1. Review of Advanced Vision Care
Advanced Vision Care (AVC) is an independent surgeon-led clinic founded in 2003 by Mr Pillai on Harley Street, London. With no affiliation with any manufacturers, you should be able to count on treatment that’s best suited to your needs.
AVC’s Medical Director and lead surgeon, Mr Pillai, has nearly three decades of ophthalmic experience and is one of the few surgeons to have fellowships for both refractive laser surgery and cornea treatment. Patients even enjoy the benefit of speaking to Mr Pillai during the initial consultation, and can look forward to a stress-free aftercare plan, including any retreatment if necessary.
What makes AVC different? This clinic prides itself on being able to treat any eye prescription using a wide mix of treatments, meaning it may just be able to help you, even if other clinics have turned your down. Its patients also give this clinic the thumbs up, leaving hundreds of positive reviews on our site over the years.
- AVC tailors treatments to its customers’ specific visual needs.
- You can receive eye care from a small team of eye experts, each with 25 years of experience.
- Laser and non-laser treatments sit under one roof, for customer convenience.
Is there anything else I should know? As you’d expect, cutting-edge eye surgery on Harley Street comes at a price, and this time it’s higher on average than you’ll find at some of the other top-rated eye clinics dotted around the UK. And unless you happen to live in central London, there may not be a clinic near you.
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2. Treatments
Advanced Vision Care specialises in laser as well as non-laser vision correction treatments, including all the usual suspects: LASIK, LASEK, implantable contact lenses (ICL surgery), lens replacement surgery, cataract surgery and keratoconus treatment.
- Advanced Wavefront LASIK / LASEK – Highly accurate laser surgery for those with thin eye surfaces or active lifestyles.
- Phototherapeutic Keratectomy (PTK) – Therapy for treating long-term eye conditions.
- Implantable Contact Lens (EVO Visian ICL) – Suitable for patients with complex eye prescriptions, thin corneas or dry eyes.
- Lens Replacement (Refractive Lens Exchange) – Eye surgery for those over 40 with a reading prescription.
- Cataract Surgery – Removes cloudy lenses, and replaces them with artificial clear ones.
- Corneal Implants – Reshape irregular eye shapes to make contact lenses more comfortable.
As is standard with eye surgery clinics, all AVC treatments come with a 12 month aftercare package, which includes: regular check-ups, 24-hour eye expert support line, and post-op medication for the first month.
In the unlikely event that you require eye surgery enhancement, any laser fine tuning or YAG laser capsule thickening removal (following cataract treatment) is available at no extra cost.
3. Technology
Advanced Vision Care was the first clinic in the UK to house the complete Alcon Refractive Suite, which it claims is the safest non-laser technology in the country. It creates a personalised treatment plan that starts with a Verion Image Guided system in your first consultation, and continues throughout the surgery with devices that ensure superior visualisation.
The laser eye surgery treatment is also advanced. The femtosecond Intralase 5F Laser works blade-free by using pulses of harmless light to create a corneal flap, and the Bausch Teneo 317 Excimer Laser takes just 3 to 5 seconds to correct your vision.
What’s more, the highly accurate Advanced Wavefront technology is included in all laser treatments as standard, and an Eye Tracking System tracks eye movements, so you don’t need to worry about blinking during the procedure.
4. Advanced Vision Care Prices
AVC has some of the most reasonable payment options out there. It’s not the cheapest – high street clinics such as Optical Express and Ultralase take the crown for cost – but the free consultation, fixed prices, and flexible interest free finances all help their treatments work around you.
Is it worth paying more? Of course, that’s for you to decide. But to give you an idea of the prices, laser eye surgery at AVC costs £2,100 (per eye), compared to well-reviewed alternatives such as Optical Express and AccuVision which come in at around half that on average.
| Eye Surgery Procedure | Price (per eye) | Finance Options (per month) |
|---|---|---|
| Advanced Wavefront LASIK | £2,100 | £66.67 (24 months, 0% APR) |
| Phototherapeutic Keratectomy (PTK) | £2,100 | £66.67 (24 months, 0% APR) |
| ICL Surgery (Simple Lens) | £3,450 – £3,750 | £122.22 – £138.89 (18 months, 0% APR) |
| ICL Surgery (Specialist Lens) | £4,150 | £161.11 (18 months, 0% APR) |
| Monofocal lens surgery | £3,150 – £3,450 | £105.56 – 122.22 (18 months, 0% APR) |
| Multifocal lens surgery | £3,750 – £4,050 | £138.89 – £155.56 (18 months, 0% APR) |
| Keratoconus Treatment | £2,150 – £2,450 | £91.67 – £108.33 (18 months, 0% APR) |
Are there finance options?
Yes, AVC has partnered with Hitachi Finance to offer flexible payment plans, meaning you can pay the full cost of eye surgery in bite-size monthly installments.
For example, you could pay for laser eye surgery in chunks of £66.67 a month for two years interest free, or £33.59 for 60 months at 9.9% APR. That’s generous – most clinics require 11% APR, and only the first year at 0% interest.
Does medical insurance cover the surgery costs at AVC?
Yes, AVC is an accredited provider of ophthalmic surgery for many of the UK’s leading insurance companies, including:
- Allianz
- AVIVA
- AXA PPP
- BUPA and BUPA International
- Cigna
- Simply Health
As always, you’ll need to confirm how you would like to pay before booking your surgery, both with your chosen clinic and your medical insurer.
