Cataract surgery in Leeds

Cataract surgery is one of the most common procedures that people choose to have done privately in the UK. More than 1,900 private cataract procedures were carried out last year in the Leeds area alone. Read on to find out where you can go for private cataract surgery in and around Leeds, and what consultants offer this service.

Cataract surgery in and around Leeds

There are sixteen hospitals offering private cataract surgery within a 25-mile radius of Leeds. Most of these are independent hospitals, but three – Pinderfields Hospital, Airedale General hospital and The York Hospital – are NHS hospitals with a Private Patient Unit on site.

Nuffield Health York Hospital, which is 50 minutes’ drive from Leeds and also offers remote consultations, performs the most private cataract procedures (495) in this region. In Leeds itself, Spire Leeds is the busiest hospital for cataract surgery, with 295 admissions last year. The other hospital situated in Leeds city centre – Nuffield Health Leeds – has an outstanding rating from the Care Quality Commission and a patient satisfaction score of 95%.

Our data shows there are 28 consultant surgeons providing private cataract surgery in this area. Spire Leeds has the widest range of consultants available for cataract surgery, with eight consultants practising here. You can view our data for all the consultants performing private cataract surgery in this area on our website.

Cost of your initial consultation

If you’re considering private cataract surgery, you’ll need to book an initial consultation with a surgeon to assess your eye health and suitability for surgery first. The fee for this differs, depending on your consultant. If you have private health insurance, check whether it covers the initial consultation fee.

In the Leeds area, our data shows an average fee of around £210 for an initial consultation for cataract surgery. It can be anywhere from £140 up to £300 though. You should be told the exact fee before your consultation. You can find estimated initial consultation fees for individual consultants on their profile page.

Self-funding cataract surgery

If you decide to go ahead with cataract surgery, there are two ways of paying for private treatment. The most common method for cataract surgery is to self-fund your treatment directly. You may be charged for this in two different ways.

• A ‘fee-per-service’ arrangement. This is the traditional way of paying for treatment. It means you’ll receive separate invoices from the surgeon, the anaesthetist and the hospital. You often won’t know the full costs until you receive the invoices – it can be difficult to get an exact price beforehand.
• An all-inclusive ‘package price’. With this option, you’ll be given a full guide price including all the fees, before undergoing treatment. Not all consultants and hospitals offer this.

Of the five hospitals in the Leeds area that advertise package prices, these range from £2,295 to £3,780 for cataract surgery on one eye, with an average price of £2,959. Be sure to check what the package price covers. Some may cover aftercare and any diagnostic tests you may need for instance, while other hospitals charge for this separately.

Hospitals often offer finance options to spread the cost of your treatment over a period of time. Ask the hospital where you’re seeking treatment whether this is available.

For more information about self-funding treatment, see our guide to self-pay.

Paying through insurance

The other way of paying for private treatment is through private medical insurance, or PMI. Most insurance policies cover cataract surgery, unless it’s a pre-existing condition. But it’s important to check with your own insurer exactly what they will cover and whether you will need to pay any excess. Read our guide on paying for treatment through insurance for more information.

Important notes

The information in this article is based on hospitals within 25 miles of the centre of Leeds, and the consultants that treat private patients at each hospital. This is available to search through PHIN’s website. If a hospital or consultant is not searchable on our website, this may be because they are in breach of legal duties set out by the Competition and Markets Authority.

The data is based on PHIN’s data on patient admissions that took place between 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2023. The costs of initial consultant fees were provided directly by consultants to PHIN. Information on guide package prices was collected through an internet search of local hospitals.

This article was last updated on 20 June 2024, and some details may have changed since.