Denplan...lab costs

lawsofnature

Hi

I'd like to know if anyone who subscribed to Denplan has faced high lab costs? I am on Denplan (although stupidly I've never make full use of it eg, check-ups etc. I now need two crowns replacing and I'm worried I'll be stung with exorbitant lab fees?

Does anyone have any idea how much these lab fees cost?

Toothsmith

Depends what sort of crown, and what sort of lab your dentist uses.

I use a very good one, bt not ultra top-end. A normal sort of front crown can be about £50-£80, slightly dearer for a back one.

Lab fees for the top end Lava or Procera stuff can be £150 - £250. Not all dentists offer this high-end sort of stuff on Denplan though, as really it's more 'cosmetic' than general maintenance.

lawsofnature

Thanks very much for the advice.:o

I need a large gold crown replacing on a molar (it covers about half the tooth), but I would like a porcelain finish and not gold again.

The other tooth that needs attention is an 'inlay' (I think), rather than a crown, this is a porcelain one (it cost me £125 about 8 years ago).

I'm not really interested in the gold crown being replaced by porcelain for cosmetic reasons, but because I find the procelain inlay so much more comfortable and natural compared to the gold crown.

I'm just hoping because the cost of the dentist's time is covered with Denplan, I won't be disproportionately stung on for the lab costs.

alison999

lawsofnature wrote: »

I'm just hoping because the cost of the dentist's time is covered with Denplan, I won't be disproportionately stung on for the lab costs.

if you think that he would, then maybe youre seeing the wrong dentist for you? the dentist i used to work for used to charge the exact price the lab charged him, i dont think sometimes patients are aware of how much things in dentistry actually cost.

lawsofnature

alison999 wrote: »

if you think that he would, then maybe youre seeing the wrong dentist for you? the dentist i used to work for used to charge the exact price the lab charged him, i dont think sometimes patients are aware of how much things in dentistry actually cost.

My dentist is very good, but I do not like the prospect of paying a couple of hundred quid on top of my Denplan without being sure I'm getting value for money. The costs seem to vary so widely between private dentists that I would like to ascertain what is a reasonable price for lab work...since you worked in a lab maybe you could tell me?

It's general business practice to put a mark-up on everything as it passes down the chain, so I wouldn't be surprised if my dentist did so, and I don't really mind so long as there is not a disproportionate mark-up.

Toothsmith

You shouldn't have to pay anything other than the lab cost.

Within the Denplan contract, there is a bit of a get out clause for the dentist whereby if a patient doesn't attend for regular check-ups, the dentist can refuse to treat under the contract, but that's really there for people who have disappeared for years, then come back and expect a load of abuse and neglect to be sorted out.

Usually, the repair costs and time involved are pretty minimal if someone has only 'slightly' sinned, and so I can't see that happening to you.

If it was - then I'm sure the dentist would have told you that he wasn't prepared to cover you at the check-up stage - and then gone on to charge you for the check up!!!

If that hasn't happened, then I'd assume you were on safe ground, and still being covered.

Toothsmith

lawsofnature wrote: »

It's general business practice to put a mark-up on everything as it passes down the chain, so I wouldn't be surprised if my dentist did so, and I don't really mind so long as there is not a disproportionate mark-up.

This really doesn't happen on Denplan.

The dentist's time, and all the business overheads are calculated into the monthly payment.


The 'unpredictable' thing is how much lab work each patient is likely to need, so this is why the lab fees are charged as extra.

It is alowable under Denplan to charge 35% of the usual private fee instead of charging the lab fee, but whichever one it is, it is consistant within the practice, and works out fairly similar anyway.

alison999

lawsofnature wrote: »

It's general business practice to put a mark-up on everything as it passes down the chain, so I wouldn't be surprised if my dentist did so, and I don't really mind so long as there is not a disproportionate mark-up.

i can honestly say the denplan i used to work for did not charge more than the lab charged him, i know this because i used to write out the bill and copied the amount, to the penny from the lab bill to the patients bill, even if it cost £55.29, they would be charged that, not £55 or £56 or even £55.50, they would be charged the exact price.

lawsofnature

Thanks guys. It's good to know mark-ups aren't general practice under Denplan. At least if it's expensive, I know it's fair. I was concerned because the fee list (non Denplan patients) has crowns listed at £500, and I wondered how much of that would be classed as a lab cost.

Hopefully, my dentist won't impose the 'get out clause'. I don't attend on a regular basis for check-ups (although they know I work away so I hope that's a good justification), but I did pay a visit in January this year.

alison999

lawsofnature wrote: »

Thanks guys. It's good to know mark-ups aren't general practice under Denplan. At least if it's expensive, I know it's fair. I was concerned because the fee list (non Denplan patients) has crowns listed at £500, and I wondered how much of that would be classed as a lab cost.

Hopefully, my dentist won't impose the 'get out clause'. I don't attend on a regular basis for check-ups (although they know I work away so I hope that's a good justification), but I did pay a visit in January this year.

if i had never worked their id probably would have been thinking along the same lines as you. if you really think your dentist is pulling a fast one you could always ask if you get a copy of the lab bill... its really all a matter of trust. but if your dentist was really like that i wouldve thought that he/she wouldnt have bothered with denplan at all and would just act as a private dentist charging whatever he wished.

Saversue

I have just paid for a temporary Acylic bridge - which cost £38, the permanant one will be about £150. as far as I know my Denplan Dentist just charges whatever the lab fees are.