Coastal.com

I'm always surprised, especially in an economic climate like this, when companies do not put customer service as a top priority.  Coastal Contacts definitely does NOT prioritize customer service.  No need to go into the details, but let's just say I tried my hardest just to buy something from them, but I felt like they were unwilling to address my concerns in order to make the sale and then just sort of dismissed me.  As a result, I didn't buy anything from them this time, I'll never buy anything from them in the future, and I'm here writing this review to persuade others not to buy from them.  As I'm sure many people are these days, I'm very protective of my money and don't just give it away.  This company treated me as if they were doing me a favor by allowing me to buy from them, not the other way around.  There's too many alternatives for buying eyewear to put up with that.

 I would not shop here again

I have been using Coastal Contacts for about 10 years now and I wouldn't go anywhere else. I had to leave my other optometrist for the reason of cost. I just couldn't afford to go to him anymore. So I go to Walmart and have my eye exam and then I get   Read full review...

 I would shop here again

Ordered during one of their many "Free Glasses" sales.
Price was the only good thing about my experience (BTW, Zenni Optical has better prices).
2 weeks after I placed my order, I hadn't received a single follow up e-mail. I contacted customer service and was finally told I didn't qualify for the sale because I had bought from them before.
This would not have been a problem with me, except:
1) I should have been told I was not qualified for the promotion as I was ordering. Not WEEKS after my order was placed.
2) I should NOT have been charged on my credit card until my order shipped.
3) I should have been contacted proactively since my order was stuck for so long without being shipped.
Poor website and poor customer service. I'll be using Zenni Optical and Goggles4U from now on.

 I would not shop here again

I saw the information this morning on the Today Show (NBC) that Coastal Contacts was offering 10 different't RX eyeglasses for $10.00 ea.  I have been trying to order a pair all day and DO NOT get the discount that they offered using the code:  "todayglasses" However I always get a much higher offer from this site for around $88.00!!!!!!
What a SCAM to get you to their site and not honor their offer.


SHAME ON THE NBC TODAY SHOW FOR SUGGESTING THIS SITE

 I would not shop here again

The contact lenses took about 9 days to receive, longer than I thought. The main problem though is the Anti-Reflective coating they sell on their eyeglass lenses. Very poor quality, started coming off the lenses within 1 month. I guess there is a reason other online optical retailers charge more than 10 bucks for their coating.

 I would not shop here again

They used USPS to mail my order from Washington state to California.  Never received order.  Took 4 days for customer service response to email.  Said they would send replacement order, never did.  Tried to call, hung up after on hold for 15 mins.  Four messages to customer service ignored.  Order is 8 days late.  No response from them.  Disputing through PayPal...they have yet to respond.  I still have not received any communication or resolution to this matter and will now have to start all over again with another vendor.  Unresolved matter will result in filing a fraud claim.  WAVE OFF...WORST INTERNET BUYING EXPERIENCE I HAVE EVER HAD!  Use any other contact company NOT associated with these fools. 

I have never had this problem with other lens sellers on line.  I'm surprised PayPal keeps them as a merchant considering all the complaints noted here alone! 

 I would not shop here again

[EDIT: I am updating the review listed below because Coastal Contacts personally reached out to me and made things as right as they can be, given the circumstances.  I placed a new order with them today and they gave me a discount and expedited   Read full review...

 I would shop here again

Never Again! They charged me for two orders one with my credit card and one on credit. Told me that I had ordered both, which I did not. Asked why they did not charge my card twice for both orders then and he told me I had good credit. Wow, they didn't even have my social and no credit inquiry was done! When I called them on it, he told me the first ones I ordered were on the way and to NOT open the box. Simply return to them asap. I told them that my daughter needed the contacts right now and that I had every right to open whatever box came first as I paid for it. Upon opening it, the order was the "credit" order that I still owed them payment for. It was over $20 less for the EXACT SAME order I placed with my credit card!! This is why they did not want me to open the box as the invoice was inside showing what I should have been charged in the first place. Needless to say? They did not get their contacts back. Their mistake my reward for putting up with their bullsh**.

