Eyeglasses and Frames -- German Quality

May I get feedback on this question. If I were to have an American
doctor's prescription, would I be able to save money on buying
German-made frames when I am in Berlin next year.

A prescription is about the lens, not the frames. I wear glasses and frames are not part of a prescription regardless if the ophthalmologist has a side business selling frames.

As for cost of frames, some vision insurance plans may cover frames in total or offer a spending limit. You will have to check if your insurance cover partial or total purchase of frames overseas.

If the frames cost significantly less in Germany, I suspect you should be able to buy the frames and bring them home to have your prescription lens installed here. I have no 1st hand experience, but a US prescription in Germany may not be honored.

I see no logical reason that would prevent you from buying just the frames. ( Beware, business and govt are not always driven by logic)

I doubt that they would fill an American lens prescription in Germany, just as they wouldn't fill a drug prescription from an American doctor. So you'd either have to get a prescription from a German optometrist or buy only the frames and bring them home to have lenses fitted into them. You'd have to check your insurance to see whether out of country purchases would be covered.

I have never tried to buy prescription glasses in Europe. I wouldn't be surprised if you could save some money by doing so, and I'm hoping someone can provide specifics. I've hesitated because of two doubts:

If you're thinking about just buying frames, you may find part of any theoretical savings evaporating if you ask a US optician to supply lenses for frames you already own. I suggest contacting your usual optician to ask about that.

If you're considering buying complete eyeglasses, I think there's a risk if you won't be in the city for a long time. It will probably help if you have a standard prescription that is kept in stock (mine is weird), but I'd still be nervous. I've had lenses that were manufactured off-site sent back by the opticians before I even saw them, because they were obviously wrong. I've picked up glasses and discovered that one lens was mis-cut (wrong center-point) and had to be replaced. I've also had to return to the optician to have the frames adjusted after I've worn the glasses for a day or two. I now figure on a minimum of one month to get a pair of glasses, and on one occasion two months proved inadequate. My prescription is extremely strong and I wear progressives; those are both complicating factors.

I understand the the Italian based Luxottica Group has something like 80% of the world eyeglasses frame market. See the 60 Minutes program on eyeglasses:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDdq2rIqAlM

http://www.luxottica.com/en/about-us/company-profile/luxottica-world

IN 2016, LUXOTTICA’S MANUFACTURING FACILITIES LOCATED IN ITALY, CHINA,
THE UNITED STATES, BRAZIL AND INDIA PRODUCED A COMBINED TOTAL OF
APPROXIMATELY 93 MILLION PRESCRIPTION FRAMES AND SUNGLASSES.

ITALY 41%

CHINA & INDIA 46%

UNITED STATES 10%

BRAZIL 3%

Lots of frames being sold on Amazon for people to take to their optician for lenses. Cost effective?

I'm curious too, Stan, but some of them may be buying frames and planning to send them to one of the online eyeglass companies. I can't imagine doing that, since one of the things my optician does is measure my eyes so the center points of the lenses are correct. (Though as I said, I've still had a problem with that.) And it's common for the nose-piece and ear-pieces to need adjustment so the glasses sit in the right position on your face.

I've bought all my glasses in Germany. You don't need a Doctor's prescription to get glasses. Go to a store that sells them, they will run the tests and check your vision (for free). My vision is poor, and when I got glasses in the U.S. the lenses were thick as coke bottles. My lenses from Germany are very thin, they told me the only country where they make them even thinner is in Japan.

I've bought most my frames in Germany over the past decades. Mostly because the selection of interesting and good quality designs is much better. However, I always go to the same optometrist back home to get the lenses fit in. I figure, if it turns out that the prescription was not quite correct, it can still be changed.

My current frames were bought here in Canada after I had discovered them in Germany. I googled and had found out that there were available in Canada and thought I get them all done here ... turned out the frames were $100 more in Canada than in Germany ...

Some years ago, I had a colleague who was a U.S./German dual citizen. Every summer she went to visit relatives in Germany and returned with many frames to sell to other people, at a tidy profit for her. She explained to me that frames were so much cheaper there that she could make a profit and still provide frames to others, at a significantly lower price than they could find here.
When you think about it, the price of frames here is absurd. The raw materials come to, at most, a few cents. When I recently purchased new glasses, the frames I looked at ran from around $100 to $300. Of course, other costs are involved; but I believe this is just another example of Americans being gouged on health-related products, much like the case of prescription drugs.

Like computers and cars, the international origins of eyeglass frames are obscured by brand-name merchandising. The products coming out of a mega-factory can certainly vary from destination to destination, to suit the local marketing. It is fun to look at what's selling elsewhere but you are experiencing the skills of marketing rather than unique handmade craftsmanship.

What ms.linda.bailey says is true: You don't need a doctor's prescription to get glasses in Germany. You can just walk into an optometrist's store and have them made for you. Of course, getting them made will take some time, a few weeks possibly even, depending on what you need, so the length of your stay should allow for that.

The thing is, you will have to pay for them yourself. I don’t think an American prescription is going to do you any good in Germany. And I doubt that your travel health insurance is going to pay for something pre-planned like that. And you should check with your regular health insurance in advance if they will reimburse you on glasses bought in a foreign country.

If, under those circumstances, this still looks like a good deal to you, well then, go for it.

"Would I save a couple of hundred dollars if I were to attempt to buy these frames and/or eyeglasses when I am visting Berlin."

As with any such purchase, you will only know by comparison shopping. Before you leave, see what the frames you want cost in the US. If they are cheaper in Germany, buy them there, and then bring them back to have the lenses put in in the US.

I have several friends who have bought frames abroad (for reasons of style, not price), and had the lenses put in in the US. Just check with your optician that they will do this, so you don't end up with frames you can't use.

Thank you, everyone. Very good input.

Although I have excellent medical insurance, I have always found dental and vision plans not compatible with my needs..not a great cost/benefit ratio. Also, I like to select the medical facility or supplier and not have an insurance company dictate one to me.

I do not have specific vision insurance and it turns out, that about two years ago, my ophthalmologist advised he would no longer accept any insurance plans other than Medicare. I may return to him for my eye health exam and I may pay the out-of-pocket just to get a prescription written, but I am still evaluating whether it would be productive for me to buy my frames and/or prescription eyeglasses in Germany.

After I take my trip, I will try to post some information here.

Do you have to pay a lot of money in California for an eye test and glasses? Here in the UK - I can't speak for Germany - it is between £10 and £25 for an exam (private, not NHS), but there are often coupons in the papers for free ones.

As an old fogey I pay nothing as eye tests are free once a year for 60+ on the NHS in high street contact lens and glasses fitters. Simple made up glasses with no coatings start for adults at around £60, adding extras for fancier frames and more coatings or difficult prescriptions to fill. My wife normally pays around £250 to £300, I about half that. There are usually deals on for two pairs for the price of one so that is for two pairs. I normally get varifocals with photochromic lenses in one pair and varifocals with a heavy fixed tint for Italy in the other pair.

Those aren't costs that I would consider having any insurance for. Paying that sort of money out of pocket every couple of years isn't a problem and I would have thought that any insurance would cost more.

Jan-Feb some German firms like Apollo offer good deals on frames and lenses. I just bought some with %50 off. My US Optometry prescription works without a problem. Personally I buy the better frames and lens, but even with the discount they are about euro 750.