Spectacles

[Flay]

Flay is spot on, well almost. He meant to say 'optometrist'

You are correct, my mistake. And I should have not just said "the government's contribution" but also "the paying customer's contribution."

I wish the many services referred to as "free" were re-named to something like "subsidised" or "paid for on your behalf by the taxpayer, ratepayer" etc. They are certainly not free.

[MrGongGong]

Draco,

Exploitative, why ?

I can understand it costing lots of money for complicated and precise optical components (look how much Hasselblad lenses cost !) but last time i needed a pair of specs I was shocked by the amount that is demanded for the frame. There is little difference in terms of manufacturing or production costs between the cheapo ones and expensive "designer" ones (Unless I guess you want them made out of exotic alloys and assembled in the moonlight by virgins ?) yet the proce difference is massive.
That does seem a little exploitative IMV

[Petrushka]

I can understand it costing lots of money for complicated and precise optical components (look how much Hasselblad lenses cost !) but last time i needed a pair of specs I was shocked by the amount that is demanded for the frame. There is little difference in terms of manufacturing or production costs between the cheapo ones and expensive "designer" ones (Unless I guess you want them made out of exotic alloys and assembled in the moonlight by virgins ?) yet the proce difference is massive.
That does seem a little exploitative IMV

Cheap frames are no real problem. Perfectly decent ones can be had for around £35. Watch out for opticians trying to flog you titanium frames that they claim can be bent and twisted into all sorts of shapes. They can but what's the point?

Due to the thickness of my lens (especially the left one) I now avoid metal frames as the lens would come loose with both side screw and lens falling out - a disastrous occurence. This has happened to me so I now have plastic frames and feel much more secure.

The situation with spectacles is not dissimilar to that with hearing aids in that there is a sector of the population who must have one or the other (or both) to live a normal life. It isn't exactly a choice! That makes them highly vulnerable to exploitative over-charging and exaggerated claims. I would not be in the least surprised to hear that both go on 'under the radar' as it were.

[eighthobstruction]

You really should take a look at Specsavers or Vision Express....they are likely to be 25-50% cheaper I would guess....there is no reason why they cannot dispense what you want as good as anyone else....and often better than the established smaller retailer/or the Traditional 'old ' names like Curry & Paxton, Dollard & Aitchision, Rayners etc(who have large mark up)....Boots have a medium mark up....

Eighthobstruction (ex Dispensing Optician)....don't ask any questions , it was a very long time ago

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

I think of opticians in the same light at bankers, estate agents and Alison Graham, ever since I demonstrated by ability to see everything in sharp focus using both eyes. Before anyone imagines - am making this up, I should explain that I am short-sighted in my left eye and long-sighted in my right eye. Somehow, my brain compensates when I use both eyes together.

[Petrushka]

You really should take a look at Specsavers or Vision Express....they are likely to be 25-50% cheaper I would guess....there is no reason why they cannot dispense what you want as good as anyone else....and often better than the established smaller retailer/or the Traditional 'old ' names like Curry & Paxton, Dollard & Aitchision, Rayners etc(who have large mark up)....Boots have a medium mark up....

Eighthobstruction (ex Dispensing Optician)....don't ask any questions , it was a very long time ago

I believe that Specsavers lens are plastic and not glass - is this so? I've also been given to understand that my lens cannot be done in plastic due to complexity so must be glass.

To be absolutely fair to my optician, he is brilliant at his job and dedicated with it, seeing it more as a labour of love than a money-spinner but I do think that questions need to be asked of the dispensing side in general.

[Paul Sherratt]

>>>it was a very long time ago

Eighth, obviously shopping around can be useful - but certainly people with complex prescriptions should check that they are being dealt with by a qualified dispensing optician. Or perhaps simply consult Eine Alpensinfonie in his spare time.

Petrushka,
Your previous pair of specs cost you around 14p per day. Not bad imo, although 'The Eine Way' would have saved you that.

[Paul Sherratt]

>>>>but I do think that questions need to be asked of the dispensing side in general.

But Petrushka, do you think questions should also be asked about the fees paid for eye examinations in the UK ?

