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
Baerbel Christou
I am very happy about my treatment 6 month ago. The customer service was excellent. I felt in safe hands with the surgeon and his team. I was unlucky and needed an enhancement. This risk was explained to me beforehand and I understand it is just due to the sometimes unpredictable healing process of your cornea.My vision now is excellent. I would recommend this procedure to friends and family.
Ian Herbert
My Treatment has been perfect from start to finish. I have no negative comments to make on any aspect of my case.
Stephanie
The customer service I received before surgery was great, then afterwards it has been quite poor. The surgery itself was over quickly. They do offer patients a sedative if they are really nervous as well. There was quite a bit of pain afterwards that I wasn’t expecting however I did have pain drops. I was given an emergency number to use directly after the surgery during the weekend. When I had complications that weekend, I repeatedly rang this number (no voicemail) and left a message with the answering service. No one phoned me back from either.
6 weeks on and only one eye has good vision, the other is blurry enough to give me headaches. I have left messages for the nurse to call me as apparently this is serious, and still no call back. I will end up camped out on their doorstep in the end.
I have to say, I would not recommend Advance to anyone, regardless of the rather cheerful surgeon. The after-care is almost as important and I have to say it is almost non-existent!
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.
Darren Grady
I had a truly awful experience.
Had CLE in both eyes but in my right eye, I suffered a detached retina. I had to undergo 6 operations at Moorfields (who have been fantastic) but I must undergo a 7th operation in January 2018. I approached Advanced Vision Care in August 2014 to say I was dispapointed and Mr Pillai sent me a letter stating I had signed the terms and conditions. I missed my eldest boys leaving assembly at his Primary School, cancelled a family holiday to Portugal and business trip to Barcelona. Forced to take 11 weeks off work and have so far spent over £900 on eye solutions as I am now suffering from Glucoma in my right eye. It’s easier to write a bad review than a good one. This is not just a bad review. It’s an honest one.
Robert Tomkinson
I was 26 when I unfortunately met Dr. Pillai. His team said I was 100% compatible with no issues of dry eyes or astigmatism, just mild short sightedness at -4 in each eye.
My first operation saw my eyesight increase to -1 but I was still short sighted, so I needed a second top up. This worked as I was better than 20:20 but had terrible night vision, halos and starburst, even in the day time, and dry eyes.
6 months later Dr Pillai recommended a 3rd operation called a lift flap and clean to address those issues, which were probably caused by the dryness. I regret taking his advice as this operation made my vision worse, with both eyes deteriorating to less than 20:20, the original issues prevailing and now my eyes have been bloodshot for over 2 months. Note I’ve followed his advice on drops, gels and supplements to the letter.
I was foolish enough to trust AVC due to their branding of being a Harley St. clinic but in reality, having been their customer/experiment for over 18 monts, I know that Dr. Pillai has little compassion, they struggle with high staff turnover, don’t have multiple surgeons as their website claims and most importantly don’t provide a lifetime of after care.
Please think twice about choosing this company. I regret the day I stepped foot in their office.
Rebecca Dite
I had my wavefront surgery on 19th March and had 20/20 vision the following day! The staff are professional, relaxed, polite and helpful, as is Justin Hardy who does my aftercare at Bournemouth.
If I’m honest, I found the proceedure quite traumatic, perhaps I am not as brave as I thought I was! It did not hurt but it certainly goes against all one’s natural instincts to stare into very bright lights as someone fiddles about with your eyes. I’m glad I had them done at the same time, though. Having said all that, it is a bit like having a baby, in that I soon forgot how I felt at the time and I am delighted with the results. I still have quite a lot of night glare, but that should settle down within a couple of months. I cannot fault my vision, otherwise. In my opinion Advance Visioncare has an incredible surgeon: Mr Pillai is very relaxed and has a great sense of humour and he clearly knows how to choose helpful, professional staff.
David L.
