Q: What do I need to place an order with Glasses Direct?
All you need to order with us is your prescription. Your optician must, by law, provide you with a copy of your prescription, and shouldn't insist or imply that you need to buy your glasses from his own store. Have your eyes tested, bring us the prescription, and save!
Q: How do I obtain my prescription?
Your local optician is obliged under law to give you a clear, legible copy of your prescription following your eye test and you should not feel under pressure to purchase a pair of glasses from that particular store.
Q. How does the quality of your glasses compare with the high street optician?
We use the same products that you will find in the high street optician at much higher prices, all of our frames are CE marked and our glazing laboratory is fully qualified and has over fifty years experience in the optical industry.
Q: How can you charge such low prices?
Our business passes its cost saving methods to you, the customer. We can charge £12 for a complete pair of glasses because we have over thirty years experience in the optical industry and our large buying power allows us to purchase the same products supplied by the high street optician and pass the savings on to you the customer without any compromise in quality. Also we do not have to finance expensive high street properties and sight-testing equipment. We do not offer advice about optical issues, we simply construct glasses to the details of the prescription you give to us.
Lenses
Q: What are the lenses made of?
We use lightweight CR39 plastic lenses for most of our glasses. For our 'thin' lenses, we use 1.6 high-index lenses. We do not offer glass lenses, but we offer a free anti-scratch coating on all our lenses.
Q: Do you sell prescription sunglasses and other tinted lenses?
Yes. We have a variety of colours of tints (with standard 15-20% light transmission); or glasses can be made with the "transition" photosensitive feature. This type of lens is clear in normal lighting conditions, but tints itself under sunlight and includes a 100% UV filter. These options can be specified when ordering (on the product customisation page).
Q: What about lens coatings and tints?
We offer a number of different lens coatings and tints (£12 extra):
Due to the complexity of these type of lenses and the need for measurments that can only be provided with direct contact with the customer we recomend that this type of lens is supplied by your optician.
Delivery
Q: How long will my glasses take?
Your order will be given immediate attention and processed on the same day.
Glasses are sent via standard Royal Mail packetpost, and most packages we use fit through most letterboxes. When ordering sunglasses please remember that the carrying case for these frames in some instances is much larger and may not fit through your letterbox.
Our terms state delivery can be up to 28 days. However it is usually within 14 days, subject to the complexity of the prescription and coatings.
Your prescription
Q: "Near", "intermediate" or "distance" prescription?
If your prescription contains different measurements for near, distance or intermediate categories, follow the following advice:
Enter measurements for all categories.
For single vision lenses, choose the "near" line if your glasses are needed for reading or close up work. Choose the "distance" line if your glasses are required for seeing objects far away. Choose the "intermediate" line if your glasses are required for music or VDU (Visual Display Unit). If you need advice about which line is the most appropriate, please ask your optician at the time of the eye test.
Q: Can I use my contact lens prescription for ordering glasses with you?
While your contact lens and eyeglasses prescriptions may seem the same, they usually have differences. You must have your eyes tested and a prescription issued for use with spectacles, which is less than 2 years old, before ordering with Designer Glasses Direct.
Q: What is my Pupilary distance (PD), and how do I obtain it?
PD is the distance from the centre of the pupil (black spot) in one eye to the centre of the pupil in the other eye. This measurement improves the positioning of your lenses within the frame you have chosen. It can be provided in minutes by your optician or doctor, and so we recommend that you ask for it when you have your eyes tested. Alternatively, you may also choose to use an average PD, which is provided for you by our dispensing opticians on the order form.
Q: I don't understand what my prescription says
You can send in your prescription (click here to download a mail order form) or fax it to 02088633356 and we will try to understand it. However, it is likely that we will ask you to clarify the details on it with your optician if we cannot read it ourselves. Opticians should give you a clear, legible copy of your prescription to take away.
Payment
Q: What are the Postage and Packaging costs?
There is a £3.75 postage and packaging charge per frame ordered. Glasses are sent 1st Class via standard Royal Mail packetpost. Our glasses' packages fit through most letterboxes, but as designer sunglass cases can be a bit larger some of these will not fit through the letterbox. Special delivery can be requested when ordering glasses over the phone (02088638604) at an additional charge of £4.99.
Q: What are the available methods of payment?
We accept all major credit/debit cards, personal cheques, postal orders.
Q: Is the Payment page Secure?
Our payment system uses HSBC's secure on-line credit card payment service which is secured with 128bit SSL. Our SSL-enabled web server is enhanced with 128-bit encryption from Newnet®. SSL is the leading security protocol on the internet. 128-bit encryption is the strongest possible encryption on the web. Together, this ensures that any and all transactions are secure. If you right-click on the payment page, go to properties and look at the web address, you will see that it is an https:// page over a secure server.
Other
Q: Can I just order frames/lenses with no prescription in them?
Yes! Just click the Click Here To Buy Frame Only button on the selection page and then add the product to your cart.
Q: Can you read my prescription off my existing glasses?
Provided that your original prescription for those glasses is less than 2 years old, you may send in your glasses with a completed mail order form for us to read the prescription from them. There is an additional charge for this service of £10. We will return your glasses to you following taking a reading from them.
Q: Can you re-glaze my existing frames?
No - unfortunately we do not currently re-glaze existing frames.
Q: What do the Frame Measurements mean?
The easiest way to get the right frame size is to get the dimensions from a comfortable pair of glasses you already have.
On one of the legs you will usually find (with the aid of a magnifying glass) three measurements, the first two separated by a rectangle.
The Lens Diameter is a matter of choice, but the other two determine the fit.
They do not need to be exact, but the closer they are to your existing pair, the more likely your new glasses are to be a comfortable fit.