 I would not shop here again

CoastalContacts tried to rip me off!! They cancelled my order without telling me, yet still charged my PayPal account, and never refunded it!! I had to do some detective work to figure it out!! VERY SHADY!! I WILL NEVER BUY FROM THEM AGAIN!!

 I would not shop here again

I ordered a pair of glasses, Kohl LV77707 frames, from their $6.99 collection.  The frames seem to be a little flimsy, but the prescription lenses are correct with all the coatings on them.  They also included a clamshell case, cleaning cloth,   Read full review...

 I would shop here again

I am very fashion oriented, and to that end, I collect eyewear the way some people collect shoes- love to keep lots of styles at hand. That said, I cannot support my habit paying hundreds of dollars for every pair of glasses I own, so I turned to   Read full review...

 I would shop here again

I ordered 4 boxes of Contacts from Coastal Contacts since their $25.00 rebate made them the least expensive.  Surprise!  They wouldn't honor the rebate because included on my invoice was our PO Box number.  Even though our delivery address was located first on the address line, the inclusion of the PO Box number voided the rebate.  I feel ripped off.  When I called, they mentioned that the PO Box issue was located in the "small print".  What really irritated me was that the PO Box number was on the shipping order that they REQUIRED for the rebate!  I won't order from them again.

 I would not shop here again

Website crashed while placing my order. The error caused my order to be placed twice (duplicate order).

Only received confirmation on one of the order...

When I received the two package deliveries (turns out I also paid for two separate shipping charges), not expected.

And then trying to call customer service... yeah right. I waited for 20 minutes before giving up. An apology about an "unexpected high volume of callers" ??? but when I tried calling again next day, same message... get more employees or setup a better customer service center. GOSH!!!

Finally, I'm told that I have to pay to send the extra items back and also pay a restocking fee. I do 75% of my shopping online. NOT a new online shopper - YES I have a degree in computer science and NO I do not have a problem with my internet or computer.

Before offering any solutions to remedy the problem -- I'm blamed for using their website incorrectly. And then finally, a "this happens" doesn't help me at all. I refuse to shop here again.

I ALSO AGREE WITH OTHER POSTERS, THEY ARE WRITING FAVORABLE REVIEWS FOR THEMSELVES TO DO BRING UP THEIR RATINGS. WHAT A SHODDY COMPANY.

 I would not shop here again

Despite the poor reviews I read for this company (most of which were several months if not years old), I decided to order my contacts through coastalcontacts.com. The order process was easy. I got a great deal. I knew in advance that this would probably   Read full review...

 I would shop here again

If you're in a hurry for glasses this might not be the best place to shop.  I ordered 4 pairs of glasses 3 weeks before my vacation.  I figured that was plenty of time considering they ship using overnight FedEx.  The day they   Read full review...

 I would not shop here again

I ordered glasses and sunglasses from Coastal Contacts; they had the best price and exactly what I wanted; I didn't want to take the time to go to a brick and mortar store if I could just do it from my desk. The website is a little hinky - cheap-feeling,   Read full review...

 I would not shop here again

This company has never let me down.  The best prices and excellent service (in that my lenses always arrive within a few days of ordering them).  Will be buying eyeglasses there soon as well.  A friend just picked up brand name eyeglasses delivered to her door in 6 days for $120.00.  Amazing.
Only a complete fool is not buying contacts online these days.  Im convinced that bad reviews are written by optomitrists who are afraid to lose there cash cow of re-orders that are WAY over-priced.

 I would shop here again

I ordered from this company twice. Frist time everything was fine. Second time they screwed up my order, corrected their mistake, then attempted to stick me with the bill. Essentialy tried to charge me $100 more for the exact same order I placed the first time!

2008 we ordered 8 boxes (2 prescriptions) of Accuvue Contacts for $156. 2009 I used the auto refill link on their website to refill that same order...this time for $176.
When my order arrived they had shipped me 8 boxes of the same prescritption. I returned half the order as instructed and about a week later they sent us the remainder of our original order. Now they say I owe them another $74. That comes to $250! The exact same order 12 months earlier was only $156!!!

