I have been seeing lots of advertisement wanting 50 to 35 people to try the new innovative hearing aid manufactured by STARKEY. I did call the number given in the paper and I was directed to go to the above facility. The audiologist by name Dr. Linda Muscarello did the hearing test and talked into buying a Starkey CIC hearing aid at $ 6500 plus or minus. I did buy the item and paid nearly $ 420 by credit card and the balance of $ 6000 was financed by GE financing company at 0% interest spread over 12 months period. I did get a call from the company stating that my hearing aid did arrive and we set up a time to pick the hearing aid. I was using siemens hearing aid for both the ears and since the unit was 4 year old and the fact that my right unit was not functioning I opted to buy a new hearing aid. Dr. Muscarello did tell me about the company and the product and how the unit can be programmed by touch of the phone button. Trust me, I was excited. I used the hearing aid for about a week and it did not perform to my expectation as it was no better than what I was wearing. I called the company and got an appointment to reprogram the unit and I started wearing. I suddenly developed severe dizziness accompanied by nausea. I spoke with my otologist and he inferred that it is attributable to sound induced dizziness and ordered me to return the unit for full refund as the unit was indeed under trial period. I again got an appointment to see Dr. Muscarello and when I told her about my problem, she did not believe me and I showed the Email I received from my otologist. Also Dr. Muscarello volunteered to repair my existing hearing aid and she did mention that she will not charge for the repair. However, when I returned the hearing aid, she was quite upset and gave me a credit for the $ 6000 financing fee but did not give me credit for $ 420 I paid. Since the was not medically acceptable, she charged that amount as restocking fee although she gave the box and pitched the hearing aid as it was custom made and it cannot be used by anybody. Since she was angry, she charged me $ 305 for the repair which I paid reluctantly. My dizziness persisted and I saw my otologists three times. He did thorough examination and inferred that since I had vestibular dysfunction, I need to be fitted with a special unit not anything in the market and he gave a letter to that effect and was forwarded to the company. I sent several Emails to her demanding $ 725 I paid for the restocking fee and the repairs. The repair although came with a year warranty, it quit working after one week and since my association with Dr. Muscarello was stained I got it repaired elsewhere by paying $ 157.50. I did not realize that the facility is a part of Accuquest corporation and I received very nasty phone calls from one of the officers of the corporation. A good friend of mine who knows me well and visits me often did voluntered tohelp me but he failed in his endeavor. I compained to BBB and Consumer Complaint agency CCA and CCA gave a red mark to the company as they should have treated me well not charging as it was medically not compatible. This might become a legal issue might come under preview of Malpractice. Moreover, the officer from the Accuwuest corporation threatened me to get me arrested for harrassing Dr. Muscarello. I never harrasses Dr. Muscarello and I wanted was my money back not attaching any value for pain and suffering. I suffered with severe dizziness and nausea for nearly a month and the medication prescribed by my daughter and my otologists helped over a long period. The advertisement of the company is very deceptive. They advertise for just 35 people but what about the 36th sucker! True, they are promoting STARKEY product. With the high cost of hearing aid, not everyone can afford hearing aid although 12% of the Americans have hearing problems that too majority are seniors. The profit margin is astronomical! If a dozen people walk into the facility, everine gets free hearing tests and perhaps one or two might buy. This is the trade of the profession. No company talks about the price unless they are given full hearing tests. I appreciate your help in resolving my dispute with the company. That is the way it is.
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