FAQ

During the checkout process we give you 2 options.

Confirm your prescription details are correct and place your order through our European company Vision Direct BV. If you choose this option you can order without a prescription. We only recommend customers who know their prescription to use this option as we will not be able to verify.

Or you can choose for us to verify your prescription is correct, either provide us with a copy of your prescription by uploading a photo of it to your account or supply us with your optician's contact details so we can confirm your details are correct.

We'll only ask you your prescription checking preference the first time you place an order. If you wish to change it later, you must do so from the prescription section of your account.

We accept the following payment methods:

Credit card/debit card

• VISA debit
• VISA credit
• VISA Electron
• Mastercard credit
• Mastercard debit
• Mastercard & Maestro

We also accept PayPal.

Yes, to order contact lenses for one eye only, simply un-tick the left or right prescription box and proceed with your order.

Simply un-tick the left or right prescription box on the product page and add to basket. Do the same for your second product.

On the product page for your contact lenses you will be asked to enter your prescription details. 

Please note: If only one option is given for any field, the lenses are only available with that option. 

If you opt for us to verify your prescription with your eye care professional then we will call them to do this. However usually we will need your permission for them to discuss your prescription details. We will notify you if this is the case. If you choose to send us a copy of your prescription or you order through Vision Direct BV, you will not need to notify your eye care professional.

If you have a promotional discount code, please enter this on the basket page. Please note: If you use a promo code for new customers and you have ordered from us before, the discount will show in your basket. However, once you log in our system will remove the discount from your order.

See all Vision Direct discount codes.

If you are confident you know your prescription, you can choose for us not to verify it. When you order without verifying your prescription you'll get your lenses quicker. To preserve your eye health we urge our customers to have an eye test every two years, or as soon as your vision doesn't feel comfortable at your current prescription.

Please note that we will post your order once all the items are available, as we’re not able to split orders. Specific sales tax and/or customs duties may be applicable upon delivery depending on the order destination. 

We ship to most international destinations, please see the table below for further details. 

*Delivery to French Polynesia Islands can take 7-10 business days. Specific sales tax and customs duties may be applicable upon delivery for orders to EU Mainland, EU Islands, and the Rest of the World. 

We stock over 90% of all standard daily and monthly lenses and 99% of eye care products and aim to dispatch all stocked items on the same day if ordered before 10pm - no matter what day of the week you order. 

You’ll find dispatch times for all products, including high-prescription contact lenses below the Prescription field on the product page. Most non-stocked lenses will be dispatched within 2-5 working days. 

Please allow up to 3 working days for delivery to the UK or Ireland, for everywhere else in the world allow up to 10 working days. If you haven't received your order during this time, we recommend that you contact our customer service team. They're available to help Monday - Friday 8:00 - 21:00, and Saturday - Sunday 8:00 - 18:00. 

Please note: All orders include a tracking number so you can trace your order after dispatch. You can find this information in your confirmation email or via your Vision Direct account (Orders > Status > Track Order). 

You can track your order by clicking the "Track Order" link in your email or by visiting Your Account, under recent orders on the first page you should see a link to "Track Order" in the status column. 

In the event that you receive the wrong items, please let us know and we’ll post the correct items to you immediately. To return items to us, please see our returns and refunds page to find the returns form appropriate for you. 

If your order was damaged in transit, please call us on 020 7768 5000 or email us at help@visiondirect.co.uk. A damaged or broken outer box will not affect your contact lenses. If the individual casing protecting your lenses is not damaged, or open, they will be perfectly safe to use. 

Yes. Thanks to our 365-day guarantee, you can return any unopened, undamaged and unmarked boxes of contact lenses within a year of purchase. Just let us know and we will then post the same lenses with your new prescription (if you're ordering through co.uk we'll need to verify your new prescription), or issue a refund. 

Please visit our returns and refunds page to download the returns form. 

If you experience a split or faulty contact lens, please contact our UK based customer service team on 020 7768 5000 or chat online. You can also email us at help@visiondirect.co.uk. Although we cannot always replace faulty lenses, we can offer you store credit to cover the cost of the affected lenses. 

If possible do not discard your faulty contact lens until you have spoken to customer service. They will require both the lens and the LOT number of the defective lens to report the fault direct to the manufacturer. You may also be required to send the lens for inspection. 

Refunds will be made to your original payment method upon receipt. This typically takes around 5 working days, depending on your card issuer. Refunds to PayPal accounts may take longer. Please be aware that refunds will not be processed until the returned items have been received at our warehouse. 

Contact lenses are made from extremely thin plastic material and will occasionally split when handled. 

If your contact lens has split, simply call our customers service team on 020 7768 5000 or email us at help@visiondirect.co.uk,and they will arrange a replacement, or give you store credit to cover the cost of the affected lens. 

However, if you are finding this happens more than once please take a look at our guides on inserting or removing your lenses correctly. 

Yes you can try different contact lenses. However it is always best to speak to your optician before doing so. Our resident optician, Benjamin has produced a 'Contact Lens Guide' to better inform our customers of compatible and upgrade lenses for all contact lenses. You can view the guide here. 

