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.
☝ Compare clinics: See if there are any other top-rated clinics near you, and use our simple tool to receive a personalised quote.
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
Surekha Turvey
I had been wearing glasses for 24 years and contact lenses for roughly 10-12 years. I had contemplated on having laser eye surgery for a few years, but I was too nervous to actual got to see someone about it!
In the end I plucked up the courage and did my research. As it was my eyes which is very precious, id didn’t want to go these “Supermarket” type places, as researching about them didn’t feel me with any confidence. That was until I came upon Advance VisionCare-Mr Pillai and his team. This was the best decision; I made choosing Advance VisionCare. The experience of Mr Pillai and the reputation was made me go through with although there are other chains offering deals on laser eye surgery. My thinking is you can’t put a price on your vision; I would rather pay the extra and choose the best qualified person to do the job., which I did and it was the best present I could ever have given myself.
The whole team are fantastic, especially on the day I was very nervous and was put at ease. The procedure do not hurt one bit I would highly recommend Advance VisionCare.
Tia Tran
A procedure on your eyes is a frightening yet exciting idea. Make sure you do all the research possible on the Doctor doing the procedure. Ensure you look at their individual success rates rather an a national collective rate plucked from a national magazine. Is the Doctor registered with the health commission? Ask as many questions as possible!
Make sure you get to see and speak with the Surgeon throughout, from consultation to pre-procedure. Money should not be the issue. Choose the experience. Doctors with experience will also know what to do should anything go wrong. Go for it!! It’s worth it!!!
Eliot235
I had laser treatment with the surgery based on the reviews seen on this website and though i was very pleased with the surgery itself the aftercare customer service i received was terrible. On several occasions i had to wait over 40 mins for my scheduled appointment and the level of aftercare as offered in the brochure was seriously lacking. Overall happy with the surgery but disappointed with the customer care.
Blanche Gough
I would recommend Advance VisionCare to anyone seeking to abandon glasses. The organisation is very caring and professional.
The surgery itself seemed very daunting to start with but by the time the surgeon can, I was totally relaxed. The nurses were excellent the eye surgeon Dr Pillai was caring and charming and completely put me at ease and again professional.
The operation was quick (15 mins) and painless within hours I was bale to see clearly.
I would say it has been the best £4000 I have ever spent. Thank You All.
D Bath
Having tried a couple of high street chains for initial consultation I was pretty confident that despite my Opticians advice I was suitable for treatment. What I was looking for was a clinic where I knew I would have contact with the Surgeon before and after the surgery
I was very happy with Advance VisionCare because the staff never once made me feel I was on a conveyer belt. They gave me hard evidence of their success rate, impartial advice and plenty of time. Their price actually beat the two other chains and included a hotel and very flexible payment plan. Top notch service and no pain! My partner even came in and watch. Within 2 hours of the treatment I could read a text message, and my sight has just been transformed. Thank you AVC!
Dan McCormack
I have always had bad eyesight for as long as I can remember, and my prescription of -7.75 in both eyes made doing anything without glasses or contact lenses impossible.
Now, only one week after my procedure, my eyesight is practically perfect, and has definitely changed my life! Thanks very much!
Paula Freman
Although Advance VisionCare charge more than average for the treatment, you really do get what you pay for – high quality.
I felt reassured throughout the process, and the aftercare is excellent – I have had ‘lazy eye’ after the operation and this has been well monitored and attended to.
Glen Doney
I have been wearing glasses for the last 28 years, and I am highly longsighted. My right eye prescription was +7 with astigmatism, left eye was +2. I have been looking for mainly LASER surgery to get rid of my distance glasses.
At Advance VisionCare I was told that I could have Laser treatment on my left eye, but the right eye prescription was too high. I was told that I could have LENS EXCHANGE surgery on my right eye. As I did not know much about LENS EXCHANGE surgery, I researched, and read the documentation. I was glad to find out that once I did Lens Exchange surgery on my right eye, I did not need to have any other treatments like cataract in the future.Hence, I went for RE Lens Exchange, and LE laser surgery. I had the surgery two months ago and now I can see clearly for distance to drive a car and also read.
I was happy that I choose Advance vision care as I was given various alternatives to get rid of the Glasses not turned down as I was not suitable for laser surgery in one eye.. I thank all the staff especially the clinical team for their excellent service and care.
Linda Royce
I was really impressed with the care and attention from Advance VisionCare. On the day of the operation I was very nervous, but the team explained everything fully and put me at ease. The results were amasing. I had very poor vision and worn glasses since I was 9. It is nothing short of a miracle and the skill of Mr Pillai and his team. I feel like I have a new lease of life!!
David Isted
Excellent all round service from the 1st phone call. Everything explained in a clear method that made it easy to understand
