has enforcement authority over the hearing aid lemon law. The Attorney General’s Office will not prosecute these claims–they have left this area up to you, the consumer. However, if the manufacturer doesn’t do what you tell them, we can help you at no cost.