Templates - Consumer Inquiries
People with hearing loss often don’t know what to write, what terminology to use, and what they can request with assistive listening systems (hearing loops, FM, or infrared systems). To make it easier, we’ve put together some templates to help you get started. It is not legal advice.
We are simply offering ideas and suggestions, rather than telling you what to do. It’s YOUR correspondence, not ours. You know the situation best. If you don’t like something, delete or change it. You need to be comfortable with whatever you submit. If you prefer different language, change it. Our goal is to give you something to start with.
Feel free to adapt a template to write an inquiry, compose a complaint, or write a thank you. It can save you time—all you need to do is add the details and adapt them to your needs.
More will be coming soon! In the meantime, please email us if you need support or resources. We may even be working on a draft template that may be relevant to what you might need.
Last updated 3/30/25
Language matters
“If you don’t tell people what you need, they will make the decision for you” – Tina Childress
If you say you have a ‘hearing loss,’ someone may not know what you need. Everyone’s hearing loss is different, and thus needs are different too. Often, it’s better to describe what you need, the difficulty you have, how you felt if the equipment didn’t work, or what it means because you couldn’t hear clearly. Below are some ideas to describe hearing loss.
- Able to hear every word
- Access
- Accommodation
- Fully understand
- Clearly hear every word
- Dignity
- Disability
- Emotion “I felt _____”
- Equal
- Fully participate
- Inaccessible program
- Inclusion
- Left out
- Part of
- Respect
- Tired. It was a lot of work to listen.
Examples from Center on Hearing Access
Apologetic: “I’m sorry, with my hearing loss, I need to borrow a receiver and neckloop when I come to Saturday’s library event” to
Better: “I’m looking forward to Saturday’s library event. Where can I borrow a receiver and neckloop?”
Apologetic: “My apologies, but I’m hearing a buzz when I listen through the headphones” to
Better: “When I listened through the headphones, I heard a continual buzz, and it made it almost impossible to enjoy the production”
Learn more. Being Unapologetically Hard of Hearing, Courtesy Hearing Loss Live (blogpost, webpage)
INCLUSION #inclusion #InclusiveDesign #communication #ItDoesMatter
ASSISTIVE LISTENING SYSTEMS #hearingloop #telecoil #assistivetechnology #advocacy #hearingclarity #acoustics #hearingloopshelp #WhereILoop
ADA #ADA #effectivecommunications #accessibility #adacompliance #Advocacy #IWill
HEARING LOSS #betterhearing #hearingloss #hearingaids #hearinglossawareness #hearinglossjourney #HardOfHearing #HearingLossSupport #HearBetterLiveBetter
DISABILITY #disability #disabilities #DisabilityAwareness #DisabilityRightsAreHumanRights #NothingAboutUsWithoutUs #DifferentlyAbled #RemoveTheAsk #DisabilityResearch #PwD
LEARNING/EDUCATION #education #community #conference #networking #learningandgrowing
AUDIOLOGY/HEARING INSTRUMENT SPECIALISTS #audiology #audiologists #audiologist #aud #aud2be #IHSHear4U #aud2b #bestpractice #stayconnectedwithlife (IHS promotion)
SOUND #reverberation #buildingacoustics #SoundLevel #NoiseLevel #AcousticService #acousticsolutions #acousticpanels #roomtreatment #backgroundnoise
Ask for telecoils! (Ask your audiologist or hearing instrument specialist)
Sometimes people will say “I want that thing at [name of site/facility!] ”
Many people with hearing aids don’t know if their hearing aid has a telecoil or how to use it. Ask your audiologist or hearing instrument specialist if your hearing aid has a telecoil, make sure it’s activated, and ask for instruction in using your telecoil program.
HLAA Enabling Telecoils (front/back postcard, pdf) (4 to a page, pdf)
ASSISTIVE LISTENING SYSTEM COMING
[facility name] is excited to announce the installation later this month of an assistive listening system known as a hearing loop. The new system will allow [patrons/guests/parishioners] with hearing loss to hear services easily and clearly with the use of their own hearing aid, implant or a receiver.