[ahinton]

I think of opticians in the same light at bankers, estate agents and Alison Graham, ever since I demonstrated by ability to see everything in sharp focus using both eyes. Before anyone imagines - am making this up, I should explain that I am short-sighted in my left eye and long-sighted in my right eye. Somehow, my brain compensates when I use both eyes together.

Well, at least you're fortunate in your ability to use both eyes together; I can't do that.

[ahinton]

You are correct, my mistake. And I should have not just said "the government's contribution" but also "the paying customer's contribution."

I wish the many services referred to as "free" were re-named to something like "subsidised" or "paid for on your behalf by the taxpayer, ratepayer" etc. They are certainly not free.

I do, too, for that's very true! What's obviously meant is "free at the point of use", which only means that the user is not expected to have to pay at that time and that someone else has to do it instead. Tony Benn used to rail at the increasingly widespread use of the term "customer", as though everyone who uses a service is always one of those, regardless of whether that service is provided by the state or by a private organisation; I remember him once saying that he wondered how long it would be before not only train and coach passengers but prisoners would be described as "customers" but, of course, they all are, because every time anyone travels on a train or coach, someone pays for the journey and when someone is incarcerated at HM's pleasure (she really cares that much, does she?), someone also has to pay for the service provided to the prisoner. As someone I know who recently underwent an operation in a private hospital that was neither available under NHS nor covered by his health insurance noted, the only difference is that, when you have to pay for your op directly, you get to find out how much it cost.

[eighthobstruction]

All opticans sell plastic as standard these days. Some glaze on the premises for 'next day' service, and keep blank lens which are' most used' to do this. Complex lens fall outside this so have to be ground specially. It does not neccessarily mean that 'complex' always means they are such a strange unusual prescription - just that they are not a stock item, and will take longer to get.

A dispenser will usually quote 'true ground lens' which are ground with more care, from better quality blanks (like the difference betwreen Olympus and Leica)....in his book there is usually 2 or 3 qualities at different prices (they will make the most on the most expensive (same with frames)....

You seem confident with your opticans P, and I do not want to stand in the way of that....also I do not know your circumstances optically....and I was also (as did Paul)was going to quote the pence price per day, it is the shelling out all in one go that is the pain.
I require complex lens myself....and have always checked the Dispensers quals in Specsaver....no problems....

[Petrushka]

Point taken about the pence price per day, Eighth and Paul, confess I hadn't looked at it that way. I had surgery for band keratopathy both last year and this and now have greatly improved vision so perhaps pricing is something I shouldn't grumble about but, yes, it's the shelling out in one go that is the pain. As for Specsavers, I wandered into our local branch yesterday afternoon but was dismayed to find that the manager looked about 12 and rest of the staff looked straight from school. Not inspiring.

Eine Alpensinfonie: The really crucial thing to remember is that you may think you can see perfectly well but you can have no means of knowing what is really going on without a full eye examination. The eye test is only a small part of it and many underlying health problems can be discovered with a full examination. Trust me, it's worth it.

As someone else has pointed out above, the equpment now used is highly expensive and my optician has the very latest gear, including eye camera and visual field machine.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Eighth, obviously shopping around can be useful - but certainly people with complex prescriptions should check that they are being dealt with by a qualified dispensing optician. Or perhaps simply consult Eine Alpensinfonie in his spare time...
........ Not bad imo, although 'The Eine Way' would have saved you that.

Hey, now - there's no need for all this vitriol.
My story was true as I wrote it, but I omitted to say that the optician who tried to pressure me into buying spectacles then referred me to her boss, who conceded that I would probably never need to wear them. So there are good, honourable opticians as well as the sell-you-down-the-river-at-all-costs con-artists.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Eine Alpensinfonie: The really crucial thing to remember is that you may think you can see perfectly well but you can have no means of knowing what is really going on without a full eye examination. The eye test is only a small part of it and many underlying health problems can be discovered with a full examination. Trust me, it's worth it.

I have my eyes tested annually in view of my father's glaucoma. The result is always the same. But now they treat me with greater respect.

[David-G]

Good luck with it all! I get my test for "free" as well (in other words, some other poor b*g**r who probably can't afford it has to fund it) which, although I have very little money, seems quite immoral to me, ...

It's not immoral at all, it saves us from means tests, which would result in a lot of people who deserve the benefit not getting it.