Optical Express Reviews

Name: Optical Express
Rating: 4.68

4.7 Rating 4,214 Reviews

95 %

of reviewers recommend Optical Express

Company Reviews

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Metrics

4.7

Based on 4,214 reviews

Shipping & Delivery
Delivery Methods	Postal Service
On-time Delivery	Greater than 38%
Customer Service
Communication Channels	Telephone, Live Chat, Email
Queries Resolved In	Under An Hour
Customer Service	2.9 out of 5

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Phone:

0800 023 20 20

Email:

customerfeedback@opticalexpress.com

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Optical Express 5 star review on 6th October 2021

Suthiwa Jewkes

Optical Express 1 star review on 24th September 2021

John Binnie

Optical Express 1 star review on 27th July 2021

Anonymous

Anonymous // 01/01/2019

Filter: Rated 1 None 5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Stars Helpful

“I would recommend to the highest degree looking at other clinics and opticians. This is a company focussed on profit, and has no customer service, integrity and encourages aggressive, and poor sales techniques and customer service. I have used them for contact lenses, and I also cancelled my laser eye surgery due to appalling lack of care. I cancelled my contact lenses, and yet they continued sending them for 6 months, to an old address and then charged me for this. They would not refund me, or provide any explanation, even though their head office and local store confirmed they were cancelled and that my address had been changed. 6 months later I get a call saying I hadn’t put this in writing, and as a result their employees had lied to me, and I owed every penny (which they took out of my account, which I don’t even believe is legal?). I went to another clinic who noticed serious dryness in my eyes and put me on a treatment plan. Their surgeon and optometrists didn’t raise this as a concern at all. They also offer a 12 month guarantee, while other clinics offer 10 years, who also use more modern equipment. Please for your own sake avoid. There are entire websites dedicated the bad experiences received from this company.”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“Thinking of EYE surgery with Optical Express--don't. £3000 spend and 2 years later... absolute worse experience at Birmingham, turned up twice for booked appts to fix their botched up surgery and was told the surgeon was out to lunch and could not fit me in after travelling 2 hrs. He was still there...! I told their HQ about Birmingham and was referred to Nottingham two times later (after 3 hrs round trips) now told today at their local branch in Leamington that I will need to go back too glasses and they may want to charge me for the glasses. If something goes wrong, your NO chance of being supported. They simply don't care and this is your sight...”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“Awful! awful! awful! Their service certainly doesn't worth of £100. CERTAINLY NOT! They have such a bad customer service. Even if you have a problem caused by their mistake, they wont waste their valuable time for sorting it out. So you will have to waste your valuable time and chase them up. And, please don't forget to get them to put everything on an e-mail so you have a proof. This is a business, and you are their customers. So they wish taking your money and getting rid of you asap (just like the fast food chains). Ohh!! before forgetting, don't you dare to think that you will be seen by some experts!!!! the test is conducted by receptionists. ( the last part of my test was especially a joke. Since I get that in NHS regularly every 6 months due to my condition, l could easily see the difference as knowledge wise. She didn't really know what she was doing, and spent less than half time NHS staffs spend on that actual test. And! and! and!, my ordeal at Harley branch ended up with not seeing a doctor at all. Conclusively, I was told that I would be e-mailed. Let's see :)) Funny thing is that once I had a voucher for a free eye-test at Boots, I honestly admit that it was better than Optical Express hahaha.. However, I'm pretty in pain for wasting my £100. But, this is life. sometimes, you get manipulated, screwed unfortunately. But, in my case, this can only happen once with Optical express. I'm lucky actually, as it is scary to think of what would happen if I had a surgery or an operation with them. I recommended other clinics that charge half price; or private hospitals if you wanna pay more for the detailed test (certainly for the proper treatment). I did my warning, now it your decision!”