How to use the hearing loop
If you have a hearing aid, you likely have a feature known as a telecoil or “t-coil” in it. This feature is not automatically activated by audiologists but is present in most hearing aids and all implants on the market today. Someone using a hearing aid will be able to use the new assistive system by simply switching to the t-coil program on a personal hearing device. If you are not sure if your hearing aid has a telecoil program or whether it is activated, contact your audiologist. We encourage everyone with hearing aids to inquire about the telecoil sooner rather than later, so that when the hearing loop installation is completed [later this month], you can use the system with your hearing aids.
Receivers will be available for [patrons/guests/parishioners] to use if they don’t have hearing aids, or if their hearing aid does not have a telecoil in it. Stay tuned for more information!
Thank you-Asst. Listening System
The hearing loop was great! The FM equipment was charged.
coming soon – please email us for a draft
Inquiries-Asst. Listening System
Options. Choose what is applicable for you, and adapt.
- Hello I will be attending [EVENT Name] on [DATE]. Can you tell me what type of assistive listening system (hearing loop, FM, or infrared) is available? Where can I borrow the equipment?
- I am interested in attending [EVENT Name] in the [FACILITY NAME] and wondering what type of assistive listening system is available (FM, hearing loop, IR)? I couldn’t find any information on your website. Thank you.
“I want to see [my friend/student/grandchild, etc.] in the [play, ceremony, etc.] coming up. I have hearing loss and need an assistive listening system to understand what is being said.”
- What is the assistive listening system in the theater? hearing loop, Infrared, or FM/Radio Frequency?
- Where do I pick up any equipment that I need to borrow to access the system?” [ex: the coat check; Will Call, etc.]
I’m looking forward to coming to the performance on [DATE].
I read on the website [copy/paste ALS statement from website]. [copy/paste WEBSITE URL for easy reference]
2 questions
- To help me prepare ahead of time, what type of system do you have FM? IR?
- Do you have neckloops that plug into the receiver so I can use my telecoils? Headphones aren’t hearing aid and cochlear implant compatible.
As a suggestion, it would be better if more information was available on the website. I have become aware of a new handout that has a template paragraph you can easily adapt Promoting Your Assistive Listening System, with Checklist (2 pages, pdf)
Not everyone realizes that neckloops are required under the ADA and an online receiver calculator is available: Receiver calculator Northwest ADA Center (website).
Thank you for the updated information. While it is your understanding that you are fully compliant with the ADA, unfortunately the theater is not.
The ADA requires that you have receivers for people without hearing aids or hearing aids without telecoils (i.e., headphones, earbuds and or ear hooks) AND neck loops for people who wear hearing aids with telecoils. Neckloops make the system “hearing aid compatible”.
The fact that you have ONLY headphones that connect to the receiver is not being fully compliant. Furthermore, I wear hearing aids and if I need to remove the hearing aids then I will understand even less with headphones because I lose the clarity provided by the customization of my hearing aids. This is the reason that you are required to allow me to connect my hearing aids directly to your system. This is the reason for the neckloops.
I will be attending a show at your venue in thirty-three (33) days. For the theater to become compliant with be ADA is an easy task. The theater shall purchase neckloops. To do this, the theater can simply contact the original vendor from whom the theater purchased the assistive listening system. Here is a link of resource vendors. It is important that the neckloops match the receivers (same company). Here’s how many neckloops you will need to purchase: receiver calculator from the Northwest ADA Center.
I am happy to answer any questions you may have.
Thank you for your attention to this matter,
Dear [insert ADA coordinator name]
According to the website, the [city/county] owns & operates [insert name & website]
I am planning a family visit in [month/year], and I am looking forward to attending the [performance or event name] on [date].
