Terms of Sale

Seller and scope

These Terms of Sale apply when you place or attempt to place an order through Hearstead. Hearstead is operated by Hearstead LLC, a Nebraska limited liability company.

These Terms work together with our Terms of Use, Privacy Policy, Shipping Policy, Return and Refund Policy, Warranty and Manufacturer Support Policy, Accessibility Statement, and any product-specific disclosures shown before purchase.

No medical care or emergency service

Hearstead helps customers learn about hearing-support, hearing-accessibility, and lawful OTC hearing-aid products. Hearstead does not diagnose, prescribe, treat, provide clinical care, provide telehealth, provide emergency care, or replace an audiologist, physician, ENT, or other licensed medical professional.

Do not use Hearstead for emergency care. If you have sudden hearing changes, hearing loss in one ear, ear pain, drainage, dizziness or vertigo, blood or fluid from the ear, severe hearing difficulty, or another concerning symptom, consider professional medical evaluation before shopping, screening, or using an OTC hearing aid.

OTC hearing aid notice

OTC hearing aids are intended for adults 18 years of age or older with perceived mild to moderate hearing loss. They are not intended for children, and they are not intended to treat severe or profound hearing loss.

You are responsible for reviewing product labeling, packaging information, instructions, warnings, manuals, compatibility information, and manufacturer materials before using an OTC hearing aid. Hearstead does not determine that you are clinically or medically a candidate for any product.

Orders are offers to purchase

Your order is an offer to buy the products in your cart. We may accept or reject that offer. An order confirmation, payment authorization, or receipt of an order request does not by itself mean that we have accepted your order.

We may reject, cancel, or refund all or part of an order for reasons including pricing or product-information errors, payment issues, suspected fraud or misuse, inventory limitations, supplier or manufacturer restrictions, product authorization issues, shipping-address problems, compliance concerns, unusually large quantities, required acknowledgment failures, or any other reason permitted by applicable law.

Prices, taxes, and payment

Prices are shown in U.S. dollars unless otherwise stated. Prices do not include taxes, shipping, handling, delivery charges, or other charges unless expressly stated.

Sales tax, use tax, and other transaction taxes may be calculated and collected at checkout where required. Taxability may vary by product, shipping destination, product category, exemption status, and applicable law. Hearstead does not provide tax advice.

We may use third-party payment processors. By submitting payment information, you authorize Hearstead and our payment processor to charge the selected payment method for the order total, including product price, taxes, shipping, and other approved charges. We do not intentionally store full payment-card numbers on Hearstead systems.

Shipping and supplier fulfillment

Some orders may be fulfilled directly by an approved supplier, manufacturer, distributor, or fulfillment partner. In those cases, the fulfillment partner may receive information needed to process and ship the order, such as your name, shipping address, selected product, SKU, quantity, and shipping method.

Shipping options, fees, destinations, and estimated timing will be shown at checkout or in our Shipping Policy when available. Shipping estimates are estimates, not guarantees, unless expressly stated as guaranteed.

If we learn that we cannot ship within the stated timeframe, or within the legally applicable default timeframe when no timeframe was stated, we will provide the notice, cancellation option, and refund required by applicable law.

Product information and suitability

Product information may come from supplier feeds, manufacturer materials, product labels, manuals, public documentation, pricing files, availability information, and Hearstead's review process. Product details may change without notice.

We may correct errors, update information, remove products, pause products, limit quantities, reject orders, cancel orders, or refund orders when product information, price, availability, shipping, authorization, supplier, or compliance information is incorrect or unavailable.

You are responsible for deciding whether a product, required app, phone compatibility, accessory, battery, charger, fitting style, maintenance requirement, or support path works for your situation before purchase. Hearstead product guidance is informational and does not determine medical suitability.

Manufacturer apps, software, and third-party terms

Some products may depend on manufacturer apps, embedded software, cloud services, phone operating systems, Bluetooth behavior, account setup, accessibility settings, or third-party services. Those tools may be governed by separate manufacturer, app-store, software, privacy, support, or license terms.

Hearstead does not control third-party apps, manufacturer software, app-store availability, phone operating systems, wireless connectivity, or third-party service changes unless we expressly say otherwise in writing. You should review any required manufacturer or software terms before using the product.

Delivery, title, and risk of loss

Delivery, title, and risk-of-loss rules may depend on the shipping method, carrier, fulfillment partner, product-specific disclosure, and applicable law.