When you receive your contact lens prescription from your optician, you should be informed of the wearing pattern compatible with your lenses. The most common contact lenses are disposed of daily, or cleaned and stored overnight for wear over a two-week or monthly time period. Some contact lenses are designed for extended wear; this means they can be worn continuously for a certain time period. It is not advisable to wear your contact lenses continuously without consulting your optician first as not everyone's eyes are compatible with extended wear lenses. 

Some contact lens wearers do suffer with dry and gritty eyes. Environmental factors such as air conditioning and heating, the position you sit in and the amount of water you drink can also affect your eyes. It could also be the contact lenses you are wearing. For example, Focus Dailies All Day Comfort lenses should not be worn for more than 8 hours a day. However, Acuvue Trueye can be worn for up to 16 hours a day as they are made from silicone hydrogel which allows more oxygen to reach the eye. You can use artificial tear or eye drops as they are better known to help to rewet and moisturise the eye or you can talk to your optician about changing your lenses to suit your lifestyle. 

Extended wear contact lenses are designed to be slept in. However, it is always best to consult with your optician to see whether extended wear lenses are compatible with your eyes. 

Multi-Purpose Solution is suitable for use with most soft contact lenses. Our customer service team can advise you on the best solution for your contact lenses. You can contact them by phone on 020 7768 5000 or by email help@visiondirect.co.uk. 

You should replace your contact lens case every three months (at least) to stop the build-up of dirt and debris from transferring to your lenses. 

Contact lenses containing the word "Toric" or "Astigmatism" e.g. 1-Day Acuvue Moist for Astigmatism or PureVision Toric are for patients with an astigmatism. Astigmatism is where the rugby ball-shaped curvature of the eye causes there to be two different prescriptions in the eye, resulting in blurred vision. This needs to be corrected by toric lenses with multiple prescriptions. 

No you do not need to purchase your lenses from the optician that prescribed them. You can purchase your contact lenses from any optician or online contact lens retailer. 

When you attended a contact lens fitting with your optician they would have determined the contact lenses that best fit your eyes and lifestyle. It is very important to tell your optician what you wish to wear your lenses for, how many days a week and for how many hours a day. We have produced a 'Guide to Contact Lenses' to help our customers choose the lenses that are right for them. 

Silicone hydrogel contact lenses are the latest lenses available on the market, designed for extensive wear and optimal comfort. They allow up to five times more oxygen to meet the eye than traditional soft hydrogel lenses, making them an excellent choice for someone who likes to wear their lenses for 14+ hours, or suffers from dry eyes. They can also be slept in, if you have the permission of your optician. 

You should always put your contact lenses in before applying make-up to avoid getting any on the lens, which can cause discomfort in the eye. When it comes to removing make-up it is best practice to remove and clean your lenses first before taking off your make-up. 

When applying your contact lens you can tell whether the lens is inside out by examining the shape of the lens on your finger. If the lens looks like a small bowl or "U" it's the right way, if the edges curve outwards, making the exterior look sharp and pointed then it's inverted. 

Yes some contact lenses can help to filter out damaging UVA and UVB light. 

Acuvue is the only brand where all its contact lenses have UV blocking technology. 

Other UV filtering lenses include: Avaira, Avaira Toric, Biomedics 55 Evolution, Biomedics Toric and everclear UV. 

If you are not sure whether your lenses include UV absorbing technology speak to your optician.

Do not worry; it is impossible to lose a contact lens in the back of your eye. Sometimes the lens can become stuck under the eyelid but it can easily be dislodged by looking in the direction of the lens or rubbing the eyelid gently, otherwise your optician will be able to retrieve it for you by lifting your eyelid. 

Yes, if you have different prescriptions in each eye. If you have the same prescription in both eyes it doesn't matter which lens goes in which eye. It is advisable to keep each lens to the same eye for hygiene purposes.

Your contact lens prescription or lens specifications are printed on the end or side of your contact lens box and labelled on the top of the blister packs that contain your lenses. Your optician will hold a copy of your written prescription; you are legally entitled to have a copy of this once you have completed your initial contact lens trial. 

All contact lens prescriptions include a least three values: base curve, diameter and power. However for toric or multifocal lenses additional values will be added to the prescription, usually no more than four. 

We would advise that you speak to your optician about changing the type of lenses you wear. However, our optician Benjamin has put together a list of compatible and upgrade lenses for all contact lenses. So you can see what the compatible monthly or daily would be for your current lens and discuss this option with your optician. You can view our contact lens guide here. 

It is recommended that everyone attends an eye test at least every two years. Contact lens wearers need to attend an additional check-up to ensure their lenses still meet their prescription; this is usually every 12-24 months dependent on the recommendation of your optician. 

A valid prescription is one that is in date. On your written prescription there should be an expiry date given. Most prescriptions are valid for a year from the date of your last contact lens check-up. 

It is always best to consult your optician if you feel your vision has become blurred and unfocused. You may have a slight astigmatism or you may simply need stronger lenses. Although you can self-prescribe the next available power this is not recommended by Vision Direct. 

