Advice needed on consumer rights with particular reference to opticians

[strange_complex]

Two weeks ago, I had an eye test, and last week, I went to pick up my new specs.

I really like the way they look. But there's a problem: the prescription for the right lens is too weak.

Double trouble: I had the glasses made up by a different optician from the one who did the eye test.

My problem now is that I've been sold something which doesn't meet my needs, but I don't really know what rights or liabilities I have in this situation. The fault clearly lies with the lady who did the original eye test - but I only paid £5 to her for that privilege. Meanwhile, I spent a lot more money than that on having spectacles made up from her prescription, but the opticians who made up those spectacles did so on perfectly good faith, and I have no reason to believe they did anything wrong. Getting the £5 back for the original eye test won't really do much to off-set the cost of having the incorrect lens replaced, but it seems to me that I can hardly expect the second optician to absorb the cost of replacing it either.

Did I accept liability for this situation when I voluntarily chose to go to another optician to have the glasses made up? Or do I have any kind of protection against the consequences of having paid rather a lot of money for an incorrect lens? I surely can't be the only person who's ended up in this situation, but I haven't been able to bring up any very suitable advice by Googling. The best I could find was this, which is someone reporting the same situation - but I'm not at all clear that any of the people advising him(?) have any real expertise in the matter, or indeed whether their comments would apply in the UK.

Whatever happens, I really am going to have to get that lens changed. I've persevered, and given the new glasses five days to 'settle in', but the problem hasn't gone away, and it isn't something I can live with. I keep feeling as though my right eye has some kind of film over it, or my eyelid is drooping or something - anything which might explain the poor vision on that side. And I definitely wouldn't feel safe driving with the new glasses, either. When I drove to the supermarket on Sunday morning, I swapped back to my old glasses, and felt much happier. So if I am going to benefit from any of the money which I have spent on this new (much sexier) pair, I will in the end be forced to just suck it up and pay for a) a new eye-test and b) a new lens if I can't find any way to make anyone else pay for it for me.

And I don't know whether it makes any difference or not, but for the record, I am not hugely astonished that this is how matters have turned out. The lady who did the eye test said that my right eye had been being 'over-corrected' by my old glasses, and that this was something I wouldn't notice in terms of poor vision, as my eye could compensate for it. But the extent of the supposed over-correction was an entire diopter: from -4.5 in my old glasses to -3.5 in the new. I did think that was pretty odd, as my eyes have never done that before. My vision has been steadily getting worse and worse ever since I was 10 years old. Sometimes the rate of worsening has slowed, but it's never reversed itself.

But then again, I've never had an optician get a prescription wrong for me before, and I suppose I am starting to get into the age bracket now where presbyopia might start to kick in, and for all I know maybe that could manifest as a reduction in my myopia prescription? So I didn't try to challenge what she said. I just accepted it, and with enough confidence to take her prescription to another optician (who had much nicer frames) - the first time I've ever had glasses made up from a different optician than the one who did the prescription, in fact. Obviously, I wish I had spoken up now, but it can hardly be deemed my fault that I assumed a professional optician had got my prescription right, I suppose. The test all seemed very thorough and accurate when she was doing it.

Anyway, if anyone has been in this situation, or knows anything about what my rights are, please do comment. And if not, I guess I've just got more inconvenience and another hefty bill coming up...

Click here if you would like view this entry in light text on a dark background.

Comments

[chrisvenus]

Well you don't have to go in and demand. It may well be that if you go in and explain that you got glasses made up with that prescription but that the eye is weak and you think there has been a mistake with the prescription and that it has cost you lots of money. I would expect most places to be quite decent about it, especially since this sounds like a small business where they have a lot more flexibility about refunds, etc.

Of course, the other possibility is that your glasses had one lens made wrong. From your description this does sound like the less likely result but you could always open with this line and say "I went elsewhere to get glasses and I think one lens is wrong since my vision through it is awful, can you check the strength of the glasses for me." if it turns out to be right then you can get into a conversation on what else the problem might be...

I just always think jsut asking them to sort out the problem before demanding compensation is the best bet (which is likewise why I'd not write a letter as first step but just go talk to them).