Anyone in the UK have experience purchasing online and getting set up remotely? Looking at the hearing experts website . They have decent pricing but obviously do not have the support of In person set up. Says they use your report to set up but wondered how that works
I’ve used:
Good prices, not sure about remote fitting, as the hearing aids were sent overseas, but they do do remote fitting here in the UK (I’m told).
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Did you then pay an audiologist to set up
@Blueboxuk Yesh, my brother went to local Phonak reseller and done the fitting for a fee, no REM.
Here in the UK, no idea, maybe worth having a chat with them, they do have a chat box on their website. (free TV connector at the moment add to the hearing aids)
Also, alternatively, you can try these people, the price difference between online and them is around £190 but you will get lifetime aftercare… :
https://www.audiologicalscience.com/phonak
Mentioned on this thread:
Not sure about Boots and Specsavers, but my understanding is they do 4 years warranty instead of 5 for the aforementioned.
Also, not sure if the hearing aids are locked or not, when it come to resell them 4 to 5 years down the line, so one can offset the cost of new hearing aids.
Just had a look at Audiological Science. Looks like they work with the NHS plus set up in person. Looks very good and definitely worth the extra cash
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Maybe worth speaking to Boots & Specsavers just to have a different point of view.
maybe @kevels55 or @michael1 could give you their thoughts.
Also, if you are close to the Welsh border, maybe @Um_bongo can give you some advice.
One thing to bear in mind, is services after care, I don’ have a clue about “Audiological Science”, maybe worth asking @PeteTab
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I believe boots and specsavers are locked. Thanks for the advice. I may end up purchasing online and find an audiologist local to me to fit as I’m not experienced or confident with remote as will be my first real pair
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I don’t know about Specsavers @Blueboxuk… I have had 3 different sets of aids from Boots, none where locked… Cheers Kev 
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You might find that this company only looks good on their website. The claimed number of locations they work from is clearly rubbish. I’m not entirely sure which bit of the NHS they work with, but there’s only a couple of CQC registered independent providers in the U.K.
I’m not saying they aren’t legit, but it’s clearly a lead-gen operation, possibly selling you product from an unusual channel.
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They definitely have branches in worcester. Mainly community centres and seem to work with Worcestershire NHS (you can self referral) only certain hubs have rems. Seems legit. Obviously margins are low with the use of community hubs…only looked around the Midlands… . But if anyone knows of a recommendation in the Midlands for an audiologist that would be great
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Thanks kev. Obviously got that completely wrong somehow. Pricing is competitive on there site
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Yeah, potential access to a community centre isn’t a branch. It’s just a rentable communal space.
Andy Bird has fairly good coverage locally and their main office in Cheltenham. It’s your money of course, but you might want to be 100% that this firm exists in bricks and mortar reality in your area.
NHS providers in England need to hold a Care Quality Commission (CQC) approval for their service or clinic at each location to ensure that they provide the appropriate standard of care. There are very few CQC approved locations outside of the large chains, simply because of the amount of paperwork and onerous requirements. I’m not saying these guys don’t, but bargain basement prices and CQC approval don’t normally go hand in hand. In any case yours is a private (potential) sale, so their claimed NHS status is somewhat moot.
Ask on here about the first aid people bought in terms of online only support: it works for some people. Hearing aids are intended to be fitted by a professional with Real Ear Measurement and a fair amount of experience. Caveat Emptor.
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Thanks. Will contact Andy. As your an audiologist. Where do you stand with rem vs widex set up. Should I be looking for an audiologist to set up widex with rem? As noticed a few comments on here stating widexs inbuilt calibration etc works well?
I thought you were talking about Phonaks, not WS products. I’ve used Sensogram to fit aids in the past, it’s a reasonable approach, but I don’t really see it now because we don’t really use their range.
I’m not sure how much they use REM at AB, but you can talk to them about that. They certainly do deal with Sonova, DeMant etc.
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@Blueboxuk Out of curiosity, if you don’t mind me asking:
How much will it cost fitting hearing aids at an audiologist if you go the online route?
As I will be in your exact same situation, but my thinking is if I buy online, then I will have to pay for fitting on a PAYG basis, which I assume it will be at ÂŁ100 a visit (being somewhat conservative, but I have no clues how much it will cost), this is for the first 3 visits (As I assume you will need to be physically present to de the 1st fitting & REM), then switch to remote adjustment (which is included in the online price of the hearing aids).
Or am I missing something?
Thx
It’s anything from £350 to £500 most offer lifetime service so it’s definitely worth it and still works out cheaper. Some shops are more open to it than others.
It’s a strange situation as I’m priced out of the market if I go physical shop route. But online makes it possible. Because I’m new to hearing aids, I’d rather see someone and have that interaction that you can’t get online. Although I may try online set up and see how it goes, especially with widex
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The price is normally all in, with either online or retail. If buying online and taking to a shop, expect to pay up to ÂŁ500
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@Blueboxuk I see, much appreciated.
Difficult balancing the pros and cons between online and brick&mortar HA shopping.
I guess in the case of boots/Specsavers or any B&M independent HCP you pay for the HA and the lifetime care service (I guess batteries and domes/molds are all included in the price), that’s the plus side; The minus side, is the 4 years warranty.
On the other hand, with online you get 5 years warranty and lower HA prices, but you will not get the physical service, no batteries or domes/molds included.
Tough call
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