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
Michelle Rivers-Brown
A 5-star experience with Ms Saw. She is very thorough with pre testing and explaining the procedure. After care was excellent and I obtained a great result. The only regret is not doing it sooner.
Thanks again!
Henrietta McCabe
Valerie’s care and expertise have been incredibly reassuring right through from the initial consultation until today (one year post-op).
I was specifically drawn to Valerie because of her expertise in dry eyes. I was nervous about the idea of laser given my dry eyes, and Valerie confirmed that ICL would be more appropriate given my dry eyes, high prescription (-9) and astigmatism.
The surgery was very quick and calm, and I attended the second eye on my own, having seen how straightforward the first eye was.
Valerie’s after-care was incredible. She saw me at very regular intervals and answered all my questions.
I still cannot believe how sharp my eyesight is – I had very poor vision out of my glasses and could not tolerate contact lenses. The surgery has absolutely changed my quality of life and confidence.
I am so grateful that I came across Valerie and her incredible expertise.
Niroshini Gallacher
The treatment was completely successful. Great to be able to drive without glasses and to buy sunglasses without having to get expensive lenses. Wish I’d done it sooner, best money I’ve ever spent!
Pamela Weeks
I found Valerie very informative prior to having my eye implants. The aftercare was first class. I would not hesitate to recommend Valerie to any of my friends who were thinking of having this procedure.
al kirk
great clinic
Paul Willmott
I never give anything 5 stars unless they take their clothes off. I had LASIK with Maxivision 2 years ago. They did not have wavefront. One eye was good the other bad. I had a flap lift on the bad eye one week later, still no good. three months later, just after Maxivision went pop, an enhancement. This was better but still had 0.75 astigmatisim and 0.25 short sighted. In the end I went back to wearing glasses. Optimax tuned me away and would not even talk to me Ultralayse in Guildford did all the wavefront tests but refused to help. Dr Pillai Improved my vision by nearly 6 lines in the bad eye, expressing his surprise that nobody else could do it. My bad eye is nearly as good as my good one, if you see what I mean, and is still improving. ..............enough said Thanks Doc. And thanks to every one at Advanced Vision care
Mark
I had Lasek surgery on 14th December after many years of contemplation. I have reviewed the comments on this website and others for a long time and then decided that I cannot learn anything more than I have and that it was time to Act, so, I did, and, I'm glad I did. The surgery truly is painless and even the speculum wasn't to uncomfortable. When the surgeon told me that he had finished the left eye, I couldnt believe it and wanted to ask if he had left something out but he might have thought that a touch insulting. After the surgery I had light sensativity for about 6 hours but no pain and that was a relief because I had expected a lot of pain with this procedure but there was none. I was told I had driving standard by the 4 day check up. My vision is a little blurry at times but I can still read small print and it is still slowly improving. I took advantage of the pay nothing till Easter which was really handy. I thought the price of £2800 in total was a little high but I was not prepared to compromise with my vision and wanted someone with experience and a good track record, Dr Pillai AVC. In the long term the price is still cost effective if you calculate contact lens + Cleaners + spectacles + test. It really is wonderful not to have to wear spectacles or contacts, although I still habitualy keep reaching for them. My advice to anyone thinking about having it done is research until you personally are satisfied you know enough about the surgeon, the company, the risks, beneifts and drawbacks of the surgery. Ask to speak with people who have had the surgery, I have had a lot of support from this website. Speak with the surgeon about realistic expectations and outcomes. Do not go for the cheapest option, although for most of us money is a factor. Think more about the track record of the surgeon, sucesses and also the quality of after care. Although most reviews about laser surgery are positive, this treatment does come with risk because it is still surgery. I am still hoping for a little more improvement in the quality of my vision, a it has only been about 3 weeks. So far, I am satisfied with my procedure and am glad I had it done. I would reccommend Advance Vision Care and Dr Pillai and his team.
Sharad Vohra
The entire experience from the consultation appointment till the surgery was fantastic. The entire team at Advance VisionCare are professional, qualified and do as a fantastic job in my walking you through the entire procedure and what to expect on the day of the treatment. It was very comforting to know that a Surgeon of the calibre of Mr Pillai performance the treatment & the aftercare procedures. I would recommend anyone considering laser eye correction to consider Advance VisionCare.
Sarah Jones
I have just gone a year since having surgery, and my eyes are still 20/20. I have had no trouble with them at all, and the service has been great. My only gripe is being left with the contacts in for three days after surgery when it says in the brochure you should only have them in for one day. They were agony, and it meant I couldn't see or move all weekend. On removal my eyesight was perfect however. Definitely recommend - it's a great company, and a great experience from start to finish. Felt no nerves or pain during the surgery at all, and my mum and sister were able to watch and found it fascinating! Only reason I have marked down the price is my company offers 20% discount and I didn't know this at the time, and they might have mentioned the discount to me when I was filling information out :) Saying that - it was worth EVERY penny, and I have been hounding friends and families to get it done ever since.
Tomoko
Had the first operation about a year ago and the result was quite poor on one eye - ended up with astigmatism (double vision, distortion, etc.), which I did not have before the operation. Went through two corrections over the next 8 months and now, one year later from the initial operation, the vision is OK but still not 100% satisfactory. I must say, though, that it is nice to be able to live without depending on contact lenses.
