A 'Glassy' Ending To A 12 Month Saga (Opticians in general)

Member Name: zoe_page_1

Product:	Opticians in general
Date:	30/01/05 (246 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cheap frames, quick service

Disadvantages: Pot luck as to which server - and service - you get

^^^ Vision Express ^^^

Around this time last year, acutely aware that soon I would be graduating, earning some money and no longer be eligible for free eye tests / discounted glassed on the NHS, I thought I would make the most of it, and get my eyes checked. The test, at my local D&A branch showed my eyes had worsened slightly, and new glasses could be beneficial. Being a student and on a budget I decided not to get my glasses from them, however, and to try somewhere cheaper, hence by visit to Vision Express.

When I walked into my branch, I felt I'd make the right choice. The atmosphere was more that of Primark than Selfridges - cluttered shelves, lots of browsers, a noise level about the muted whispers I've preciously encountered in opticians. The selection of frames on offer seemed varied and pleasing, and the sign on the wall telling me I could have my glasses made up in an hour clinched the deal. I started picking off frames, trying to balance them on my face and admiring myself in one of their many mirrors until I found a pair that suited me. That completed, I checked the price, found them to be reasonable, and found a sales girl to ask about getting them made up. She seemed fairly competent if a little off hand, so I handed over my prescription and the frames, paid the calculated figure and agreed a time for me to return.

An hour later I returned to find them ready and waiting for me. I tried them on, discovered I could see better with them than without (always a good indicator that they've put in the correct lenses) and left. I wasn't offered a fitting of adjustment of any kind as I had had previously, but assumed this was the price you paid for, well, paying a reduced price. A week or so later I realised they were uncomfortably too large and took them back but was met with blank stares when I requested they be fitted to my smaller-than-a-large-person's face, so left and presented myself at the nearby branch of one of their competitors' where luckily they didn't realise they had not been the ones to supply me with the frames in the first place, and promptly spend almost 15 minutes trying to get them to sit perfectly on my face. Hurray for living in a country where opticians are paid a reasonable wage and service like that does not require a tip.

Several months later the screw in one of my glasses' legs became loose, but remembering the service I had previously received, I was in no rush to return to Vision Express to have them tighten it. It would have been a good idea for me to do so, however, as the inevitable happened and a month and a half later the leg took a dive one day and disappeared into the rocky landscape that is some NHS hospitals' carparks. I lived with my one legged frames for a while until a parental visit resulted in me being told in no uncertain terms to get it fixed. My mother is a glasses wearer of some 40 odd years standing, so I thought she might be a useful ally in my trip back to the store. On returning, we were told that such a 'fault' was not covered by their guarantee but that they could order me a spare leg. We almost accepted this offer until, having taken all the contact details from us, the girl serving us said she wouldn't be able to give us a cost for the repair in the foreseeable future as they would have to order in some frames but it would be "about 1/3 of the original frame cost". Not wanting to pay much since the glasses had only been cheap in the first place, we declined this offer, and I visited another local branch to see if they had them in stock. They didn't, but quoted me a price for a leg which was significantly above the original quote. In my desperation I again turned to other opticians, who unfortunately could not replace the leg from their stock, but who also mentioned that if it had been one of their frames, they would have completed the repair for free given the young age of the frames (about 8 months by this point).

The saga was not over, however. The Vision Express website is a very useful thing, as it includes the following page:

http://www.visionexpress.com/discover/totalsatisf actionguarantee.asp

which, among other things, includes promises of a guarantee of total satisfaction in every store, perfect satisfaction with the comfort and appearance of your glasses and complimentary minor repairs and servicing. With this as my ammunition, I fired off a letter to their head office, stating that I felt these were misleading promises as they had, at least in my case, not been fulfilled.

Less than a fortnight later I received an extremely apologetic if strangely presented note (it was written on a compliments slip) promising me a new pair of glasses of my choosing from my local branch. When I went in they were well versed on the situation and were able to quote me a price limit for my new frames which was actually quite a bit more than my original ones had cost, these frames no longer being on offer. I selected some, re-presented my prescription and went off to shop for a while. When I returned I was served by someone else, but he had no questions about that fact that my receipt showed these glasses as being free. He fitted them properly, going off at one point to saw off the ends to help them sit better, and could not have been more efficient. As I was leaving, the original girl who had handled the situation also came over to check everything was alright. Glassy. A situation that could have put me off ever buying from them again turned itself around completely, and I would now choose them again in the future. Having a company who not only apologize for their errors but who also make significant attempts to make amends more than makes up for the original cock-up in my mind.

Vision Express are a national chain who have branches on every high street. Their website can help you locate your nearest one. Their plus points are:

^ a wide range of children's, men's, ladies' and unisex frames in a good range of prices, from free with NHS vouchers (clearly marked) to over a hundred for the designed ranges

^ branded glasses for both children and adults - if you so desire you can get Harry Potter ones for the kids, Morgan and Cosmopolitan ones for you, and Adidas ones for anyone

^ good service if you get the right person (and in their defence, the person who originally served me last year is no longer employed by the branch from what I can tell). This weekend I saw several staff explaining the merits of different frames and lens types

^ all glasses available within an hour, or delivered free to the address of your choice

^ eye tests available at your convenience....or free

^ a choice of contacts and prescription sunglasses - I just don't buy these which is why they don't feature much in my writing

Minus points include:

^ large glasses in some styles - I now have children's ones, and they still had to lop off large pieces of leg to get them to sit neatly

^ no immediate help in selecting frames - you can ask for advice, but when you walk in you're often on your own when it comes to picking out a pair

^ busy stores meaning you may have to wait to be seen - in contrast, in the D&A and Specsavers also in my local shopping centre, staff are waiting to pounce the minute you walk through the door

^ no (evident) computer modelling of frame styles to fit your face shape that other chains offer

Was I originally put off? Yes. On several occasions they delivered customer service that was neither courteous nor helpful. Will I give them a second chance? Yes. They redeemed themselves so promptly and superbly that at their prices I would be silly not to. Use them with reassurance, just make sure you quote their own PR garble back at them if you ever need to complain.

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