Unwanted contact lenses - anywhere to donate them to?

[LittleMy77]

After going through about 3 different vision prescriptions in the last year (thank you middle age and varifocals!) I have quite a lot of spare contact lenses that I can no longer use.

The boxes are open so I can’t return to the opticians, but it seems like such a waste to bin them (prob have somewhere between 40-60 pairs of my old prescription for daily disposables) does anyone know anywhere that wants / takes them?

Probably a long shot given you need a prescription but thought worth asking

I took mine to Specsavers, but they were unopened boxes.

Freecycle them?

i doubt you will find anyone that will let them be passed on to other people to use. Too risky and too much work for it to be realistic or economic for charities. You can drop them off at Boots and lots of other opticians for recycling of the plastic.

What prescription are you? I’m -2.25 in one eye and -2.75 in the other.

I really don’t think this would be a good idea, OP. I’ve worn contact lenses for more than thirty years - and I’m aware, with every single one I use, that I’m taking a risk with my eyes. I wouldn’t be putting anything into them that hadn’t come direct from a known and established optician.

I think you are just going to have to recycle them, especially opened boxes. I can't think of anywhere that would take them, one of the reasons being they have no idea how they have been stored.
Some opticians do offer a recycling service thru Johnson and Johnson but a lot stopped over the pandemic obviously.

Boots recycle them.

This company recycles contact lenses they have drop off points all over the country.

www.terracycle.com/en-GB/brigades/acuvue

I was googling what to do with my contacts and saw your reply. I have a box of unused -2.25 dailies. Do you want them? I know this is an old post