These people are crooks. They will attempt to overbill you then turn over to a collection agency.

If you like to deal with rude idiots...you found your contact supplier!

 I would not shop here again

Trying to spend my last FSA dollars before the end of the year, I ordered four boxes of contacts on Dec 25.  Coastal Contacts had the best price.  During checkout I had the option to fax my script (or email it).  They also had my   Read full review...

 I would not shop here again

Delivery time was very good, better then I have experienced from other online contact lens companies. I also found the prices to be better as well

 I would shop here again

Ordered contacts to be shipped overnight, specified on the order needed in two days...gave a one day buffer for them as well.

Received order confirmation that day.

10 pm night before expected delivery, 3 days after initial order, received email that they didn't have the contacts, would be 10 days to get.

This place is just a shill. Take your money elsewhere. That is a fact.

This company advertises heavily it has contacts in stock, overnight delivery, blah, blah, blah.  I am leaving for overseas...hope my contacts last. This is terrible service, and their advertising is deceptive.

 I would not shop here again

I've tried a few other online companies and have come back to Coastal Contacts. Their customer service is the best I've experienced by a long shot. I also find their prices to be very competitive and my Acuvue 2 are always available and quick to arrive.

 I would shop here again

DO NOT order from coastal contacts. They sent me three emails that kept verifying that they were going to send me my contacts and that everything was verified with the prescription over a two week period. (mind you the shipping time is supposed to be 3 days) I emailed them back stating that I really needed my contacts and to please get them to me as soon as possible. They replied that they do not have my contacts in stock anymore..and they will never get them in stock so the order was canceled.
They have yet to refund me for my order and now I am stuck with no contacts for work for another week. Do not order from them.

 I would not shop here again

Great online shopping experience! I ordered my contacts on Sunday and had them in my home on Thursday morning using their regular shipping method. They kept me updated on the status of my order throughout. I will definitely buy from them again.

 I would shop here again

I was hesitant to order my contacts having read many really negative reviews on Epinions and Google, but my experience here was GREAT. It seems that the company has taken previous complaints to heart and revamped their ordering system. I received timely emails to let me know 1) my order had been received 2) they still needed a copy of my prescription to verify 3) they received the copy and 4) my order had been shipped. The contacts, just as I ordered them, arrived 4 days after I placed my order (in reality, just 3 days, since they had to wait a day for me to send them a copy of my prescription). Not only that, they had (by far) the lowest price around on my O2 Optix. All in all, a perfect on-line shopping experience. Don't be scared by the bad press! I would definitely order from them again.

 I would shop here again

I have had great experiences with Coastal Contacts. I have been a long time customer and I have never experienced some of the issues that I've seen posted here. To be honest, I haven’t had to call customer service so I don’t have too much to say about   Read full review...

 I would shop here again

I agree with poor, poor, poor. Ordered contacts. They asked me to fax the prescription. I did. Was charged for contacts on February 20. Tried to look up tracking on the order. Kept reading error. Called customer service. Said they could not ship, there was a discrepancy in the prescription. I asked why they charged me before checking that. No answer. They said on February 24 that my refund had 'been processed'. I called March 2, refunds running behind. Then I got an e-mail saying my contacts had been shipped to Albany, NY. I called again on March 4, because I live in Aurora, IL. They said that I'd have my money back in 'one or two days'. Today is March 9. I don't have the credit yet, but I got another e-mail today saying my refund was 'priority'.

Thanks for nothing!

 I would not shop here again

Do not buy contacts from this company. Their customer service representatives are rude and they don't respond to emails. I had a problem with my order and their basic response was sucks for you.

 I would not shop here again

WORSE THAN THE CABLE COMPANY!
I placed an order on Wednesday for overnight shipping and was told it would ship on Thursday and arrive Friday. They said that the delivery would require a signature so I arranged to be home ALL DAY LONG. So at 5pm I called to find out the tracking number and was told there was a manufacturer delay and that it would not even ship until the following Tuesday! The only reason that I ordered from them was that my doctor's office said it would be next Wednesday before I would get the new lens.

