FAQs

Hearing Australia can be found in more than 600 locations across Australia, so we are sure to have a centre near you. Click here to locate your nearest Hearing Australia centre. 

Please contact us here and fill out your preferred contact details in the online form provided. Alternatively, you can be connected to your nearest Hearing Australia Centre by calling 134 432. 

If you have changed your address or other contact details, please call 134 432 to be connected to your nearest Hearing Australia centre. Alternatively, you can fill out the contact us form. 

Click here to book an appointment. Or you can call us on 134 432

You can find our Return and Refund Policy here. 

You are eligible if you are an Australian citizen or a permanent resident and you meet the eligibility criteria. We provide services to aged pensioners and most veterans. 

Hearing Australia receives funding through the Community Service Obligation (CSO) component of the Hearing Services Program to provide hearing services and devices to eligible people. To learn more about the technology that is provided to children, teens and young adults aged under 26 years, and the philosophy that informs the policy, click here. 

A voucher entitles eligible adults to obtain government-subsidised hearing services, which can include appropriate listening devices. See the voucher page for more information on if you are eligible. 

You can find further information about private hearing services providers through the Audiological Society of Australia visit www.audiology.asn.au or the Office of Hearing Services, visit https://www.health.gov.au/our-work/hearing-services-program. 

Hearing Australia offers a repairs service for clients with a valid hearing services card at all permanent hearing centres. Find your nearest Hearing Australia centre for repairs. 

Hearing Australia offers a batteries service to clients with a valid hearing services card at all permanent hearing centres. If you would like to contact us about repairs, please click here for contact details. 

If you have a voucher under the Australian Government Hearing Services Program, Hearing Australia has a wide range of government-subsidised hearing devices available at no cost to you. An optional annual maintenance fee applies. If you choose a top-up hearing device with a higher level of technology and features, you will have to contribute towards the cost of that device. 

Hearing devices benefit many people. However, no hearing device can restore your hearing to normal. The benefits depend on the degree of your hearing loss.

Do not be concerned about becoming dependent. A hearing device will help you communicate better and enjoy life more. Many people wonder how they ever managed without it. 

This will vary from person to person because every person is different. It takes some time to adjust to listening, and to hearing everything louder. Hearing devices amplify sounds. Following a conversation in a noisy place can be very difficult. With practice, listening can become an enjoyable experience again.

Top-up devices have extra features. They are made in a range of styles and include the smallest hearing devices available on the market. These very small hearing devices can be difficult for some people to manage, or they may not suit the degree of your hearing loss. Your Hearing Australia Audiologist will discuss with you the features and technology of the top-up hearing devices and give you professional advice as to how they may benefit you. 

You can deposit your aid at any Hearing Australia centre or hearing aid bank.

Click here for more information. 

Hearing Australia has a range of assistive listening devices available for purchase. If you would like to contact us about purchasing one of these devices, click here for contact details. 

Loss of hearing is often a gradual process. Hearing loss is invisible and more common than people think. Some of the early warning signs of hearing loss are: you can hear but not understand; you find it hard to hear in noisy situations or groups of people; you think people mumble; you need turn the TV up louder than others; or, you don’t always hear the doorbell or the phone. 

This is an issue that can be discussed with a Genetic Counsellor. For information on genetic counselling services in Australia click here. 

An audiogram is used to display the results of a hearing test. The softest sounds you can hear are your hearing thresholds and these are marked on an audiogram. Hearing tests can tell you the type and degree of hearing loss you may have. 

Click here for more information.

Click here for more information on cochlear implants.

Noise is considered excessive when you must use a raised voice or shout in order to be able to speak to someone at an arm’s length. It is important to note that a hearing impairment does not protect a person from further noise damage nor does it give a person less susceptibility to noise-induced hearing damage. In fact, it is quite critical to protect what hearing remains.

Examine quieter alternative work practices. The ultimate outcome is to help create a safer, low-noise, working environment. 

Click here to find out more about prevention.

Earplugs come in a variety of sizes, shapes and noise protection ratings. The soft foam versions found in chemists are for general use and are good value for money. For more specific protection such as earplugs customised for musicians or industrial work environments, a hearing provider will need to be contacted to make the plugs. 

Earplugs require an impression taken of a person’s ear and filters inserted to eliminate particular parts of the frequency spectrum of sound depending on their use. Hearing Australia does not make noise protection earplugs but we discuss noise protection needs with our clients and give advice on where to source the best solution. 

Earplugs and earmuffs do not affect your hearing, they protect your hearing from damage. They do not make your hearing more or less sensitive to noise but help avoid a hearing loss. 

Click here for careers.

To become an Audiologist you will need to complete a Master of Clinical Audiology. In Australia this course is available at six universities: Flinders University, South Australia; Melbourne University, Victoria; Macquarie University, New South Wales; University of Western Australia, Western Australia; University of Queensland, Queensland; and Charles Darwin University, Northern Territory. 

The Master of Clinical Audiology (MCAud) course is a two-year full-time program, which includes coursework and supervised clinical practicum of around 200 hours (varies between universities). There are no specific prerequisite undergraduate subjects, but relevant undergraduate degrees include linguistics, psychology, speech and hearing science, biomedical science or physical and behavioural sciences. 

Acceptance into the program is based on good grades in any undergraduate university degree and an interview to determine if the student has a good grasp of the requirements for the profession of audiology. 

Audiometrists hold a qualification from a Registered Training Organisation such as TAFE NSW which involves two (2) years of formal study (Diploma of Hearing Device Prescription and Evaluation or Diploma of Audiometry) followed by a  Supervision Program and Competency Examination after which they may be considered fully qualified.  

Audiometrists are Hearing Care professionals who specialise in the non-medical assessment and management of communication difficulties caused by hearing loss.  By conducting clinical hearing assessments, an Audiometrist will determine if a hearing loss is present, the nature and degree of any loss, how this may be impeding the client’s communication ability, and prescribe or dispense hearing aids.