Boots Opticians Professional Services has been summoned to appear before a General Optical Council fitness to practise committee (FTP) following misconduct allegations relating to advertising of its blue light filtering lenses.
The GOC alleged that the multiple failed to ensure advertising complied with the Advertising Standards Agency codes and that copy was not misleading to potential purchasers. The regulator also alleged that the multiple did not obtain sufficient evidence for links between ‘harmful blue light’ and retinal damage over time and the capability of its Boots Blue Protect Plus lenses to filter the ‘harmful’ elements of the spectrum.
A third element of the allegation centred on the failure to ensure that the advertising campaign had been approved by a GOC registrant.
Sanctions available to the FTP committee include a financial penalty and a period of suspension, which could prevent the company from using protected titles such as optician.
The case was scheduled for May 24 at GOC headquarters.