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“I want to warn all people considering vision correction surgery at optical express to avoid it. The bad stories you hear are all true and accurate. I unfortunately had surgery at the Leeds clinic, was treated like a number on the day. It's like a queuing system to get the surgery, one in and one out system. The surgeon Mr Muhammad Kazmi spoke to me 20 minutes before the surgery and told me new risks which I did not have time to think through or reconsider properly. This was made worse by my anxiety which the staff told me they knew about but did nothing. Their customer service and complaints department is shocking. After I voiced my concerns I was able to speak to the surgeon in person again to demand why I did not have fully informed consent and the lack of duty of care given to me. Surgeon accepted his wrong-doing but refused to give a formal apology. Surgery Manager Mike Coyne who took my vision measurements (not qualified optician) was equally rude and unprofessional, interrupting my personal appointment with the surgeon at multiple times. He then threatened me to leave and then kicked me and husband out of the clinic. Didn't matter to them at that point as transaction was completed. Customer services response was as expected and that was they can't do anything. Please do not go to these people as they do not care about your eyes just your money and how quickly you can pay. They were so desparate to get my money before the treatment. The whole team work on a commission basis including the optician you see in your initial consultation. It is all sales. The surgeons themselves and staff wear glasses yet they advocate laser eye surgery which is bizarre. The company is very unethical and provides insufficient risk information to their patients. No wonder they all look so nervous and have so much to hide. Stick with your glasses as they never will disclose all the risks to you as they don't have to. You could be the unlucky ones and suffer for the rest of your life. Even though my vision is fine at the moment I am seeking legal advice due to the unethical way they have practiced and lack of informed consent. Do NOT gamble with your eyes you will never get them back. The laser burns your cornea permanently and this never grows back the same. The majority of the reviews here are by people with only 1 review on their account. I am highly suspicious of this as these don't appear to be genuine and the overexaggeration of positive reviews makes me sceptical.”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“DO NOT HAVE LASER EYE SURGERY - WASTE OF MONEY!!! I have had laser eye surgery TWICE in the last 9 years lasek and lasik procedures. Now at the age of 33 after wasting best part of £3000 I am back to paying for prescriptions for glasses and contact lenses only to be told after an ongoing complaint that that Optical Express deem my surgery do be successful and that deteriation is due to age. I AM 33!!! Also, I have to use eye drops daily due to having dry eyes as a result of surgery! I WISH I NEVER HAD THIS DONE! Please think twice before having surgery. If I had have known this prior to having surgery I would never have gone through with it.”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“I don't mean to give a bad review for the product but I've been trying to get hold of your customer service since 2 months with no luck! I got a wrong product deliver to me (monthly lenses instead of dailies) It seems that you reply to your online reviews so maybe you can follow up on my email please? Order number 5137”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“Some time ago my wife and I visited Optical Express for a consultation, my wife was told that it was in her best interest to have ocular implants, this was priced at £6000. Over the next week we compared the prices from their competitors and found quite a significant difference, in some cases the same surgery was as low as £4000. We were contacted by the Optical Express sales team who I told of my recent searches and price comparisons. The sales rep told me the reason Optical Express were more expensive was that their service included a lifetime guarantee that regardless of how many times it is needed or what ever is required there would “ never ever be any additional cost” . This was the selling point for me so I got the credit card out and paid. My wife has recently had some visibility problems so we contacted Optical Express and were told that such contracts were no longer issued and previous contracts were void. I contacted their head office to make my complaint known and were assured that they would honour the contract and would get their local clinic to contact us with an appointment, after three weeks passing and not hearing anything I contacted their head office I was informed that as they only kept telephone recordings for two week .. ( in this age of computer technology I’m very doubtful). They had no record of the call and were not prepared to give further treatment free of charge. This is an edited version of this issue as I don’t want to bore you. The punchline is .. DON’T USE OPTICAL EXPRESS.”