Have you seen those television ads for two pairs of glasses for $69 from America’s Best Contacts and Eye Glasses? They are on tv every other hour here. I finally gave into temptation and a very dire need to get new glasses and made an appointment. I went to their website and read all of the fine print and all of the FAQs.
Now to be fair, I knew I was going to have to have bifocals which would bump the price up to $99 for two pairs. I have also had progressive or no line lens in the past and would prefer them to the lined bifocals. They do not list the cost for progressive lens on the website so I figured I would ask when I got there. And this would be where the problem started.
America’s Best was very clean and neat. It is laid out very well and the people were very friendly. I had made an appointment online early that morning and was a little dismayed that they had no record of my appointment when I got there. I filled out the forms and was asked to wait. It seems that the doctors were both out to lunch because they didn’t have any appointments scheduled. It wasn’t a long wait and they took me back for the pre-exam.
Once the pre exam was over, I waited about 5 minutes to be seen by the doctor. He was thorough and pleasant. So far, so good. After the eye exam, I was told to go out and shop for glasses.
Being on a pretty tight budget, while glasses are a necessity, they also take a pretty hefty bite out of the monthly budget. I picked out a couple of their least expensive frames and took them to the counter. On the counter was a placemat that explained their pricing packages or so I thought.
It was pretty simple. I was looking at their basic package for multi focal lenses which according to the place mat included the bi focal lenses, a one year warranty, a sun or vanity tint and UV protection. The price for two pairs of lined bi focals was listed as $99. The price for unlined (progressive) lens was $138. Ok, so I can live with that price. It was $39 higher than the lined bi-focals but worth it.
The girl took the measurements and my preferences for tinting one pair as sun glasses. She put it all in the computer and …. the grand total was $249. So I said, wait a second, what happened to the $138??? Oh, that price is just for the lens, you still have to buy the frames. Ummmm, that’s not what you advertised. So I told her to go ahead and take off the progressive lens. The total came down to $209.
Ok, so now I am getting a little angry. I pointed out that their website advertised two pair of multi focal glasses for $99. The girl told me that they didn’t. She ended up calling the manager over who told me that it was because she had included the warranty and the tinting. I pointed to the place mat with the prices and which clearly listed the warranty, and the tinting for $99 or $138.
The manager actually snatched it out of my hands and put it behind her back. She told me that that a package price and was just for the lenses and did not include the frames. By now, I am more than a little angry and I specifically asked her what exactly did the advertised Two Pair for $99 include? Was it the frames with no lenses or the lenses with no frame? She told me that I could get the tinting for $15. So if I do the math according to what she was telling me, the frames were $49.95 each and the tinting was $15 for each pair. The price advertised for the “package” was $99 for the lined bifocal lenses plus the 49.95 for each for the frames would bring the total package price for the two pair of glasses to $198.90. Without the package price, the cost would be $99 plus the $15 for the tinting for a total of $114. This means that you are paying $84.90 for a year’s warranty.
Oh no, I could get the Two Pair for $99 without the warranty and the tint. With Progressive lenses it would have been $199. Well, FINALLY!! I paid for my glasses which will be in about 7 days from now. I must admit that I am still not sure that I didn’t get railroaded out of the progressive lenses but I did finally get the lined bifocals for the advertised price.
My problems with this are many. Anyone who just went in for the advertised two pair would have probably gotten pressured into paying over twice as much. I have nothing against upselling but start at the advertised price and up sell me. Don’t try to tell me that it wasn’t what they were advertising or just upsell me without even mentioning the lower option. The girl who waited on me didn’t even know there WAS a lower option.
I left and I am still not sure that I was charged the right price. It’s a shame because other than the price difficulties it was a pleasant experience. Have you tried America’s Best Contacts and Eyeglasses? How was your experience?
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Tags: review
Oh dude— I used to work for an eye Dr… and yes, Americas Best has a total SH*T reputation all over the place. If I were you, I’d have gotten a copy of my Rx, paid for the exam, and told the manager to piss up a rope. I’d also contact HER boss, and continue to go up the chain until I got some satisfaction. Actually, you can still do that. They DID railroad you. The customer no service was horrific. The quality of their lenses is known to be problematic to say the least. Don’t let this rest– you as a paying customer DESERVE good quality products, excellent service (not having your appointment- I wave the BS flag on that one too!), and you do NOT need the hassle of crap treatment.
Git ‘em Cindy- don’t let this crap bite your wallet! You work too hard for your $$ to give it to a business who obviously does not appreciate you as a customer!
And when you get your Rx, go to http://www.zennioptical.com to purchase your frames and lenses. We have heard from no less than 30 people who LOVE this site and the options there. Not to mention the savings
There are several sites on the net that sell good quality frames at fair prices. DH has been in the optical business for over 30 years and I’ve learned a lot in my 15 years with him. Trust me when I say you DID get railroaded. But almost everyone does and that’s the rule, not the exception. The markup in that business is absolutely immoral in my opinion. At any rate, next time buy your glasses online or get in good with an optician who can get them at a fair price. lol
Woooh….I would have been very upset if I had went through what you did! I think the whole process of buying glasses is made ridiculously difficult for the average joe…such as myself!
I have to admit that I left still wondering what the price for the progressive lenses should have been. It was a very frustrating experience.
Mrs. Mom, I will check out the website and probably send a report to America’s Best customer service department. I don’t expect to get much satisfaction from it.
This makes me angry just reading about it! Completely ridiculous.
I haven’t tried this place but I definitely will not anymore after I read your review! It’s really such a let down when you discover a place that could potentially offer a great deal on expensive items like glasses or contacts only to find out that it was practically a scam. If I were you, I probably would’ve just left too!
That is just not fair!
Isn’t this maddening. I don’t knowhow they can get away with such false advertising. I too took advantage of a sale. I thought I was purchasing a $69. pair of glasses and by the time I finished my eye exam and everything they recommended, it was a whopping total of just under $300. It doesn’t help that I have astigmatism, need anti-glare and have v. bad eyesight but still, I feel the pricing is discriminatory and outrageous. It is far cheaper for me to wear contacts. Thankfully I can.
Wow I was on my way out the door to go to America’s Best to take advantage of this “sale”, but I decided to check online and see what I could find out about it. Thank goodness I came across your post! Thanks for saving me the time and frustration!!
Sarah, I have emailed you privately as well but I would and probably will go back to America’s best. I will, however, go armed with a copy of their ad and policy printed out so that I can be really clear about what I want and what I am going to pay. It always saves money to be an educated consumer.
Hi,
We were lucky today that we just paid for the exam and ran out. But when we arrived home and we tried to put an order through http://www.zennioptical.com we found that they were giving us the wrong information on the prescription. They conveniently missed putting a dot 2 different numbers which they changed from -.25 to -25 and -.75 to -75 which would totally change the prescription and I think they did that on purpose because we told them we are going to order online and we were told that many of there customers who order online don’t get the right glasses. They are not only false advertisers but also cheaters and don’t know how long they will stay in business.