 I would not shop here again

prices are good but avoid this on line dealer at all costs the aggravation is just not worth the saving my on line order was
duplicated (not my fault ) canceled by them so i paid for and received one order since then I have been hounded for payment of a canceled order and threatened with legal action but they never bothered to respond to my emails , calls etc only when I threatened FSA and trading standards have they finally acknowledged their fault but guess what no apology

 I would not shop here again

The contacts they sent were barely wearable, even though the appeared to be the genuine article. After several bad experiences, I threw the rest away and ordered from my old eye doctor, at higher prices... but at least his boxes were labeled in English, not Chinese, and his contact lenses worked. I wish now that I'd understood my rights back then to challenge the credit card payment. Never again.

 I would not shop here again

Coastal Contacts claims to care about satisfying the customer- but that stops as soon as they have your money.
I ordered 2 prescription vampire red contacts from them about a month ago. One contact caused severe pain, so much that it was unwearable. I called to complain, and was told that their lenses are 'never defective.'
When I tried to exchange it, they asked that I verify my prescription. After doing so, they informed me that the prescription does NOT MATCH what they sold me, therefore they cannot return the lens.
Apparently, they sold me the lenses without verifying my prescription. However, they are apparently allowed to do this (some loophole) and even acknowledge their error.
This is another one of those companies that uses the law to scam customers out of money. They know full well they sent me the wrong lens, that the lens they sent is defective, but they will not do ANYTHING to help.
I lost $80 from this experience. DON'T let it happen to you!

 I would not shop here again

I wear contact lenses but not as often as I should. That is, I should wear them daily and I only wear then once in a while. My bad, I know. Last year, I decided that I just had to get into the routine to save my poor, tired eyes. By then, I needed a new   Read full review...

 I would shop here again

My first experience with Coastal was wonderful. My second experience with Coastal was not so pleasant. Unfortunately the package got caught up in customs upon entering Taiwan, so I contacted them to inquire about their return policy. I sent at least 5 emails over the course of the week, and I received nothing. Nil. Customs eventually did release my shipment upon receiving my prescription and applications, but Coastal never responded. That was six months ago, and I have yet to hear from them. I definitely will not be shopping with them again.

 I would not shop here again

This is my fifth time that I have ordered my contacts through Coastal Contacts. EXCELLENT! The website is very easy to use. Every time, I have experienced fast delivery of my contacts. The price is always way below the price my Optometrist would charge me. I've told many of my friends who have also had great results with this service. Only thing to note is to make sure that you have entered the correct information and be aware of the billing methods since there is no big confirmation button. The first time that I ordered I made a mistake. On the positive side of things, their customer service people were very helpful in correcting my error.

 I would shop here again

Avoid this online retailer. Coastal Contacts charges your credit card BEFORE they ship your lenses, then is very slow to refund your money when they cannot ship them out. Yesterday, I placed a re-order of the same lenses that I had gotten a couple of   Read full review...

 I would not shop here again

I started shopping at Costal Contacts when I saw that they sold the KabaClip lens cases; they had the lowest price and widest selection of colors so I gave them a try. The Kaba is something that you see and think, "Why the hell didn't I think of   Read full review...

 I would shop here again

I have ordered from Coastal Contacts before a couple of times and I had no problems. Recently I was double-charged and they refuse to take the charge off. It would seem like a simple problem to fix. Now I have to file a fraud charge with my credit card company against Coastal Contacts for an obvious error. What a lot of laps!

Given the many choices of other contact on-line services, you might consider going with a more reputable company.

 I would not shop here again

Until I get around to having a Lasik procedure done for my nearsightedness, I will be wearing contact lenses. Over the past 20 years that I have been a contact lens wearer, things have changed quite a bit. As an informed consumer, I have more options   Read full review...

 I would shop here again

I have ordered from Coastal for 3 yrs now. I have never had any problems. The customer service is great. All my friends shop there now too.

 I would shop here again