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“Do not use this company unless you are planning to go blind. I went there as I notice sudden vision changes in my left eye and they used their iScan top of the world £400 Million technology machine on my eye and they said my eye is healthy and nothing is wrong with it apart from my sight was going bad and I need a glasses. Which is far from true I was suffering from detaching retina which would made me go blind. Good that I had common sense and followed my gut feeling that this didn’t sound right, your eyesight doesn’t deteriorate suddenly it takes time. So, I took my self to Moorfiled hospital and guess what I was on the surgery the next morning and they managed to save my sight. I contact optical express after my surgery to make them aware that they misdiagnosed me and that they should investigate this to avoid this happening to others. After 11.5 weeks and chasing them they finally told me that they are not going to do anything about this. I am not the one to write these types of review, but my ethic won’t allow me to let this go either. So, If I were you I would think twice contacting optical express.”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“I would choose 0star if I could. Do not use this company unless you are planning to go blind. I went there as I notice sudden vision changes in my left eye and they used their iScan top of the world £400 Million technology machine on my eye and they said my eye is healthy and nothing is wrong with it apart from my sight was going bad and I need a glasses. Which is far from true I was suffering from detaching retina which would made me go blind. Good that I had common sense and followed my gut feeling that this didn’t sound right, your eyesight doesn’t deteriorate suddenly it takes time. So, I took my self to Moorfiled hospital and guess what I was on the surgery the next morning and they managed to save my sight. I contact optical express after my surgery to make them aware that they misdiagnosed me and that they should investigate this to avoid this happening to others. After 11.5 weeks and chasing them they finally told me that they are not going to do anything about this. I am not the one to write these types of review, but my ethic won’t allow me to let this go either. So, If I were you I would think twice contacting optical express.”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“Staff dont half a clue, Never got lenses on time Never. Eye test was wrong causing damage, prescription wrong due to unacceptable eye test ,staff very arrogant when confronted regarding lack of interest in their job, i dont know how 9/10 are still employey”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“Terrible Terrible never met so many incompetent staff throughout 4 stores , even customer services”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“OE really can't decide which policy to follow it has become apparent after speaking to many people who have had laser eye treatment a lot suffer with ongoing affects for months some even needing tinted glasses. My procedure I was entrapped into due to underhanded tactics and it went wrong, they have since defended there 1-2 day recovery time but also saying 12 weeks in other statements. They failed to legally comply with ROA within time frame and blamed poor Karen in customer service for the oversight, I thought at least she can see clearly unlike many of Optical Express's victims of laser eye surgery. They have not followed there own rules broken commitments, let me undergo surgery without fully completing all paperwork and still say I'm not getting g my money back as they are in the right, they have ruined the last 3 months of my life and sight still not sorted and I know of multiple people with same issues. I fully intend to take them to court now as I need to go else were in hope to have my vision sorted by a ethical firm, I would not advise anyone get laser eye surgery from them they have good optical glasses reviews which hide the laser eye reviews. I expect these to appear on a well known consumer program later this year and you will see how they unethical entrap you into taking surgery and it will help a lot of you guys claim your money back if you have had issues. Using Optical Express has been the worst mistake I ever made just like many others as I have learned, I can only hope they are sevearly fined and closed down.”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“I went for the consultation Meadow Hall Sheffield and I got told I could have the ilasik which is quick recovery. They were quite pushy to get payment off me too like no thinking time but to be fair I was really up for it but just make sure you are aware of this. I knew I would only proceed if I could have this option as the other Lasek is long recovery and more invasive not worth it for me. Today I turned up for the surgery, been nervous all day as well as excited for results to then find that when I saw the eye surgeon I cannot have this laser on my left eye at all and would need Lasek but I could still go ahead. Why on earth would I go ahead, the second option needs a lot more planning in place, you can’t drive for 2 weeks for a start off never mind look after my little boy while I eye would be throbbing for 2 weeks! Absolute waste of my time and now got to also wait 28 days for my refund! Clearly got sold the dream at the consultation. DO NOT