MoneySavingExpert.com/Cheapest way to buy Contact lenses article discussion area

mmra1560

It's worth trying Costco. I currently pay approximately £30 for 6 months supply of monthly lenses.

Darryl

Can anyone tell me what the 'use by' dates/periods on packs of daily disposable contact lenses are?

I'm considering getting some to wear for when I play sports like football and squash (i.e. once or twice a week at most). So, was thinking I could get a 30 or 60 day pack, and as long as they don't go past their 'use by' date, use them over several months.

Is this possible?

Darryl.

stumbles

Darryl wrote:

Can anyone tell me what the 'use by' dates/periods on packs of daily disposable contact lenses are?

I'm considering getting some to wear for when I play sports like football and squash (i.e. once or twice a week at most). So, was thinking I could get a 30 or 60 day pack, and as long as they don't go past their 'use by' date, use them over several months.

Is this possible?

Darryl.

Hi Daryl,
a number of friends use dailies occassionally for sports - no solutions so always clean. Each lens is separately sealed and the packaging protects a sealed lens for a few years.

mamazaac

tobycat wrote:

I get my monthly disposable contacts from Specsavers at £8 per month. It has just recently been reduced from £10 and includes all solutions and aftercare. Is this not as cheap as the mail order companies?

Specsavers wrote to me recently saying they were reducing this same package from £12 to £10 for me. Before I go in all guns blazing asking why other people only pay £8, please can you confirm that is definitely what you pay and let me know which branch you are with?

Many thanx

FL

I wear extended wear lens and so was very interested in the discussion. I pay £15.50 a month with Specsavers and according to Tescos they could do them for £39.90 for 3 months. But where would I buy the solutions from and how much would the extra checkups cost?

At least it is simple to arrange with one company. Only problem I have is although I get my lens by post I have to go to my branch for the solutions. Wish they could post them as well.

Anyway the difference works out at about £80

stumbles

mamazaac wrote:

Specsavers wrote to me recently saying they were reducing this same package from £12 to £10 for me. Before I go in all guns blazing asking why other people only pay £8, please can you confirm that is definitely what you pay and let me know which branch you are with?

Many thanx

There are many types of monthly replacement CLs. The £12 (premium)reduced to £10, the £10 (stanadard) to £8. The usual premium lens is a better material which is thinner (more oxygen to the cornea) and less drying (more comfy) to wear. By all means discuss with your fitter, but rarely worth changing a less able lens.

Millie_2

I wondered if anyone could help me.

My son has just started wearing contact lenses and ive signed a direct debit with the opticians to pay £20.00 per month for 'Aucuvue advance' two weeklies.
After doing a search this morning i am going to cancel that as Tesco only charge £33 for three months supply.

My question and confusion lies with the contact lense solution.
Ive been supplied with 'mirage light for sensitive eyes' which i have to pay £7.99 for or £4.99 if i sign up to a direct debit with the same opticians.

I want to buy he solution online as i feel it would be cheaper but i cant find it anywhere to compare.
What i need to know is can i use any other solution at all?
Is the type of solution that you use relevant to the type of contact lense?

Many thanks for any replies

luvabargain

i've been buying cl's on line for 3 years now, price checking most contact lenses retailers before ordering and thought I was making a good saving. However I kept putting off my aftercare and sight tests and aren't having them as often as I should because of the cost (theres always something else to spend the cash on).

I decided to sit down and work out exactly how much it costs me through internet vs direct debit with opticians. I was surprised to find that the opticians came up cheaper when you included the reccommended check ups and sight test (one every two years).

I compared the costs on Acuvue advance 2 week disposables and Amo solution (through vision direct usually cheapest for both), 2 check ups and 1 sight test every two years and the opticians came out £60 cheaper per year and because it was direct debit made it easier to budget. On the opticians scheme you also got unlimited aftercare, free replacement for lost/damaged lenses and discount on glasses.
So back to opticians!

I thought I'd add these comments to the forum as it may encourage someone else to compare costs and possibly save money and get better aftercare. Obviously all lenses are different costs so just because its cheaper for me doesn't mean it may be cheaper for another but it may be worth checking out as the opticians prices look like they've really come down.

misskool

Kattelan wrote:

who is the best supplier for gas permiable contact lens

I've been wearing gas permeable lenses for about 8 years now and I find it best to get it fitted at the opticians. They are quite hard to fit, especially since I assume the optician recommended them to you. Unless you lose a lens, it is not worth the hassle of buying them online.
Coastal contacts (https://www.coastalcontacts.co.uk) seem to have the largest selection and are having a sale at the moment for RGP lenses. For solutions, I found https://www.sightcare2000.com have the best deals. Not many websites sell solutions and even fewer sell gas permeable solutions.

Anyone else who wears gas permeables and found really cheap solutions?

HTH

FlowerBob

Hi All,

my 2p worth ... sorry I'm jumping around a bit but I hope some of it will be useful ...

Specsavers price reductions - definately they are worried. My husband and I both have contact lenses from them on a monthly plan. Paul's started off at £25 per month and are now down to £15. Mine have fallen from £18.50 to £15.50.

Tesco utility - My lenses are toric monthly disposables, which made me wonder if I could find the equivalents somewhere (they come Specsavers branded). However Tescos website has a useful little utility where you put on what you have and it tells you who really makes them. Of course you can then use the moneysavingexpert guide to find the cheapest place to buy them.
http://www.tescoopticians.com/range.aspx

Specsavers solutions - If they won't post out your solutions, have words. Mine arrive in the box with the lenses! Paul's would too if he wanted solutions (see below) but we have dozens of bottles of solutions around and the stuff does eventually go off.

My husband uses very little solution as his lenses are 'extended wear' monthly disposables (i.e. you wear them for a whole month without taking them out). These we can buy online we rekon for about £40 for 3 months worth (Specsavers cost £45 for 3 months worth). Might or might not be worth it just for him.

However it might be worth knowing that if you are on a Specsavers plan you can go into the store and get more solutions/a new case/even a replacement lens at any time. You just go in and explain you've run out/lost one, they check you exist on the computer and hand over whatever you've asked for. I've never had a problem with this. (I like to have one of the little bottles of solution on the go for weekends away so I just go in and ask when I need one). So, if one of us stays with specsavers and the other switches we have a source of solutions etc. included in the monthly cost.

Even better, I actually only pay specsavers for 6 months of the year. I wear my glasses to work so don't wear the lenses anything like 30 times per month. So I pay for 6 months, get 2 packs of 3 pairs of lenses, take longer to use them and we suspend the direct debit for 6 months. However even when my d.d. is suspended I can go in and get solutions etc. from them. Should my prescription change while my deliveries are 'suspended' they will even swap the old lenses I haven't opened for new ones to the new prescription.

One reason I will probably stay with Specsavers is that I get 50% off any glasses that I buy there, and I like to have a new pair fairly regularly, so that makes it worth my while.

Hope this helps,
Bob