Latest figures show continued hearing aid sales recovery, and strong NHS revival
sales
Heartening Q3 hearing instrument sales figures from the British Irish Hearing Instrument Manufacturers Association (BIHIMA) show continued recovery from the 2020 pandemic hit not only in UK and Ireland private business, but now in NHS numbers.
And the increase in rechargeable device shows more sustainability in the private UK market. The NHS, however, is way behind in use of hearing aids that help to conserve resources.
Continued growth in UK private sales
The UK private market sales have increased by 9% from Q2 to Q3 and are up by 36% on the third quarter of 2019.
Ireland holds its improvement but still behind on pre-pandemic Q3
The Irish market has shown significant growth, with unit sales up 58% on Q1 this year, and up 79% on Q3 in 2019.
NHS units now recovering
There has been a good recovery in the NHS market, with unit sales of over 350k in Q3 this year, up 41% on the previous quarter, but still down 8% on Q3 2019.
Shift to rechargeables a private affair
The UK private sector is becoming more sustainable – the UK non-NHS sector has moved away from traditional zinc air batteries to li-ion rechargeable batteries with 68% of all sales now rechargeable: fewer batteries will be required, helping conserve valuable resources. The NHS sector is yet to make the switch.
“The industry is making strides to protect the environment as we move towards increased use of rechargeable batteries, most significantly in the UK private sector. We’re pleased to see the NHS market is making a strong recovery and that, for the second consecutive quarter, we’ve hit record highs in both the UK private and Irish market,” said BIHIMA Chairman, Paul Surridge.
Source: BIHIMA
