America’s Best

America’s Best has a deal that’s out of sight: an eye exam plus two pairs of glasses for just $89.95.

But before you buy a new pair of glasses, you need to take out the pair you currently own to read all the fine print associated with this offer:

There, America’s Best divulges some key details of the deal, including that the promotion only includes “frames tagged $79.95.” As shown below, that represents a small percentage of the eyeglasses the company actually sells – 17 percent to be exact, or 139 of 805 eyeglasses.

(Meanwhile, the company claims on the two pairs for $89.95 deal page that “almost 200 frames” are eligible for the promotion. Maybe they’re rounding up?)

But your options may be even further limited due to another condition buried in the fine print –that, in addition to selecting frames priced at $79.95, you pick “single-vision uncoated plastic lenses.”

As America’s Best acknowledges on its website (and as various other sources have pointed out), these basic CR-39 plastic lenses are meant for “people with low prescriptions.” Translation: If you require a stronger prescription, you will have to pay more than $89.95.

And apart from requiring an eye exam, it’s not entirely clear from the ad or the fine print that the deal is only available in stores. But that indeed is the case according to an FAQ on the deal page. (TINA.org asked America’s Best if the percentage of eyeglasses eligible for the promotion is significantly higher in stores, compared to what is represented on the website above. We did not hear back.)

TINA.org looked into America’s Best deal after receiving a tip from a consumer who said she was charged for the “free” eye exam and ended up paying $260 because she was unable to claim the two pairs for $89.95 offer.

The bottom line

According to the FTC, if the disclosure of information is necessary to prevent an ad from being deceptive, the disclosure has to be clear and conspicuous – not buried in the fine print.

Find more of our coverage on eyewear.