After an initial consultation at Ultralase I was told LASEK was my only option but did not feel comfortable with their staff and seemed not to want to answer my “technical” questions. After hours of reading and contacting previous patients I went for a consultation at AVC.
Dr Pillai was excellent at explaining everything and answering any questions-he also believed my best chance of success was with the LASIK procedure. I went with Dr Pillai because he seems very knowledgeable and most capable of dealing with any problems. The surgery was not bad at all and apart from the night goggles, all was fine .I am very pleased I week post-op with near 100% vision having been –7.00. Thanks very much AVC.
B
I had a consultation at Boots (Reading) today, and have arranged an appointment for the treatment on Friday (8th Aug). I also had an initial consultation with Advance VisionCare (London) at my local optician - Eyesite, a couple of days ago. I am now quite confused as whom to go with: Boots - I found that they were very general about things, didn't explain what the test were I was having done, very little detail was given, was passed to about 4 different members of staff. even though I told them that I had read up on the subject, I still feel that they should have explained things further. When I met the surgeon - Joanna M McGraw - she was very nice. However, the risks were explained to me in very small detail. The enhancement process was not explained in detail either, like, when would they don't do an enhancement. The aftercare is only 3 visits - is this enough? I explained that many other places offer a lot more, she informed me that I was able to come more than 3 times, they wouldn't turn me away. But they have found that people just don't want to come to appointments a year later. (I would want to?!?!) I asked whether Boot's used Wavefront, Joanna told me that if I needed it, I would be given it at the time of the surgery. Advance VisionCare (AVC )- My assessment was done at Eyesite in Reading. All the tests were explained throughly as to why they were being done. A counsellor from AVC came from London to explain all the risks and complications and to answer all my questions. She spent approx 30 minutes explaining the process and the risks involved. Boots must have spent about 2 minutes explaining it!! The aftercare offered by AVC is up to 18 months - 24-48 hrs, 1 week, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year and 18 months later. Are there many places that offer this much aftercare? AVC also use Wavefront - is this laser the best one to use? My main concern is getting to London, having to spent the night there at a hotel (which I would need to pay for), and for someone to take time out to come with me. Any advice/comments would be most grateful. Thanks :-)
Petrina
Having had conducted a lot of research into refractive eye surgery and various surgeries / surgeons, I decided to travel from Northern Scotland to Advance Visioncare in London. I wanted to attend a clinic which a) offered wavefront diagnostic to see suitability for wavefront treatment, b) attend a clinic where I would know who the surgeon would be performing the procedure (and who had performed a large number of successful treatments previously)and c) a place that was recommended highly by others. Advance Visioncare fulfilled all these requirements and as I wanted to give myself the best chance of a successful outcome (despite inconvenience in location) I decided to travel down for the surgery. The staff at Advance Visioncare have been nothing short of excellent so far and the screening tests prior to the surgery were extremely thorough and professional. I was impressed that Dr Pillai was involved prior to the surgery day, assessing suitability for Lasik himself. I was a relatively low risk candidate having a low prescription (~-2.0 or so on each eye and mild astigmatism), smallish pupils, plenty of cornea etc.Although it is only 12 days after my wavefront treatment (which is painless by the way), I have to say that I'm concerned that although I can make the 20/20 line and therefore am categorised as "perfect", everything is somewhat blurry, both at a distance and close up (distinctly lower quality of vision that what I had with glasses previously). At my 1 week check-up one eye was about -0.5 and the other -0.25 (not sure about astigmatism) which seemed like a pretty good result to me in terms of prescription so I can't understand why the blurriness persists. Some writing and images (especially noticeable on the TV, alarm clocks etc has 2 images, one above the other) and the full moon last night looked like an elongated egg with 1 eye. I haven't had any significant problems though with glare, halos, dry eyes etc. I'm maintaining a positive outlook as perhaps I just need to give the eyes longer to settle (but no significant change over the past week). I'll post an update and award a star rating at a later date.