I have significant hearing loss and use the telecoil in my hearing aids to access ADA-compliant assistive listening systems wherever I go, whether a hearing loop, FM, or IR system.
The [concert or event venue] website states that
[copy/paste]
Recently, I inquired about the system for the [venue name] and how to access it. I received the following email reply:
[insert response]
The reply I received makes no sense. I am not asking to [insert gloobledgook]. Will there or won’t there be an assistive listening system for the [concert/event]? If there will be one, a) what type of assistive listening system do you have (hearing loop, FM, or IR system), b) If it’s an FM or IR system, do you have neckloops available? c) where do I pick up equipment to borrow & what are the checkout procedures?
As a suggestion, it would be better if more information was available on the website. I have become aware of a new handout that has a template paragraph you can easily adapt Promoting Your Assistive Listening System, with Checklist (2 pages, pdf)
I need to complete my plans for this trip, so I appreciate your timely response.
[name, state]
——– Option #1
The vast majority of people with hearing loss are not fluent in ASL (American Sign Language). I don’t know sign language.
——– Option #2
It’s a very common misconception that people with hearing loss know sign language. So common that a national blogger wrote about it, “Why Do People Assume Everyone With Hearing Loss Can Sign?”
Over 98% of people with hearing loss use spoken language, and want to interact in the hearing world in the same manner in which they are accustomed – not through using ASL. I don’t know ASL.
Hearing aids and cochlear implants do not restore hearing loss the way eyeglasses correct for loss of vision. Even with the best hearing aids, hearing and speech understanding difficulties remain and are even worse with reverberation, background sounds, and distance from the presenter. People with hearing loss need clarity, not volume. That why assistive listening systems, captioning, and other accommodations are required under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Assistive listening systems are required under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) wherever there is a public address system or needed for effective communication.
Podcast host Gray: “I think when someone’s visiting a health care provider, it’s easy for them to think of the provider as someone that’s going to already have an understanding of things like the cognitive load—the energy associated—but maybe not.
In Lyn’s story, Lyn also shared this with me:
She’s talking about speaking with one of the providers there, a doctor. The person she was speaking with wanted her to use cochlear implants to communicate. It’s not what she wanted to do at the time. She says:
PIPER:
And I said to him: “It’s not my job to make your life easier. It’s my job to tell you how you can best learn to communicate so we can both have an easier life.” And that’s what they weren’t doing. They weren’t listening.”
Transcript: Bonus: More Communication Strategies to Improve Health Care Access. ASHA Voices. November 14, 2024
As a community member / resident of [CITY], I am excited that [NAME of site/facility] is under renovation / construction.
As a person with hearing loss, I depend on assistive listening systems to hear clearly. Do you happen to know what assistive listening system you/the facility is planning to install? And who might I contact to advocate for installing a hearing loop in [name of auditorium, room, etc.] ?
For information on all ADA-compliant assistive listening systems and ADA requirements, please visit the national nonprofit, the Center for Hearing Access.
Requesting Accommodations
Town halls, campaign events, etc. all need to have communication access for people with hearing loss.
Here’s a template you can send your legislator or legislator’s aide to ensure and promote communication access (assistive listening systems and captions). All sites need to be fully accessible.
Template for Town Halls and Meeting Events (Google doc) Download and customize.
Guide to Requesting Hearing Accommodation In a Public Venue, HLAA (2 pages, pdf)
Sample Accommodation Request Letter, an example of what can be included in an accommodation request letter and is not intended to be legal advice. JAN network (webpage).
Encouraging staff to learn more
There is a two-part national ADA webinar on all 5 assistive listening systems; recorded in May and July 2024. You can watch the recorded webinars and download the slides at ADA webinars
There’s more information about all 5 assistive listening systems at the national, nonprofit, Center for Hearing Access
If you need additional resources or have questions, please feel free to email the national, nonprofit, Center for Hearing Access (this website)
Here’s a nice graphic on the statistics of people with hearing loss