Deposit Refunds

OE finally agreed to refund my full £500 deposit on 4th December. Said it will be paid in the next 7 working days. Thank you Sasha for your excellent advice on dealing with the issue and advising me to communicate with OE by email only. It took a while but worked a treat. Thanks again Sasha for your help.
Sean

Will update again when refund is received.

Keep up the good work.

Hi there,
On September 19th I had a consultation at Optical Express in Nottingham with regards to having eye lens replacement surgery. A consultant called Amy performed several tests on my eyes and after having an eye vision test with a male consultant I was returned to Amy who asked if I was interested in having the surgery. I said I was interested and immediately she wanted me to book a date for surgery. I said I would need to speak to my employer to see when I can get time off. She then kept pushing for me to book a date saying the appointments go really quickly so I booked for the 10th November because she said they are really flexible if I need to change the date. So I was asked to pay a deposit for the surgery which I did and I was given two copies of the terms and conditions to take home and read when I get the chance and bring one back on the day of the surgery. The following Saturday the 26th of September I called Amy to cancel the surgery after reading lots of bad reviews online and she said she would call head office and cancel. She also said that I might not get all the deposit back due to terms and conditions which I replied, I haven't signed your terms and conditions so I want the full amount refunded. I then waited until October 20th and called Amy again who said she would email head office to see what was going on. Didn't hear anything back from Amy so waited a couple of weeks and still no response. On November 18th I rang the Nottingham branch and spoke to the manager Sharon to put in a complaint about Amy. I explained everything to her and she said the same about the terms and conditions. I explained that I hadn't signed any. She then said that because I paid the deposit that I had agreed to the T&Cs. I told her Amy did not explain that to me. After telling me she would speak to Amy and call me back the next day, I wasn't surprised the call never came.
Any advice would be much appreciated.
Thanks
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admin: Send your phone number and I will call you
sasha@opticalexpressruinedmylife.co.uk

I attended the Optical Express clinic in Derby for a free lasik consultation last Saturday and pressured into paying £500 deposit there and then!
Having read loads of horror reviews all over the internet I have decided to cancel.
The surgeon, Dr Muhammad Kazmi, whom I was booked with, was claimed to have a 100% satisfaction rating. However just 5 minutes of internet searching turned up two negative reviews of him!
When I called to cancel I was told I would hear back. However I am yet to hear anything.
As a student, even £500 is a lot of money! I'm very glad I haven't forked over the remaining £4690 they wanted.
What should I do?
Thanks, Toby
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admin: Like most OE surgeons, Kazmi has had many legal claims brought against him by his damaged patients. Send your phone number and I will call you
sasha@opticaexpressruinedmylife.co.uk

Hi
I attended Optical Express last Friday for remainder of specialist eye tests in preparation for lens replacement surgery in Glasgow.

As a recently retired nurse, I am aware of questions I should ask. One of which was about the surgeon Mr David Teenan and his success rate.

I was informed he was a world renowned surgeon who has successfully carried out lens replacement surgery for many years.

Today, I thought I would do a bit of research into the surgeon and the success rate of this operation.

Thankfully, I did, as I am totally shocked at the reviews I have discovered as well as some horror stories, many of which are detailed in reputable newspapers and some name David Teenan. My biggest shock is that OE is presently being sued by over 80 patients, which frankly speaks for itself.

Needless to say, I will not be going ahead with this surgery. My worry is, that I did pay a deposit of £500, despite telling the girl I was still unsure about going forward with the procedure, but she was keen that I make the appointment in Glasgow. She said I would have a full refund if I changed my mind. Having read so many reviews, I am worried this is not the case....please advise.
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admin: Pls send your phone number and I will call you.
PS: 80 is a fraction of the number of patients suing OE and the majority of their surgeons
sasha@opticalexpressruinedmylife.co.uk

Received a text to call for my refund the day after this post. They were extremely polite and told me I’d get a full refund within 3 days. 1 day later received full £500 deposit refund. Thank you for all help Sasha, all the best! x

