Anyone had experience of this please ?
Recently had my eyes tested & was given my prescription, which I found to have surprisingly little information on it.
I was recommended a site in the UK, & when visiting their site, it seemed that lots more information was required
So my question is as above...any experiences, good, bad or ugly ?
thank you in advance
Thank you Peter
that's very interesting
I've just returned from the optician at Leclerc, & considering the quality of the specs on offer there, that I thought wasn't at all bad, I was pleasantly surprised at the quote I received for 314 euros....nearly 5 years ago I paid 340 at Krys in Carcassonne, & they broke fairly easily some time later
I'd heard good & bad about online purchase of glasses, particularly dispatch times as Carryn has mentioned
I have a week to make up my mind; & indeed try to earn some money to pay for whichever option I eventually choose
For the first time ever I am in the process of buying glasses online using promotional codes on Martins Money tips which means that from one site I paid £81 for a pair of bifocals and a pair of prescription sunglasses and off another £29 for two pairs of glasses, one being sunglasses. All 4 pairs have designer frames At this price I thought it was worth a shot. but so far I have waited over a month for dispatch. I usually buy my glasses from Boots or Specsavers in Jersey when I am on a day trip there, or Specsavers in the Uk when I am visiting. Both deliver to France. Either way it is infinitely cheaper than buying glasses here in France unless you have a very standard prescription and basic frames. And unless you have chosen the optical option on your Mutuelle you wont get reimbursed the full amount
Thank you Alex
and relax !
Another thing to remember is that if you buy online, you will likely as not get any reimbursement or cover through your mutuel (assuming you have one that is). The French system is set up so that you go to your opthalmologist, pay 60 Euros to have your eyes tested, get reimbursed 2/3 of that via the SECU, then go to the opticians/optometrists and get your specs all but paid for by your mutuelle - when your specs come in at 700 Euros a pair, like mine for progressive lenses with a cheap-ish frame, you're pretty glad that you don't have to fork out that much !! That said, I would sooner have the UK system, where the whole thing is generally cheaper anyway from start to finish. A complete eye test in the UK including retinal photos costs between 20 and 30 quid, and you get that back if you then buy specs from the opticians where you had the test !
French optometrists are dying to be able to do this too, but their hands are by and large tied by current legislation.
The lack of information provided by a French opthalmologist is deliberate, to force you, the customer, to go back to them (if you're looking for contact lenses in particular), or to a French optometrist who can read it and knows how to fill in the blanks.
Thankfully, most French optometrists will now (if you ask them) provide you with a more details if you buy your first pair from them.
/RANT ON
The French system deliberately protects the opthalmic consultants (as a result of their intense lobbying) - one of the banes of my existence since I have lived here. "Vive le jour où ce marché sera libéré" - I await that day with a vengeance. It is coming, but the rearguard are fighting with all they've got.
You can already buy specs and contact lenses online in France, but it still pays to go and pay a visit to one of the local optometrist shops just to make sure you get the right fittings. Companies like Grand Optical and I think even Leclerc now are pushing prices ever lower and increasing their service offerings, without infringing the sacrosanct law on the practice of medicine.
/RANT OFF