By law you are legally entitled to own a copy of your contact lens prescription. If you did not receive a copy of your prescription at your last contact lens fitting you can request it by fax, email or post from your optician. The only time your optician is not obliged to supply you with a prescription is when you are still trialling a new pair of contact lenses. 

No, a contact lens prescription is not the same as a prescription for glasses. Your contact lens prescription will include extra specifications which ensure your lenses fit with the correct diameter and base curve. 

A contact lens prescription also differs from a glasses prescription as the power/sphere values are ranked differently, so your lenses and glasses powers won't necessarily match. It also differs for patients with astigmatism. 

If you cannot locate your written prescription but are 100% sure of your details you can still order from Vision Direct. At checkout choose to proceed without us verifying your prescription, this means that we will not check with your optician to ensure you have ordered the correct specifications. It is always best to check the prescription details entered against those on your contact lens box to ensure they are correct, it's very easy to read and understand your prescription details from your current box. 

Absolutely not, following your eye exam, your eye doctor or optician should provide you with a copy of your prescription according to UK legislation. We have a useful guide to help you find out how to access your prescription, which empowers you to order contact lenses from the retailer of your choice. You also never have to pay a fee to release your prescription, and should only ever be charged for having an eye exam or purchasing lenses. 

If you can't find your prescription or Rx, as long as it is still valid, there's no need to go through another eye exam in order to get a new copy. You can ask for your prescription whenever you need it and request it as many times as you like. Or, simply check the side of your most recent box. 

When you are trying on lenses for the very first time, yes this is true. However, if you're simply having a check-up, you should have access to your prescription as standard. For wearers trying a new lens, you'll need to wait until the end of the lens trial to be approved and access your new specification. When you order online, there's no need to wait until after the contact lens trial to order new lenses if you know your prescription. With us you can switch lenses as often as you like. First-time customers should test their prescribed lenses for a while to understand the size and shape of lens they are comfortable with, before committing to a purchase. 

Prescription lengths vary depending on the lens type and wearing pattern. However, most will be valid for up to 2 years. We recommend visiting your eye doctor for an eye test every 2 years, although some people will be comfortable using the same lenses for longer. Always consult your eye doctor when you can no longer see comfortably at your current prescription. 

It's considered good practice to have an eye exam every 2 years, this allows you to see if your prescription has changed and to detect early indications of eye conditions and even other health conditions such as diabetes. However, there's no reason you cannot order contact lenses once your prescription is more than 2 years old, provided that your vision is still clear and you feel confident it's the right prescription for you . 

We recommend wearers try a variety of lenses to find the perfect vision and fit. There's no need to stick to the one brand that your eye doctor recommended as it may not be the most comfortable by the end of the day. It can sometimes take time to find the ideal lens for your eyes and prescription, so be patient and keep trialling new lenses until you find something you can wear comfortably all day. 

If you've forgotten your password simply click "Did you forget your password?" and tell us your email address, we will send you a randomly generated password so that you can login. Once in your account you can modify your password in the dashboard if you wish. 

To change any of your account details, visit your account dashboard by clicking on the "My Account" link in the top right-hand corner of any page. Inside your account click on the "Details" tab and here you can modify your email address and password. To change your delivery address click the "Addresses" tab in your account dashboard and "Add New Address". You can also modify existing addresses by clicking on the "Change" link. 

Yes. When you checkout your card details will be saved in your account so that you do not need to re-enter them every time. If you wish to remove a saved card this can be done in Your Account under the "Saved Cards" tab. 

In Your Account you will be able to see a summary of your recent orders, simply click the "Reorder Now" button on the right hand side and the same order will be added to your basket. You can modify the order before checking out.

You can set a reminder to reorder you contact lenses or solutions by visiting Your Account and selecting the "Orders" tab there you can add a reminder to any one of the orders you've made, by clicking "Set Reminder" in the Next Order column.

VisionDirect.co.uk is the UK's leading contact lens retailer, we can promise you that we really do love and understand contact lenses. We've been fulfilling customers' orders since 1998, and we're dedicated to providing you with a simple ordering process that minimises both the inconvenience of trips to the high street and prescription validation, allowing you to obtain your contact lenses in the fastest time possible. 

At Vision Direct we buy large amounts of stock, so we can make huge savings that we like to pass directly onto our customers. We can save you up to 45% on your contact lenses and eye care products in comparison to the high street. 

At Vision Direct we don't only promise the same products from the same manufacturers as the high street optician, we also promise super-fast delivery direct to your door and the added convenience of ordering with or without a prescription. Our resident optician is always on hand to answer any questions you may have and our award winning customers service team are fully trained to answer questions relating to any of the products we sell. 

Our customer service team are available to take your call any day of the week from Monday - Friday 8:00 - 21:00, and Saturday - Sunday 8:00 - 18:00. They can be reached on 020 7768 5000 or by email at help@visiondirect.co.uk.

Our customer service team can be reached on 020 7768 5000 in the UK or by email at help@visiondirect.co.uk. Monday - Friday 8:00 - 21:00, and Saturday - Sunday 8:00 - 18:00.

The Vision Direct Terms & Conditions can be found here.

The Vision Direct privacy policy can be viewed here.