contact lens discussion thread (merged)

nedmundo

I did - it's not! Try reading the contents of my post.

Also, note there is a question at the bottom of that post for you still to answer.

Quentin

No reason not to have a contact lens check.

That's not why this exchange developed. You told us it would be illegal for us to buy lenses without first supplying the check/prescription.

That was untrue and scaremongering, as I pointed out - reputable UK based firms quite legitimately get round the opticians union requirement for this and will supply lenses (via eg. Holland) for their customers.

Presumably before the days of widespread use of online suppliers the opticians enjoyed their monopoly, prices were much higher etc, and now you are losing more and more business all you can do is spread the scaremongering in the hope of stemming the flow!

Presumably these online companies have opticians working for them, as do the Dutch/USA/etc companies - so they manage to get over your so "professional" concerns, and no doubt were the UK to come into line with other parts of Europe, you would just get on with it!

Anyway no point batting the ball back and forth over the net.

But expect scaremongering to be questioned!

nedmundo

Quentin wrote: »

You told us it would be illegal for us to buy lenses without first supplying the check/prescription.

No - I said it was illegal for them to supply you in this manner.

Yeah - I'm getting bored as well - Quentin. Supplying lenses in a country that requires a specification without specification is quite obviously against the law and they knowingly use cross borders to avoid action being taken against them. Therefore, there is no comeback or accountability and no policing. Therefore, there is the opportunity for criminals to get involved and supply counterfeit goods. It's not all the time, but it does happen. It also encourages self-prescribing, putting the consumers ocular health at risk.

Surely better to give the legitimate suppliers the business than encourage this sort of trade? BTW - that means online suppliers or supermarkets or whatever and not just Opticians.

In terms of monopoly, the high prices paid previously result from higher product costs (economies of scale etc) and the subsidy of overheads for providing the clinical element. All that will happen is that the charge to the patient for clinical time will increase to cover this.

petergavinblack

Perhaps I could settle the legal argument for the time being, essentially the regulatory authorities will not take action until the law is clarified. This is the official stance of the General Optical Council (incidenatally this discussion thread is the most concrete evidence of illegal supply):


GOC prosecutions over contact lens internet sales
[FONT=Arial,Arial][FONT=Arial,Arial]In June, the Advocate General of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) published an opinion regarding a case involving internet sales of contact lenses in Hungary. This opinion clearly opposes the prohibition of contact lens sales on the internet because this is deemed to prevent the free movement of goods. The opinion also states that EU member states are fully entitled to take national measures regarding the sale of contact lenses that protect consumers, as long as these measures are not excessive and do not prevent operators in other EU member states from selling into that country. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Arial]The Advocate General’s opinion will guide the European Court in adopting its final judgement on this case, but it is not binding on the Court and there is no certainty as to the outcome. However, the Court’s final ruling on the case is expected later this year, and may affect existing legislation including the Opticians Act. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Arial]The GOC is therefore awaiting the outcome of the decision by the ECJ before pursuing any legal prosecutions. The Court’s ruling may judge that the current protective measures that are in place – ie those matters that are currently categorised as offences by law – are no longer appropriate and request that they be updated. For example, the current need for supervision when selling contact lenses or spectacles. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Arial]Whilst it would not be prudent for us to take action on prosecutions at this time when the legislation on which those prosecutions are based could imminently change, we continue to take any concerns or complaints seriously. If you have concerns about internet sales of contact lenses or glasses, and believe that someone is acting outside of the law as it currently stands, please let us know. We will keep all complaints under review, until the ECJ ruling guides the action we can take. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Arial]The opinion of the Advocate General has not yet been published in English. [/FONT]
[/FONT][FONT=Arial,Arial][FONT=Arial,Arial]August 2010[/FONT]

As with ordering anything online, I'd recommend you ask around and see which companies are trustworthy - clearly those with a high street presence give you further options of complaint etc if you have trouble.[/FONT]

Torkijo

Can anyone recommned a reasonably priced supplier of coloured perscription contact lenses, would be used for occasional night out wear by my wife.

Cheers

T

GlasweJen

it depends on what your wife wants to do with her eyes, does she want to enhance her own colour or change it completely?

Ciba do a nice range called freshlooks which enhance the natural eye colour, they also do opaques to change the colour entirely but these lenses are expensive.

You should pop into your local optician and see if they can offer your wife a fitting and a trial of these lenses, I'd recommend this for all contact lens wear but in the case of colours you can't tell what result you'll get without trying them in the eye first.

Torkijo

Its to change completely, initially for Haloween but might be used on other occasions as well

MrH1510

Hi, I currently get my contact lenses from Asda. I've had lots of trouble with them recently, at the moment I have no contact lenses and they won't give them me until I have a aftercare appointment with them. I'm happy to do this but they can't fit me in til end of October and they won't give me any lenses until them. The way they have been spoke to me today has made my mind up to go elsewhere. Can anyone recommend another optition, I rang Vision Express but they wanted to charge me £13 more than Asda would!

Thanks

savemeplease_2

I'm new to this site and I couldn't find an appropriate forum for this question, so I apologise in advance if it's in the wrong place. If a kindly mod knows a better place for it, I'd be most grateful if they could relocate my thread

I'm looking for the cheapest daily contact lenses I can find. I'm slightly short sighted and generally survive without lenses or glasses but sometimes I wish I had them but don;t want to spend the earth.

I need to get my eyes tested because I suspect my prescription has changed, I also want some daily lenses (not permanent of monthlies). Does anyone know where I'll get the cheapest price?

balimar

Shall watch this thread with interest.
My prescription has changed and i reckon i need to consider wearing specs for more than driving.
I am considering contacts and giving it a go when i go for my next eye test.
Any cost saving advice will be greatly appreciated.
Having read the following article http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/family/Cheap-Contact-Lenses, it would be good to hear from people with advice too.