1-800-Contacts is the rare company where an actual human picks up the phone when you call–no maze of phone menus. Peter tells Consumerist that he had a fantastic experience where a customer service rep went above and beyond in the service of the health of his eyes.

I just wanted to mention my love for 1-800-contacts, and how they go above and beyond as a usual part of their business. Besides having a direct-to-CSR phone line (no phone-menu’s to navigate through, a real person picks up the phone immediately), friendly CSR’s, quick service, and a great return policy, today they went above and beyond what I would expect them to do. Let me explain:

I recently was told by my eye care professional to take a month break from contacts. My glasses were really old and cracked — pretty much unwearable. I went to an in-the-mall-one-hour glasses place to get a new pair before work the next day. They tried to call my optometrist’s office to get a copy of my current prescription so that they could fill the order for new glasses. Well, it turns out my doctor was on vacation, and so nobody would be able to send my prescription for several days.

I knew that 800contacts had my prescription since I order contacts from them. I called their number, and a friendly CSR answered right away. After verifying my identity, the CSR was eager to help by faxing a copy of my prescription (which they had on file) to the glasses place at the mall. She even offered to look up the mall-store’s phone number and fax number. Sure enough, they faxed it over, and I was able to get a new pair of glasses this evening.

I find these responsible actions to be refreshing. 800-contacts didn’t need to fax my prescription (in some sense the glasses store in the mall is a competitor — they sell contact lenses too). But, they went ahead and did it since it was the right thing to do. I’m continuously impressed by their level of service.

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