Online sales of prescription eyewear and sunglasses are governed by a set of rules and regulations that guarantee reliable, high-quality service. Let's take a closer look at this legislation and the advantages that buying eyewear online can bring you.

The Hamon law of August 19, 2014

Faced with the consequent development of online opticians, a legal framework has been put in place through several laws and more particularly through the Hamon law voted in August 2014. Restoring purchasing power to consumers by lowering prices and thus liberalizing access to glasses for all is one of the aims of this law. It introduces new rules in various sectors, including optics.

With regard to the sale of eyewear, the Hamon law stipulates the following points:

  • It is no longer compulsory to hold an optician's diploma to own and manage an optical outlet. It is, however, mandatory to employ qualified opticians.
  • Online eyewear sales used to be complicated by the need to measure pupillary distance (the distance between the two eyes), which had to be done by the customer. The Hamon law now requires ophthalmologists to indicate the patient's pupillary distance on the prescription.
  • Eyewear and contact lens care products can now be sold by online opticians, whereas previously such sales were restricted to qualified opticians and pharmacists.
  • Online opticians must be able to provide as much information as possible on the origin and quality of their lenses, the characteristics of the frames they sell, the procedures to follow for reimbursements, the treatments adapted to each pathology..

To find out more about the Hamon law, take a look at our Legislation advice page.

Obligations for online opticians

Although the laws in force are designed to liberalize access to eyewear, they do impose certain obligations on online opticians.

Qualified opticians

As mentioned above, online opticians are obliged to employ one or more qualified opticians, depending on the size of their business. This makes perfect sense, since Internet users often need advice on lens selection, frame specifications, reimbursement procedures, prescription reading..

French national health insurance and supplementary health insurance providers

Online opticians are also required to be accredited by the French French national health insurance and supplementary health insurance providers.

The advantages of buying glasses online

Buying glasses or sunglasses online has many advantages. One of the most frequently cited is price. It's undeniable that online opticians offer much lower prices than traditional opticians. With an online optician, prices can vary by up to 70% compared with a traditional optician.

Opticians are also obliged to provide information on the quality and origin of their lenses. At MyMonture, our lenses are made in France. This offers Internet users an additional guarantee of quality.

The accreditation required of online opticians can only be held by a French seller. Once again, Internet users benefit from a guarantee of quality.

Finally, an online optician has the advantage of offering an unrivalled choice of frame brands. At MyMonture, over 100 brands can be found online. This offers 10 times more choice than a traditional optician.