USE”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“I went for a consultation at Harley Street which was very positive and was quoted by the optician & sales consultant a price of £2,999, as my requirements were straightforwad. I was then offered a referral discount of £300, and put down a despoit of £500 there and then as I was thrilled. When I got home to review the info pack I was given there was no written quote in the paperwork, I then received a call to collect £1000 more than the agreed price for a surgery I hadn't agreed to (iDesign, which was never in original agreement). I mentioned my discussions with both the optician & sales consultant Giorgy to the Harley Street manager who heavily implied I was lying and that I was trying to get a discount. "You're never going it at that price. We can't do that" - so why offer me that in the consultation? I asked for a refund of my deposit. I then received another call implying I was lying and that I should pay the revised price if I want the service or go on a payment plan I cannot afford. I asked again for a refund. I receive ANOTHER call from a staff member saying that the sales consultant never made any note of the quotation price, which sounds strange as I saw the optician write it down and point to it in the consultation office and then Giorgy fill out paperwork of his own. It sounds like somewhere along the line they just decided to renege on the quote and hope I'd pay. I do not appreciate being called a liar and whether it was disorganisation, miscommunication or a conscious effort to force me to pay an extra £1000 are not reasons to be treated like I'm trying to scam them. Avoid. As far as I'm conscerned they are crooks.”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“Where are the contact lenses I ordered 2 2 weeks ago? I ordered contact lenses 2 weeks ago via “special delivery” I didn’t realise “special delivery” was code for no delivery. I haven’t been notified of any issues with my order so am clueless as to where they are.”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“Placed the order Monday. It’s Friday and no delivery! Sent 2 emails and called with no reply or communication- terrible service”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“Optical Express all of a sudden stopped delivering my contact lenses. It turned out I needed a sight test that I have never been informed of. When I had my lenses appointment just 3 months ago, no one ever mentioned I needed another test. Even though they put my lenses on hold they still kept charging me for them! Lack of communication and care for the patient, so do not rely on the service.”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“Horrible treatment in Dudley!”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“I been in Dudley last week and after they saw me and said that I am not suitable for any kind of operation I was treated bad by the optometrist who attended me. If at the beginning they told me that the consultation is taking like 2 hours ( checks, drops etc) after nearly 30 minutes of waiting after 3 scans to my eyes the receptionist come and ask me if I will be suitable for any operation do I have the finance to pay? After that moment they almost kicked me out of the clinic because I was not presenting any interest for their types of operation. When I came back again for more clarification because I was uncertain about my diagnostic , the optometrist almost started to shout at me making me feel like a stupid person who did not understood her "explanation" offered by her before. Unprofessional and disappointing.”

Helpful Report

Posted 4 years ago

“I had laser eye treatment at the Newcastle optical express premises. I have been putting drops in and following the aftercare plan per instruction of the optometrist. My eyes however are far from 20/20 vision, I find it difficult to focus them now after surgery. They are constantly bloodshot, they feel scratchy constantly almost like someone has threw a handful of sand in my eyes type of feeling. I have asked for follow up appointments but they have all been cancelled so far due to the coronavirus. I would not recommend anyone having laser eye treatment at all, if I could turn back time I would just have treated myself to some new glasses as atleast I could see and focus properly with my glasses or before I had my eyes wrecked with laser eye treatment. I feel very let down by optical express currently, pre surgery nobody informed me that every day I would need to use eye drops, use hot compresses on my eyes, take double doses of omega 3 fish oil ( to help lubricate my eyes apparently), do eye exercises...... etc the list goes on. I was advised to do all these things by a member of staff from the Manchester branch when someone called me from that branch after yet another post surgery appointment was cancelled. I want a refund. I wish my eyes were as they were pre surgery with no pain, discomfort, dryness and they would focus correctly. Darren Walker.”

Helpful Report

Posted 5 years ago

Optical Express is rated 4.7 based on 4,214 reviews