Tesco Opticians now Vision Express.. huh!

GTG

My other half and I used Tesco Opticians for a number of years. Our modus operandi after the free eye test was to buy a £15 pair of long distance glasses and a £15 pair of computer glasses. This gave them some reward for the eye test and the glasses were fine for use indoors. I often used the computer glasses for DIY where I did not need to be concerned about them getting soiled or even broken. For more fancy glasses for going out and special occasions, we used the cheaper online suppliers.

I have just looked at the Vision Express website and their glasses start from £39! However, I turned 60 this year so eye tests are paid for me by the NHS so I guess I need not be concerned about buying from the optician that does my test. Anyone know of a national chain of opticians that are happy to do the test and receive the NHS fee without pressure to buy from them?

Also, for my other half who is not 60 yet, does anyone know of the cheapest optician to use the method described above?

Owain_Moneysaver

No optician that carries out an NHS eye test should be putting pressure on you to buy glasses. I always use the same branch of Boots, so they can compare this year's photos to last year's.

alba7

I use an independent optician that I have always been happy with but this time I decided not to get my glasses there (they had nothing I liked and I didn't want to spend £485 on something I didn't like).

I got an aggressive, rude and angry attitude from the optical assistant when I told her that. She refused to consider a reglaze because my glasses were 2 years old. She told me everywhere else uses inferior materials.

I have gone to Costco and bought my glasses for £319, the same lenses the independent optician uses. I will not be back there again, even for an eye test. I can do without the unpleasantness.

DigForVictory

I'd be interested to know if any Tesco Optician customers get Vision express mailshots, which might be a stretch of the GDPR. After all, Tesco went into clubcard to get data & any sale might well include some of that data.

As for what now with opticians, a good NHS optician will test you without sales pressure but the pupillary distance bit is not mandatory to reveal or share making the online routes trickier as prescriptions get more complex.

Should you have any poor customer service - make darn sure the store owners know about it & if you fear email or a letter would be redirected", it may be worth arranging a twitter identity...

getmore4less

We have tried a few(loads) of places over the years as lifetime glasses wearers and have settled on a local Boots, very good service and our guy is thorough and very good at explaining things

I get my tests free but there have always been vouchers for free tests around at all the main places anyway no one needs to be paying for eye tests.
The boot people pointed us to the vouchers
https://www.boots.com/opticians/opticians-offers/eye-health-test

Boots glasses tend to expensive for what I want so I get them on line.

Last pair
titanium rimless frame($30) includes a 1.56 single vision,
photochromatic varifocals Precision lens($200)

around £160 exchange rate has dived since then

a hi index single vision 1.6 GIA or 1.67 Dagas lens would have been $35 around £40 at the time


if sticking with a couple of pairs of simple single vision it will be easy and cheap on-line.

I use optical4less but have use goggles4u which are cheaper(start at £8) but quality is not so good on rimless.

Undervalued

DigForVictory wrote: »

I'd be interested to know if any Tesco Optician customers get Vision express mailshots, which might be a stretch of the GDPR. After all, Tesco went into clubcard to get data & any sale might well include some of that data.

As for what now with opticians, a good NHS optician will test you without sales pressure but the pupillary distance bit is not mandatory to reveal or share making the online routes trickier as prescriptions get more complex.

Should you have any poor customer service - make darn sure the store owners know about it & if you fear email or a letter would be redirected", it may be worth arranging a twitter identity...

True but the online places can easily measure this from an old pair of glasses if you post them.

This subject has been discussed in detail on here in another three page thread during the last week or so, maybe worth reading that.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5873825/eye-test-without-being-forced-to-buy-glasses

You have a legal right to a copy of your prescription and are under no legal obligation to buy anything from the optician that supplies it. Some people feel there is a "moral" duty to do so. Others (including me) take the view that the profession has dug itself into a deep hole by relying on a business model that is basically an uneconomic (or even free) sight test coupled with a hard sell of wildly marked up spectacle prices. They have made their bed so they can lay on it!

Your rights are clear, your "duty", if you feel there is one, is up to you.

ExpertKarl

A sight test actually costs the Opticians branch that you visit approximately £55. Therefore you and your wife have cost the Tesco's branch over £90 just by you having 2 free sight tests and buying the cheapest £15 glasses. I don't think they'll miss you as a customer at all.
No other Optician will enjoy seeing you for an NHS test if you have no intention of purchasing glasses. Every NHS test looses the Optician about £35.

Owain_Moneysaver

ExpertKarl wrote: »

Every NHS test looses the Optician about £35.

So why do they do them then?

moneyistooshorttomention

Owain_Moneysaver wrote: »

So why do they do them then?

Who else would if they didnt? Genuine question - as someone has to do them and that someone has to be something that is widely/easily available.