Contact Lens Cost Cutting article discussion

tisch28

Hopefully someone can shed some light on this for me...

I have an up to date glasses prescription from an eye test last month but am now thinking about getting contact lenses. It sounds like I'll need some kind of contact lense consultation appointment to get the special contact lense prescription which I can then take away and use to buy my contacts online etc. Will an opticians do the contact lense consultation for me even though I'm neither having my eyes tested nor buying the contact lenses from them? Should I expect it to cost a lot for the consultation?

Thanks:o

pmduk

The optician should accept your recent current prescription for an eye test, although as you say you need a separate examination to determine your suitability for contact lenses.

The cost will vary, for example specsavers is free if you then buy lenses from them.
You can't expect a free examination if you're not going to buy from them. They obvioulsly have to cover their costs somewhere!

It may be worth shopping around, but don't buy just on price, your eyes are too important for that. Why not ask friends who they use and their experiences?

geri1965_2

pmduk wrote: »

The optician should accept your recent current prescription for an eye test, although as you say you need a separate examination to determine your suitability for contact lenses.

Contact lens prescriptions are different to those for glasses as they are closer to the eye. I am -10.25 for glasses but -9.5 or so for contact lenses.

tisch28

Thanks pmduk and geri, will ask around for recommendations. Was thinking I'd start with my first lot from a high street opticians where I can have aftercare and then once I find my feet with the lenses I can go it alone and buy online.

Thanks

carpy

GlasweJen wrote: »

at asda you pay a one off £15 and get all your aftercare for free, even if you don't buy from them.

how long for......12 months???

katies_mum

Hi
Took 13 year old daugher last week for first contact appt.. went back yesterday and they showed her how to put lenses in and take them out (daily ones) gave her a few pairs to bring home and practice. We have an appt to go back on 1st May for a final check etc. When talking to the assistant who was teaching her how to use the lenses I happened to ask how much (we are hoping to do these on a buy as when required basis to begin with) and were told these are £37.99 for 30 days. She nearly had to pick me up off the floor. They said they will do 30 free pairs for her. Came home and had a look online - the are called Clariti it seems a new lense that came out about October, and the best part is they are only available thru Opticians!! how convenienet for them. I appreciate my daughters eyes are precious but I cannot afford that type of money especially if she really takes to them and wants to wear them most days.
I have just rung Specsavers who do first appointment free (as did this other optician but made a big deal as if they were giving me a special deal) and they said their lenses depending on what the optician decides could be £22-30 monthly for daily dispostable and all the checks on a DD ..or I could buy as needed and would pay £20 a check after the initial checks to get her up and running. This seems a lot more like what I was expecting. I feel so peeved that this independant optician is really ripping us off..
Can I ask if you have children with lenses what type of scheme you are on if any or how much you pay for their lenses.

Also and this bit is for me not my daugher - I have seen a site called Day Soft lenses which offer alternatives to the main suppliers at a really cheap price, has anyone tried these?

Thank

holdenismine

There are many online sites that are cheaper than opticians, but it's always going to cost more to get daily lenses rather than monthly.

Postoptics and Getlenses are two sites worth checking out.

I have bought solution from postoptics, as you can get 4 for 3 deals and i bought lenses from getlenses. As i wear lenses nearly everyday, and all day long my potician recommended the new silicone hydrogel lenses (Ciba Vision Aip Optix). They are thicker than traditional lenses as they have a lower water content, but the material of the lenses allows much more oxygen to reach the eye then traditional lenses. I'd recommend getting your daughter monthly lenses and getting these, as they are the best available at the moment, taking care of monthly lenses is not difficult and they will only cost you about £100 for 12months/12pairs.

As for solution, i find that what is sold as a 6-month supply, will easily last me 12months.

katies_mum

Thanks for the reply. I`m fine with getting lenses on line and do look round for the best prices as thats how I buy my own.
My gripe is that these Clariti lenses he wants to put her on are only available through an Optician and I think the price is far too much for a 13 year old just starting out. Clariti are silicone Hydrogel and do feel a lot different to my True Eye Acuvue ones.
The optician did say no to weekly or monthly lenses! for her at this age.
This is why I`m thinking of trying Specsave to see what they can offer - its got to be cheaper than £37.99.
I rang optician at 10.30am still waiting for them to ring back even after ringing again an hour ago, want to have a chat about maybe seeing what else they can offer so see what my options are before going and trying somewhere else.

holdenismine

oh right, that explains why it's so expensive, but that is ridiculous having it only available through an optician. Maybe you could find it on a US website, i've used Vision Direct in the past, and they are pretty reliable. You may just have to wait until these lenses are available elsewhere, but your daughter is entitled to an NHS voucher i think every year so that should help out a little bit also.

Good luck though

katies_mum

The optician said would give her 30 days free which is great, they would then use her NHS voucher to give her another 30 days when she wanted them that is ok but what if she needs glasses! then I end up having to fork out for them. So whilst in theory it sounded a really good deal its not. So this is why I`m thinking of getting out now and moving optician before it gets far too costly,