Read more: Laser eye surgery costs explained
5. AVC Review: The Verdict
Advanced Vision Care consistently receives a five-star rating from hundreds of patients, which is why this clinic makes it to our list of the best laser eye surgery clinics in the UK.
With in-depth consultations providing an honest assessment of whether eye surgery is right for you, Advanced Vision Care also takes the prize for being one of the top places for laser eye surgery in London.
☝ Is Advanced Vision Care for you? To see if there is a better reviewed laser eye surgery clinic near you, just hit here to use our simple quote tool, and get a tailored quote from a clinic you can trust.
Surgeons
Advanced Vision Care Reviews
Adam Blakemore
I’d been thinking of having laser surgery for several years before now and had decided now was the time to do it. The service throughout, from my consultation through to my aftercare has been professional and highly attentive. I was given plenty of opportunity to raise any concerns and has never made to feel my questions were daft (even if they where). The day of surgery was surprisingly relaxing and everything felt as if it was completely normal and routine. Which I suppose it is really. My eyes are healing fantastically, i could see pretty clearly immediately after surgery and its been getting clear ever since. Not having to worry about contacts anymore is worth every penny.
Christopher Aitken
A very competent, professional, and friendly clinic. I was very happy and comfortable with all stages of the process. The only possible improvement I can suggest is with the volume of printed information that is given out. If this could be organised better or condensed I think it would be an improvement, as once you have so many sheets it it difficult to find the one bit you are looking for. Perhaps a binder with different sections for the different stages of the whole process would make things easier to file and find. Also, the Patient Feedback questionnaire is scored as 1 for Excellent up to 4 for Poor. The numbering system would be more intuitive the other way round, and the full address of www.lasik-eyes.co.uk should be included at the end (the .co.uk is missing).
Katherine Groves
I am so impressed with all areas of attention and care I received before and after my treatment. Mr Pillai was so reassuring and friendly that I was really put at ease, having been pretty nervous about the treatment! The surgery itself was less scary than I’d imagined, and a week on, I now have perfect 20/20 vision-the world seems to be in high definition and being able to see properly waking up is especially brilliant! Thank you to all the staff at Harley Street who ensured this was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made-I couldn’t imagine a better or more personalised treatment and I’ve been recommending it to everyone!
Tamsin Aitken
I was absolutely terrified on the day of having my eyes lasered, as I’ve never had any sort of operation (let alone my eyes!) But as soon as I real all the positive and honest comments written by previous patients in the waiting room I felt so much better. The staff at AVC were incredible and put up with all my incessant questions, and completely looked after me on the day of the operation. The operation itself was simply amazing –no pain at all and over so quickly, I was embarrassed at how nervous I was beforehand. I experienced no side effects afterwards and healed quickly with no problems. My astigmatism is now corrected and my night vision is so much better-I’m thrilled with the results and so happy to see without my spectacles! Thank you Mr Pillai and the team x
Jannet Pickering
My first impression of Advance VisionCare was that everyone was very friendly but at the same time totally professional with an air of quiet efficiency. I was very impressed with the thoroughness of the Initial Consultation and the time and care that was taken to ensure that I was totally happy with the procedure., but a the same time there was no hard sell, I really felt that everyone had my best interest at heart. I was very happy with the surgeon Mr. Goran Helgason. I met him before the first procedure and he was very reassuring. Having had multi-focal lenses fitted in both eyes has made a huge difference to my life and I now have perfect vision again. I would recommend this treatment to anyone. My grateful thanks to everyone at Advance VisionCare. Janet Pickering
JANET PICKERING
My first impression of Advance Visioncare was that everyone was very friendly but at the same time totally professional with an air of quiet efficiency. I was very impressed with the thoroughness of the Initial Consultation and the time and care that was taken to ensure that I was totally happy with the procedure., but a the same time there was no hard sell, I really felt that everyone had my best interest at heart. I was very happy with the surgeon Mr. Goran Helgason. I met him before the first procedure and he was very reassuring. Having had multifocal lenses fitted in both eyes has made a huge difference to my life and I now have perfect vision again. I would recommend this treatment to anyone. My grateful thanks to everyone at Advance Visioncare. Janet Pickering.
Hon Ming Loo
I would like to thank you. Mr Pillai and his wonderful team for my successful laser eye treatment. If you were like me and unsure and reading this in the clinic be rest assured as you are in the hand of a very professional team. From the start the team conducts several tests and explains the results and the options available. Once you decide you are free to book the operation at your convenience. The actual operation is under 30 minutes and the results are immediate although the best results occur after the recovery. I was most impressed with the aftercare service. From the courtesy phone call after the operation to the month after check up, the team is with you to explain the healing process. I would recommend anyone considering laser eye treatment to Mr Pillai and his team.
Jason Harrison
Excellent package. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend and have done already. Best decision I’ve made in a long time
Gitesh Jayantilal Chauhan
From start to finish the service was excellent and all questions were answered to clear up any enquiries. What was explained with regards to explanations happened in the same way i.e. procedures, visit, etc. From my experience the people guiding me knew what they were doing and made feel comfortable in proceeding with the operation. Suffering with slight dryness in eyes, but this was explained. Currently taking drops and this is helping with the problem. Thanks to Lela for all her help and Mr Pillai for operation and consultation was very professional.
Jemma Weekes
All staff are extremely professional and at the same time friendly and approachable. Very impressed at Mr Pillai and I like the fact that we meet with the Surgeon before treatment and he sees us several times after. Am very happy at the overall experience!
