Spectacles: an important part of you

Spectacles have been described as “perhaps the invention, next only to fire, that brings most aid and comfort.” Technological advances mean that modern spectacle lenses can give clearer vision whilst being lighter and thinner than ever before.

Spectacle frames are just as important as the lenses. Poorly fitting frames will cause you to look through the wrong part of the lens. Poor quality frames are prone to breakage. About half our brains are devoted to seeing and your vision is so important that you deserve spectacles that are durable and effective.

Who can I buy my glasses from?

At Cole Martin Tregaskis Optometrists we happily provide you with a copy of your prescription and, if you lose this, we will be pleased to provide additional copies at no charge.

You are able to buy your spectacles from an optometrist, a registered optician, or unregistered opticians who may have little or no professional training. The law forbids such outlets from making up certain complex lenses or glasses for children.

The dramatic increase in the number of people providing glasses has made this area a potential minefield. The purpose of this page is to help you to tread more carefully in this minefield.

“Free frames”: are they really something for nothing?

Some outlets try to attract new custom by offering “free frames” when lenses are purchased. Of course, nothing in life is free and the wise buyer is wary of such offers. Spectacle frames can be bought for next to nothing from some suppliers in the Far East, but this does mean that they are likely to last for very long. In any case, are the frames really free or is the cost of them being put on the cost of the lenses?

“Free second pair”: another something for nothing?

Another common offer, the “buy a pair of glasses and get a second pair free” enticement is sometimes used to provide a second pair of prescription sunglasses at a reduced cost. Typically, these offers tie the buyer down to a limited range of frames and these should be viewed very carefully.

The purpose of these offers is, of course, to increase the profits of the seller. So, are you absolutely sure that you are not paying for both pairs, and for the cost of the advertising, in the price of the first pair?

Technological developments have resulted in very effective photochromic lenses which darken and lighten automatically as the light level changes. In particular, the latest generation of plastic photochromic lenses have vastly improved performance. Yet, photochromic lenses are typically not available in these “free second pair” offers.

Many patients, particularly drivers, benefit from anti-reflection coatings to reduce glare from lenses. These again are generally not available in these special offers.

Recent research has addressed the causes of eye diseases that occur in old age. Some findings suggest that sunlight falling on the eye throughout life can contribute to diseases such as cataracts and macula degeneration. Tinted lenses should be carefully designed to filter out the harmful rays. The cheapest lenses may not necessarily be the best.

“While you wait” guarantees

Some “opticians” advertise guarantees that your glasses will be made up within a fixed time period, such as one hour. Whilst it is clear that a fast service is not necessarily the same as a good service, it is also not fair to say that a fast service is necessarily associated with poor quality.

At Cole Martin Tregaskis Optometrists we believe that the most important stage of the manufacture of your spectacles is the checking of these by our professional staff when they arrive from our manufacturing opticians. We only deal with the best manufacturing opticians, but still we find that a small proportion of the glasses that the manufacturers make for us do not meet the high standards that we set. You never see these glasses since we return them to the manufacturer to re-make them.

Clearly, no particular manufacturer is perfect, and this is one reason why we will never guarantee to supply your glasses in, for example, one hour. One of our manufacturers is a local firm and can make up many prescriptions and return them to us within an hour or two. But when they are delivered to us we still check them very carefully and only release them to you if they meet our own high standards.

Comparing like with like

Spectacle lens design has never been more complex. There are many large manufacturers, such as Zeiss, Rodenstock, Essilor, Pentax, Seiko, and Nikon who each make a dozen or more different types of lenses. These, and other, reputable companies often make a “top of the range” lens for a given visual problem and other cheaper alternatives. Additionally, there are also many other manufacturers who might make cheaper copies of lenses.

This is particularly true of sophisticated lenses like varifocals. You need to be sure that you are getting the optimal lens for your own particular visual requirements. Comparing prices has never been more hazardous. You must be completely sure that you are comparing like with like and that what you are being quoted for is the best lens for your needs.

Professional help

At Cole Martin Tregaskis Optometrists we believe, as do many other practices, that our patients deserve the help of highly skilled professionals. The two professions who have the highest level of training and professional qualifications in dispensing spectacle lenses and frames are Registered Dispensing Opticians and Optometrists.

At Cole Martin Tregaskis our team includes five Optometrists and three Registered Dispensing Opticians. We always have professional people available to advise you on the best lenses and frames for your prescription.

Independence matters

There are dozens of companies who manufacture or import spectacle lenses. Often the big chains of “opticians”, and even some independent practices, align themselves to one manufacturer. The inducements for this are plain: some manufacturers offer a 25% discount to opticians for such arrangements.

In some of the big corporate optical practices, staff are not allowed to order their lenses from the supplier of their choice. Instead, they have to order from certain suppliers, or from the company’s own manufacturing centre.

We see this as a worrying development. No single manufacturer has the monopoly on good lens design. One manufacturer might make the best varifocal for a certain prescription, another the best high index plastic lens, and so on.

At Cole Martin Tregaskis Optometrists we are an independent practice. We are not tied in to any single company and regularly order from dozens of suppliers. In short, we are committed to providing the best lenses and frames for your requirements and will go to whatever lengths are required to obtain these.

Buying frames

People often say that the hardest part of choosing new spectacles is selecting their frames. The average number of frames stocked by an independent practice is about 600. Since expanding to our new premises we now exceed this number, and at a recent count we had over 1,000 frames in stock. We have frames ranging in price from under £20 to designer frames over £100. We are one of the few optical practices to stock an exclusive range of fames, by Daniel Swarovski of Paris.

Patients nearly always find the frame they want from our extensive range and we get new frames in very regularly, so our range is constantly being updated. We also hold extensive catalogues giving us access to thousands of other frames, which can be ordered on approval. In the very unlikely event that you do not find the frame that you require in our range, then if you buy it elsewhere we can arrange to have lenses put into the frame.

Continuity of service

Although it is rare for people to have trouble adapting to new glasses, problems are more likely to occur when the eye examination occurs at one practice and the prescription is dispensed elsewhere. This is stressed by an independent body, the Optical Consumer Complaints Service. The College of Optometrists has issued the following advice:

“The prescribing and dispensing of spectacles are very closely linked and it would be in your best interests to have your spectacles dispensed where you have your eyes examined. It is often more difficult to resolve any problems you may have with your spectacles when prescribing and supply are separated.”

Our goal and our guarantee

At Cole Martin Tregaskis Optometrists our goal is, quite simply, to give you the best level of visual performance that you are able to achieve.

We do not advertise but rather believe that the success of our practice should be based on our reputation. Nearly all our new patients are referred to us by doctors, other optometrists, or by recommendations from our existing patients. It is not in our interests for our patients to have glasses that they are not entirely happy with.

Since this practice was established over 50 years ago we have always adopted a cast iron policy about patient satisfaction. If, for any reason, you are unhappy with any spectacles that we have provided then return them to us and we will either replace them or refund you in full for the cost of the spectacles. If you are unhappy we would prefer that you come back as soon as possible, but as long as you return within 6 months of collecting your spectacles then this guarantee will still hold.

Fashion evening and colours

We plan to periodically hold fashion evenings, when spectacle manufacturers bring a very wide range of their latest frames for patients to try in an informal and relaxed atmosphere. These events will be open to any patients or member of the public who are interested in the latest designer frame styles. If you would like us to send you information then please contact our reception on 01277 211164. We have a fashion expert regularly visit the practice to carry out colour consultations. She brings additional frames and there is no charge for an appointment with her. Please ask at reception for more information.