I had a free consultation for laser eye surgery at Derby OE on the 30th Sepetmebr but was told I was unsuitable and offered lens replacement - at almost 3 times the cost I was prepared for! Badgering hard sell convinced me to apply for credit which I did not want to do as I had told them I recently stopped working because of my anxiery and depression. I told them that I had other health issues (fibromyglia) so they gave me a form to give to my GP to sign.
I went home to wait for my credit to be accepted and when it was OE phoned me to take my deposit of £500 to book my surgery date for the 17th Nov.
The next working day I spoke to my GP who refused to sign the letter they gave me and she explained the risks to me if I was going to go ahead with the operation.
I decided after speaking to my doctor and extensive research to cancel my operation before my due phone consultation with the surgeon (whose name I was not given) booked for 30th October.
I have been trying to contact them since the day after I paid my deposit to cancel. I have spoke to two people and also to someone in a live chat and they all said the same thing, that the cancellations department will contact me, but I’ve heard nothing from them at all.
I’m feeling very anxious that I won’t get my £500 deposit back and I am really upset!
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admin: Pls send your phone number and I will help you get your money back.
They had no right to even consider offering you surgery, let alone take a deposit after being advised that you suffer with depression. However, as the optom and all store staff must meet sales targets to keep their jobs (also paid bonuses) they leave their moral compass at home.
This is yet another complaint for the GOC, as I will explain when we speak
sasha@opticalexpressruinedmylife.co.uk

An update on my refund: I had a call from the Meadowhall branch manager yesterday who said they will refund my £500 deposit after I explained that I felt pressured into paying it on the day of eye tests in order to get my slot "reserved". I explained it was a long visit over 2 hours and left me quite exhausted. He said it would take 28 days to return but I replied I really can't wait that long as I'm moving house in 2 weeks time and that would go a long way towards the costs. He promised to try to get it fast tracked but I have decided to go through the Money Claims Online route to get it back as a 28 day wait is ridiculous, especially given that it left my account within 24 hours of paying! Besides, there's no good reason for a 28 day wait - perhaps I should add interest!
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admin: He omitted to mention that it's 28 WORKING Days
sasha@opticalexpressruinedmylife.co.uk

Hi.

My eyes were due to be lasered on the 23rd of September. I saw the surgeon on the day who advised me that I was very high risk (something I was not told at my initial consultation when I booked my surgery, which is why I believe I was mislead into a contract). As a result of this, I obviously did not go ahead due to the professional advice. However, I was within Optical Express’ guidelines so they technically could have operated on me if I‘d have ignored the risks highlighted to me.

When I was called the day after regarding my refund, I was told that £100 would be deducted from the total amount!

It has been 26 days now and I have just spoken to a lady on their phone lines who said that £500 deposit will not be refunded. They said that the surgeon never wrote that I was high risk in the notes, so they can not give me my money back.

I feel scammed. Any advice would be appreciated.
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admin: They have no legal right to keep your deposit - any of it!
Send email with your phone number and I will call you
sasha@opticalexpressruinedmylife.co.uk

Hi, new to the group with thanks to Sasha for making me see the hard sell and dubious OE tactics.
Paid £500 deposit by debit card on 1 October at Meadowhall branch after a wearying 2 and a half hours of tests. I didn't have the cash in the bank and offered to pay half that day and half the next so the girl I spoke with had to go and ask her manager, which took a good 10 minutes. She said I had to pay it to "secure" my appt for 20 November in Nottingham.
Now realised that much as I hate my glasses, it's better than the risk involved in implant surgery.
Messaged their "live chat" yesterday for a refund and was told my query would be passed to the cancellation team and now can see I'll have a battle on my hands, looking at other customers' experiences.
Will update with progress or lack of, as will chase on Monday with a call and if no joy within 24 hours, go straight to online claim though MCOL.
Thanks again Sasha, my many rescue animals would have been impossible to care for had my eyes been damaged in any way. The odds they quote are outright lies, glad I didn't go as far as surgery!

I went to Birmingham Optical Express in November 2019 for lens replacement. I paid £500 deposit and overall cost would be £6490. At my consultation i wanted to book in February, but the diary didn't go that far, so I was penciled in for January to be changed at a later date. I phoned to change the date and was told the surgery in Birmingham was on the Thursday, which was no good to me as i wanted most of the week off to recover, as I needed to drive on the Monday. The sales person talked me round to have the surgeon 's discussion [Alex George] and to ask him if that's enough time to recover. I didn't ask the surgeon as I didn't want to take the risk, I wanted a week to recover. They did say if i couldn't do Birmingham I could go to Bristol or Nottingham, but I didn't want to travel 40-60 miles and travel back after going through the procedure. If i was told at my inital consultation there was only Thursday appointments I wouldnt have paid a deposit. i wasn't even told it was non refundable. Are they allowed to keep it? Phoned Optical Express today, all the person would say was its in the terms and conditions and I cancelled!
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admin: They have no legal right to keep your deposit - any of it!
Send email with your phone number and I will call you
sasha@opticalexpressruinedmylife.co.uk

Update: OE still using Covid as an excuse to bat away complaints yet no probem communicating with new customers ...

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This customer ony discovered after being pressured to pay his deposit that Alex George aka Dr Duck has numerous legal claims in process against him... www.opticalexpressruinedmylife.co.uk/ind...al-alex-george#18894

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