Costs & Buying
The part that gets missed is the fee language. The statute says that where the purchase is rescinded, no charge, penalty, or other fee may be imposed in connection with the purchase, fitting, financing, or return of the device. So a restocking fee is not simply a matter of shop policy in this state, and a quote that mentions one is worth a question before you sign rather than after.
Our own trial is the full 45 days with no restocking fee. We would rather you use the time properly than hand it back early out of politeness, and we would rather fit you with something cheaper that you keep wearing than something premium that comes back. If you are weighing a quote from somewhere else, bring it in — our second opinion on an outside quote is free.
At a glance
- California law allows a hearing aid to be returned within 45 days of delivery for a refund of the total amount paid.
- Where the purchase is rescinded, the statute bars charges, penalties and fees connected with the purchase, fitting, financing or return.
- California Hearing Center runs the full 45 days with no restocking fee.
- Use the trial in real life — restaurants, meetings, the car — not just in quiet rooms at home.
What the statute actually says
Civil Code section 1793.02 is the provision that matters, and it is short. A hearing aid may be returned within 45 days of the initial date of delivery to the buyer. On return, the seller must adjust or replace the device, or promptly refund the total amount paid, without charge and within a reasonable time. Where the sale is rescinded, the seller must return all payments and any device or other consideration exchanged. The law also requires the written warranty to carry the date the device was delivered to you and the date the warranty expires, which is the detail to check on your own paperwork before you leave the office.
Restocking fees, and why the answer is not simple
Clinics in other states routinely charge a restocking fee, often a few hundred dollars per device, to cover the earmold, the fitting time and the manufacturer's own handling charge. Those are real costs. But California's statute is explicit that no charge, penalty, or other fee may be imposed in connection with the purchase, fitting, financing, or return of the device where the purchase is rescinded. If a California provider quotes you a restocking fee, ask them to point to where it sits alongside that language. We do not charge one, which makes this an easy paragraph for us to write and a fair question for you to ask anywhere else.
How to actually use a 45-day trial
Wear them everywhere that matters, early. The mistake people make is to test new hearing aids in the living room for a month and then discover in week six that restaurants are still hard. Take them to the noisy places in the first fortnight: the restaurant you avoid, the family gathering, the car, the meeting room, the place of worship. Those are the environments worth tuning for, and they are the ones that need a follow-up visit or two to get right. A trial spent in quiet is a trial wasted, and it is why we book the follow-ups rather than waiting for you to call.
Returning is not a failure of the fitting
Sometimes the honest answer is that a device is not right, and we would rather hear it in week three than have you quietly stop wearing them in month four. What usually happens first is an adjustment: the great majority of complaints in a trial — too sharp, too tinny, own voice too loud, whistling, not enough in noise — are programming matters rather than the wrong device. That is what the follow-up visits are for, and it is why real-ear verification at the fitting matters so much, since it removes the largest single source of a bad first impression. If adjustment does not do it, we try something else or we return them.
What to ask before you sign anywhere
Five questions, in writing. What is the trial length, and does the clock start at delivery? Is there any restocking or return fee, and under what conditions? What is included in the price — how many follow-up visits, for how long, and what happens after that? How long is the manufacturer warranty, and does it include loss and damage? And: are these devices locked to your software, or can another clinic program them? That last one catches people out years later, and we wrote about it separately on locked and used hearing aids.
If you already bought elsewhere and regret it
Check the delivery date first, because the 45 days runs from when the device was delivered to you and not from when you ordered or paid. If you are inside that window, the statute is on your side and the conversation with your provider should be a short one. If you are outside it, you are not without options: the devices may be adjustable to something you can live with, and a second opinion will tell you whether the fitting was ever verified against prescriptive targets in the first place. Call us at 650-342-9449 — San Mateo at 88 N. San Mateo Drive, San Carlos at 1008 Laurel Street. Bring the aids, the audiogram and the paperwork, and the review of an outside quote or fitting costs you nothing.
Frequently asked questions
California Hearing Aid Return Rights: questions we hear a lot
How long is the hearing aid trial period in California?
California Civil Code section 1793.02 allows a hearing aid to be returned to the seller within 45 days of the initial date of delivery, and requires the seller to adjust, replace, or promptly refund the total amount paid. California Hearing Center runs the full 45 days.
Can a California clinic charge me a restocking fee?
The statute states that where the purchase is rescinded, no charge, penalty, or other fee may be imposed in connection with the purchase, fitting, financing, or return of the device. Restocking fees are common practice in other states; if you are quoted one here, ask the provider to explain it against that language. We do not charge one.
Does the 45 days start when I order or when I collect?
From the initial date of delivery to you, which is the day you walk out wearing them rather than the day you paid a deposit. The statute also requires that delivery date to appear on your written warranty, so check that it is there and that it is correct.
What happens to my financing if I return the hearing aids?
The statute requires the seller to return all payments and any consideration exchanged when a purchase is rescinded, which includes sorting out a financed balance rather than leaving you paying for devices you no longer have. Ask your provider to confirm in writing how the financing is unwound before you sign.
Should I return them if they do not sound right?
Not as a first step. Most trial-period complaints — sharpness, tinniness, your own voice booming, whistling, struggling in noise — are programming issues that a follow-up visit fixes. Tell us what is wrong and let us adjust before you decide. If adjustment does not solve it, returning is a normal outcome and not a failure.
How many hours a day should I wear them during the trial?
As many as you comfortably can, and in the places that actually give you trouble. Steady daily wear is what lets the brain adapt, and testing in noise early is what gives us something useful to tune. Our guide to wearing time goes into the detail.