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Home > Health > Former NHS Audiologist Lists 7 Costly Mistakes UK Seniors Make When Looking for Hearing Aids

Former NHS Audiologist Lists 7 Costly Mistakes UK Seniors Make When Looking for Hearing Aids

Published By Dr. Margaret Ellis | Health | Last update: Feb 9 👁 187432 📖 4 min

In 26 years, I watched thousands of people try to fix their hearing. Almost every one made at least three of the same mistakes.


Since retiring, I can finally say what I couldn't while working in the system.

Mistake 1: Waiting on the NHS and doing nothing in the meantime

Free, yes. But 12 to 18 months wait. Some areas, two years. 

 

And hearing loss doesn't pause while you're in a queue — it gets worse. 

 

Johns Hopkins University links untreated hearing loss directly to dementia. Mild loss doubles the risk. Moderate triples it.


Stay on the list. But don't sit and do nothing while you wait.

Mistake 2: Buying cheap amplifiers and assuming they're hearing aids

Those £30-50 Amazon devices are not hearing aids. They're amplifiers. 

 

The chip inside a real hearing aid alone costs £80-100 — so if the whole thing costs £30, the numbers don't add up. It can't have a real chip inside.


What you get instead makes everything louder — the TV, the traffic, your own breathing — but voices? Still muffled.


The real damage? People give up entirely, thinking their hearing can't be helped. They never actually tried a proper hearing aid.

Mistake 3: Assuming expensive means better

Boots charges £3,495. Specsavers £1,995-£2,495. The core components inside are made by the same handful of manufacturers. Same parts in affordable devices and expensive ones.


The price difference isn't technology. It's the shop rent, the salespeople, the TV adverts. Of that £3,495, roughly £280 goes toward your actual hearing. The rest pays for everything else.

Mistake 4: Not understanding the markup

When a retailer charges £3,495 for hearing aids, here's roughly where it goes:


- Technology and components: ~£280.
- Retail premises (rent, rates, utilities): ~£900.
- Staff and sales commissions: ~£750.
- Marketing (TV, newspapers, leaflets): ~£500.
- Corporate profit and shareholders: ~£1,065.


Total: £3,495. Of which £280 went toward your actual hearing.


This isn't illegal. It's simply how traditional retail works — a model designed decades ago when hearing aids could only be fitted in a specialist clinic.


The technology has moved on. The distribution model hasn't. And seniors keep paying 1,000% markups because nobody in the industry has any reason to tell them.

Mistake 5: Believing you need clinic visits to get hearing aids

Twenty years ago, yes. Not anymore. Modern hearing aids come with multiple ear tip sizes. 

 

The devices adjust automatically with AI technology — quieter in a living room, sharper in a restaurant, clearer on a phone call.


The clinic visit isn't there because you need it. It's there because the business model needs it.

Mistake 6: Underestimating how much hearing loss affects your life

The mistake with the most human cost.


It's your wife stopping mid-sentence because she's tired of repeating herself. It's laughing when everyone else laughs, hoping it's the right moment. It's your grandchild whispering "I love you, grandad" and only finding out because your daughter tells you the next day.


The average person waits seven to ten years. In that time, the world gets smaller. 

 

People around you don't see hearing loss — they see withdrawal. "Dad's not himself." "Grandad's getting confused."

Mistake 7: Not knowing there's another option

For most of my career, there were three paths. NHS — free but months of waiting. Private clinics — excellent but £2,000 to £4,000. Amazon — cheap but useless.
There's now a fourth. Direct to consumer. Same core technology, without the high street markup.


A former colleague of mine, David Taylor, figured this out. Cut out the middleman. No shops. No salespeople. No overhead. Same core components as premium brands — delivered direct to your door.


He called it HearWell. I visited his warehouse myself.

I took a pair and gave them to my 84-year-old father. Ex-engineer, stubborn as they come. Refused NHS aids — "not wearing those things." Wouldn't pay £2,500 at a clinic.


But missing golf club conversations and match commentary finally got to him. Now wearing HearWell daily — and winning the pub quiz again. "Should've done this years ago," he admitted last week.


At £149, that works out to less than 20p per day. HearWell guarantees a minimum two-year lifespan — if it fails before that, free replacement.


With a 45-day trial at home, you risk nothing. If they don't work, send them back to their Stoke-on-Trent warehouse for a refund.

IMPORTANT UPDATE

Since this article was published, HearWell has gained tremendous attention and interest. 

The company has reached out to our editorial team to inform us that, for a limited time, they are offering our readers an exclusive 50% discount on HearWell during national hearing week. 

Plus, every order comes with a 45-day risk free trial at home, 1 year warranty and free insured shipping.

 

If you don't experience clearer hearing within 45 days, just return it.

Take advantage of this limited-time offer and try HearWell with 50% discount, 45-day risk-free trial at home, 1 year warranty and free insured shipping!

Check availability

Comments (6)

JanR58

4 Feb, 2026 at 1:16 pm

Thank you Dr Ellis. Once you see that markup breakdown you can't unsee it. ordered hearwell this morning
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Margaret_S

22 Jan, 2025 at 9:18 am

Made mistake 1 and 2 myself. Waited 11 months for NHS, then bought a £45 Amazon thing while waiting. Both useless.
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MaureenJ_Cardiff

18 Jan, 2025 at 10:22 am
 

Mistake 6 broke my heart. That's my husband exactly. Sent him this article. hopefully he orders a pair of hearwelll to try
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JanetK

14 Jan, 2026 at 4:42 pm

I didn't know about the dementia link. My dad waited years and now has early stage dementia. I wish we'd known sooner.
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PatriciaW67

22 Jan, 2025 at 9:16 am

Mistake 5 hit home. I've been putting it off because I can't face sitting in another clinic being talked at. Didn't know you could do it all from home now.
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BarbaraD_Ken

18 Jan, 2025 at 10:22 am
 

My neighbour paid £3,200 at Boots last year. I've just shown her mistake 4. She's fuming.
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