We’d like to remind Forumites to please avoid political debate on the Forum.

This is to keep it a safe and useful space for MoneySaving discussions. Threads that are – or become – political in nature may be removed in line with the Forum’s rules. Thank you for your understanding.

📨 Have you signed up to the Forum's new Email Digest yet? Get a selection of trending threads sent straight to your inbox daily, weekly or monthly!

Prescription Glasses - cheapest possible purchase

sonia1963
sonia1963 Posts: 22 Forumite
in I wanna buy it or do it
I need some help please. I'm looking to get a new pair of glasses using my present frames as I only use them once a week when resting my eyes from my extended wear contacts.

I'm off on hols in December and from the experience of my last trip overseas I discovered (painfully) that contacts and sand don't mix :-/. My current optician quoted £379 for the lenses (my prescription is -9.75 and -9.50) alone :o. Surely I can get them cheaper elsewhere? I once came across a company based in Croydon that made up prescription glasses onsite but I lost the URL when my computer crashed a few months ago. They were cheaper by about £150.

I should add that the quote was for high index glass lenses of 1.9 (whatever the 1.9 means).

Cheers
«1

Comments

  • Poppy9
    Poppy9 Posts: 18,833 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    From shopping around I found Tesco quite cheap.

    Tesco + £50 on standard lens

    Also tempted by D&A extra £80 for hi index.

    In the end went for Tesco as they had a BOGOF on their Titanium lens. Two pairs of specs £150. Standard cost without Hi index lens would have been £99.
    :) ~Laugh and the world laughs with you, weep and you weep alone.~:)
  • sonia1963
    sonia1963 Posts: 22 Forumite
    Poppy Tesco has opticians? Never knew that. I'll check out D&A in the week and see what they come up with, as well as Specsavers.

    Cheers!

    Edited to add: I'll have to discount Tesco as their sites are out of town and I live in London.
  • Poppy9
    Poppy9 Posts: 18,833 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    Sonia,

    Only the big Tesco's have opticians. Check with other supermarkets too. I bet Asda have got in on the act. All Walmart stores in the US that we have visited have opticians.
    :) ~Laugh and the world laughs with you, weep and you weep alone.~:)
  • sonia1963
    sonia1963 Posts: 22 Forumite
    OK. Will do :)
  • onzey
    onzey Posts: 830 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 500 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Poppy9

    Do you know if glasses are generally cheaper in the USA than here?





    Hi Sonia ;)
  • Poppy9
    Poppy9 Posts: 18,833 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    Didn't really look at as my partner justed needed solution for his contact lens.

    I understand from friends though that they are especiallywith the good exchange rate. Problem is though they have to be cheap enough so that you are happy to discard if there is a problem back home.
    :) ~Laugh and the world laughs with you, weep and you weep alone.~:)
  • filigree_2
    filigree_2 Posts: 1,025 Forumite
    The cheap place in Croydon is Optilabs:

    http://www.optilabs.com

    They really are much cheaper than the High Street. They undercut Specsavers by over £100, even though Specsavers had a BOGOF offer! Mr Filigree got two pairs of high end specs - strong prescription, ultra slim lenses, photochromic tint, designer frames - for £400.

    You will need to get your presription somewhere else because they don't do eye tests on site.

    I don't understand the science, but high index means thin lenses.
  • sonia41
    sonia41 Posts: 3 Newbie
    It's me, aka Sonia1963  :D (my work computer has this login info).

    I found the company I was after. They are called Optilabs. I faxed them my prescription and a very nice man called me with a general quote of £149 for the plastic lenses (1.74 index). That is £230 CHEAPER than the quote I got from my current opticians  :o

    Guess where I'm off to on Saturday  ;D

    Edited to add: Filligree you are a star! Your post just pipped mine. Optilabs' quote included anti-everything you can get :D
  • onzey
    onzey Posts: 830 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 500 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Sonia (41,1963)

    Not sure if this thread is of interest

    http://forum.moneysavingexpert.com/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.cgi?board=fiddly;action=display;num=1093961414;start=

    According to the FAQ at glassesdirect they don't currently re-glaze existing frames (looking into it evidently) but perhaps you could get a complete new set of specs.
  • sonia1963
    sonia1963 Posts: 22 Forumite
    Onzey, thanks for the link. I read it and whilst it seems like a good deal I can't help thinking it's better for people whose eyes aren't as bad as mine. Just my thoughts, but I'll visit the site to see what's what. ;)
This discussion has been closed.
★ ★ ★ Meet your Ambassadors

🚀 Getting Started

Hi new member!

Our Getting Started Guide will help you get the most out of the Forum

Categories

  • All Categories
  • 352.3K Banking & Borrowing
  • 253.7K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
  • 454.4K Spending & Discounts
  • 245.4K Work, Benefits & Business
  • 601.2K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
  • 177.6K Life & Family
  • 259.2K Travel & Transport
  • 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
  • 16K Discuss & Feedback
  • 37.7K Read-Only Boards

Is this how you want to be seen?

We see you are using a default avatar. It takes only a few seconds to pick a picture.
Update Your Picture