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Have to share this related story. I recently got a new prescription and the glasses salesman at my optometrist said that my insurance is super generous and will

Have to share this related story. I recently got a new prescription and the glasses salesman at my optometrist said that my insurance is super generous and willing to pay upto $200 every year for new glasses, so I should definitely get a pair before the end of the year. So I looked around and picked a frame I liked. The salesman measured my PD and started offering me options on the lenses. Coat this, photo reflect that. I said no to every option that was offered since I know those will rack up the cost. In the end the salesman added up all the costs and said that the total will be $230. I was like that's great so I only have to pay $30 for them. But the salesman was like I already deducted your insurance payment in the calculation, the actual cost is $430 of which $230 you will have to pay. After hearing that, my eyes opened so wide that 20/20 vision was restored in them.

hart_russell 8y ago
Hallelujah it's a miracle!
deckar01 8y ago
My optometrists have all used color-coded stickers that represent the price tiers of frames. Only one of them ever seems to be under my insurance allowance. They don't really have an incentive to make them any cheaper than the average allowance otherwise they would be leaving money on the table.
- justfor1comment 8y ago
  Yes, I noticed this as well and the one that is under the insurance allowance is comically ugly.
webwanderings 8y ago
I bet this is a typical story across the board in US. The "salesman (or woman)" are just that. They are barely trained as technician in this field. But they are trained to sell.
greenshackle2 8y ago
I went to the optometrist recently. I needed to buy two pairs of glasses. I specifically told the sales guy that I didn't have $700 to spend, but I saw they had decent frames for ~$70-80 and I figured the lens wouldn't be that expensive - my prescription is not complicated - so I let him talk me into trying out some frames. We went through the whole process and the price came out to $670 for the pair. He was willing to give me a deal at $650. He was offended when I told him I'd buy them online for $75 a pair instead. (I have simple myopia but I spend all day on the computer and my eyes get tired. I had the optometrist do the prescription at 20 feet like normal, then again at 2 feet, specifically for computer use. It comes out slightly weaker than my normal prescription. They also take a separate PD measurement for the computer glasses and it was a bit different.)

hart_russell 8y ago

Hallelujah it's a miracle!

deckar01 8y ago

My optometrists have all used color-coded stickers that represent the price tiers of frames. Only one of them ever seems to be under my insurance allowance. They don't really have an incentive to make them any cheaper than the average allowance otherwise they would be leaving money on the table.

justfor1comment 8y ago
Yes, I noticed this as well and the one that is under the insurance allowance is comically ugly.

webwanderings 8y ago

I bet this is a typical story across the board in US. The "salesman (or woman)" are just that. They are barely trained as technician in this field. But they are trained to sell.

greenshackle2 8y ago

I went to the optometrist recently. I needed to buy two pairs of glasses. I specifically told the sales guy that I didn't have $700 to spend, but I saw they had decent frames for ~$70-80 and I figured the lens wouldn't be that expensive - my prescription is not complicated - so I let him talk me into trying out some frames. We went through the whole process and the price came out to $670 for the pair. He was willing to give me a deal at $650. He was offended when I told him I'd buy them online for $75 a pair instead. (I have simple myopia but I spend all day on the computer and my eyes get tired. I had the optometrist do the prescription at 20 feet like normal, then again at 2 feet, specifically for computer use. It comes out slightly weaker than my normal prescription. They also take a separate PD measurement for the computer glasses and it was a bit different.)