Need some advice about paying high costs for glasses please

That seems v steep OP. I recently had an eye exam and bought 2 pairs of the most expensive varifocals Specsavers do for less than £500.

That is only if you are claiming certain benefits. Not everyone gets that.

For those who order glasses online, how do you adjust the arms, pads etc? As both of my ears are different shaped at the back and one sticks out more than the other. I can spend 20 mins at Specsavers having frames adjusted.

Can see myself breaking the frames before I can wear them.

www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/opticians/nhs-voucher-values-for-glasses-and-lenses/ There are different NHS vouchers, based on prescription and lenses used. I qualify for D voucher as one of my eyes is 7 dioptres.

I am very shocked to see I qualify for one of the higher value vouchers.

Even my glasses aren't £700 and they are fancy pants high power varifocals from a designer place. I would definitely try some chain opticians as recommended, you may need to go down to the "lower range" varifocals but hopefully your prescription will settle down. I found Asda were a bit too cheap to be true but Specsavers would be a good call, and they have a guarantee.

I still have to take my glasses off for threading needles/tiny print, you may as well use what nature gave you for really close work.

Asda optician prices
opticians.asda.com/our-complete-price-on-glasses

Asda opticians are your friend here
I have a high prescription, astigmatism, getting on a bit so need varifocals. I can get a pair of thin lenses varifocals from there for a fraction of what you've been quoted.

Balls. I’m -12. Anywhere can do it but it has to be signed off by a dispensing optician or the optometrist.

Are they a very expensive complicated prescription?

I always ask for a copy of my prescription. Get the optician to measure your pupil distance too whilst he's there.

Then do an online order. You can try on dummy glasses for comfort then order.

I know that not all prescriptions are suitable, but most are.

My eyesight changes regularly and I can just about get away with 10 months.

Glasses from my optician start from £150 and my online pair were £20. Huge difference, not as glamorous but for reading I don't mind.

See if you are eligible for NHS vouchers. It depends on your prescription.

I have a complex prescription needing prisms & high strength lenses (I think I'm -10) and get vouchers for £200 (I think that's the max amount). It covered the cost of my lenses.

You can only use the vouchers against the lenses & not frames. If the optician takes NHS vouchers they will have cheap frames too. You shouldn't need expensive frames for very thick lenses as the cheaper, chunky plastic frames can take the thick lenses.

My frames were under £100 & they weren't the cheapest on offer.

I got mine from specsavers

@SaltyDragon would contacts work for you?.I pay £27 a month for my contacts plus I also have 3 pairs of glasses. One "normal" glasses were around £100 at Specsavers. A "reading ' pair another £100 plus I have seperate cheapy readers from Amazon for if I'm reading with my contacts in. I used to get a complex lens voucher but don't anymore as my eyesight has improved so I'm 0.5 out of range for the voucher (how does that happen??!!)

My dh had a very high prescription (-12!) so very few places could do it he was told by his expensive optician but I sent him to mine (specsavers) and his glasses went from £650 to £210 with thinned lenses and not super cheap frames. My less complex but varifocals were £139 last year for 2 pairs

I swapped to specsavers
Short sighted with astigmatism. Boots were £375 for one pair
Specsavers were £210 for 2 pairs

I have the same trouble. My glasses are so expensive as I am quite short sighted, have v bad astigmatism and now need varifocals too. There is always only about one or two
manufacturers they can order the lenses from which bumps the price up. I tried to order online and they rang me and said no!

I think it is because with astigmatism (and I guess varifocals) the glasses have to sit in exactly the right place.

I don't have any helpful hints, OP. Just sympathy!

The voucher is dependent on if you claim benefits or not. If you have a prescription over + or - 10 then you get a voucher for about £15. If you are claiming certain benefits then you get a voucher if there has been a prescription change. It’s not worth a huge amount but some chain opticians will make up the difference to cover the cost of certain frame.

I think about this everytime I have to have new glasses. My prescription is -7 / -7.75 plus astigmatism, plus long sight I have varifocals, thinning, with a high quality provider. My specs are usually about £700ish at Boots.

I am lucky because I can afford it. If I couldn't, I guess the option would be one pair for short sight and one pair for long sight, neither with thinning. They would be like milk bottle bottoms but would do the job for less money. It's what people had to do in the 50s and 60s before bifocals came in.

I feel for you @SaltyDragon. My eyesight is dreadful and glasses aren't optional. I think there shoukd be more help for people without much money. Cheaper in the long run if falls and other accidents are to be avoided.

I think may last voucher was slightly more, because it had just gone up, but no where near the cost of the lenses.
I go to a local independent. The whole family use the same one. I don't know anyone with complex lenses to compare prices, but we go there due to the level of care they provide. They are not located in the best area, and so prices are unlikely to be inflated. The frames I buy have been comparable prices with other high street chains when I have compared them ( brands so was looking like for like).

I was going to say the same.

They only have to provide them if you need glasses solely for using the computer and no other reason.

Do you work OP? And do you use a computer at work?

If so then your employer has to provide an eye test and suitable glasses / contacts for you to do your job.

They only need to be the basic so not the extra thinning but you might be able to negotiate with your employer that you pay for part of the glasses.

And £150 for frames is a rip off.

For everyone saying use the NHS voucher it's practically worthless. I got £14 off a £700 pair of specs last time. Bloody pointless.

@SaltyDragon How are you getting on? Not being able to see well is no fun.

Asda opticians are cheap and good quality.

Are you sure your diabetes is adequately controlled, @SaltyDragon ? If it is, why would you need to change your Rx so often?

If your diabetes has escaped control I'd start with that. Consult with your GP in the first instance, but also ask for a referral to a diabetologist.

The problem with that is you don’t have your previous prescription of glasses, then you have no glasses to wear for a few days. So you use your previous prescription frames to update prescription on

Though sometimes it’s cheaper to start again with new frames.