If tracking shows delivery but you did not receive the shipment, or if a shipment appears lost, damaged, incomplete, or misdelivered, contact Hearstead promptly so we can review carrier, supplier, manufacturer, and order records. Do not dispose of packaging or product materials until the issue is reviewed if they may be needed as evidence.

Cancellations and order changes

You may request cancellation or changes before fulfillment begins by contacting us promptly. We cannot guarantee that an order can be cancelled or changed after submission.

Once an order has been transmitted to a supplier, entered fulfillment, shipped, or otherwise processed, cancellation or change requests may be unavailable or may need to follow our Return and Refund Policy.

Returns and refunds

Returns and refunds are governed by our Return and Refund Policy and any product-specific return terms shown before purchase.

Unless the product-specific policy says otherwise, you must request return authorization before sending a product back; returned products must include the product, required accessories, manuals, packaging, and proof of purchase as required by the product-specific policy; ordinary return shipping is your responsibility unless the product-specific policy, support approval, or applicable law says otherwise.

Refunds are generally issued to the original payment method after return receipt, inspection, and approval, unless the order is cancelled before fulfillment or the policy states otherwise.

Damaged, defective, or incorrect products

If you receive a damaged, defective, incorrect, or incomplete product, contact us promptly with your order number and supporting information. We may request photos, serial numbers, packaging information, troubleshooting steps, manufacturer instructions, carrier records, supplier confirmation, return inspection, or other information reasonably needed to evaluate the issue.

Available remedies may include troubleshooting support, replacement, return authorization, refund, manufacturer warranty handoff, supplier review, or another remedy required by applicable law. We do not guarantee a particular remedy until the issue is reviewed and approved.

Late, incomplete, unsupported, or unverifiable claims may be harder to review and may be denied where permitted by the applicable policy and law.

Warranties

Products may include a manufacturer's limited warranty. Manufacturer warranties are provided by the manufacturer, not by Hearstead, unless we expressly state otherwise in writing.

Hearstead may help route warranty questions or provide proof-of-purchase information, but we do not control manufacturer warranty decisions, supplier warranty decisions, repair decisions, replacement decisions, or claim outcomes unless expressly stated.

Cathy, Product Expert, and support

Cathy, Product Expert, support drafts, product guidance, articles, hearing-screen information, and other Hearstead guidance are informational tools. They do not diagnose, prescribe, provide clinical care, authorize refunds, approve warranty claims, calculate tax obligations, provide legal or accounting advice, or promise supplier outcomes.

If a conversational answer conflicts with an approved written policy or verified order record, the approved written policy and verified order record control.

Excusable delays

Hearstead is not responsible for delay or failure caused by events beyond our reasonable control, including severe weather, natural disasters, public-health events, labor disruption, supplier delay, manufacturer delay, carrier delay, warehouse disruption, payment-network outage, ecommerce-platform outage, cyber incident, power or telecommunications failure, regulatory change, government action, or other events beyond our reasonable control.

If an excusable delay affects shipment, fulfillment, cancellation, or refund rights, Hearstead will provide the notice, cancellation option, refund, or other remedy required by applicable law and the approved policy that applies to the order.

Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Hearstead is not liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary, punitive, or enhanced damages; lost profits; lost revenue; lost savings; loss of data; loss of goodwill; replacement procurement costs; health outcomes; supplier delays; carrier delays; manufacturer decisions; or third-party app, software, or service changes arising from or related to products, orders, fulfillment, support, returns, warranties, website use, or these Terms.

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Hearstead's total liability for a product or order will not exceed the amount you paid to Hearstead for the specific product or order giving rise to the claim. Some jurisdictions do not allow certain exclusions or limitations, so these limits apply only to the fullest extent permitted by law.

Disputes and governing law

Before filing a formal claim, you agree to contact Hearstead and give us a reasonable opportunity to review and resolve the issue informally.

These Terms and any dispute related to products, orders, support, returns, refunds, warranties, or Hearstead's ecommerce services are governed by the laws of the State of Nebraska, except where another law applies and cannot be waived. These Terms do not include an arbitration agreement or class-action waiver unless Hearstead later posts terms that expressly include one.

Policy acceptance and versions

The policy version shown when you place an order, accept checkout terms, or receive a product-specific disclosure applies to that order unless a change is required by law or you agree to a later version.

If these Terms conflict with a product-specific disclosure shown before purchase, a manufacturer warranty, a verified order record, or a non-waivable consumer right, the more specific or legally controlling term applies.