Dental Insurance

foxtrot_mike

For a while now I have been looking at reviewing my Dental insurance.

At the moment i pay as I go, which i don't have a problem with but i am concerned with the quality of my check-ups but I haven't a clue how to benchmark but was wondering if the quality would improve if i went private (i believe im paying for NHS care)

I also go regular to the Hygenist who i think is very good (probably better than the checkups)

I did work out a while back it is cheaper to PAYG rather than go onto Denplan.

My Oral Hygeine is good, no issues for a while but the think is that if i knew that the treatment i am recieving wont improve under Denplan then i could either stay as i am or try a cash plan.

wozearly

That's a toughie...not really sure how easily you could benchmark the difference between an NHS check-up and a private one. Realistically, the dentists are going to be looking for the same things in terms of checking that you're okay.

Where there may be more of a difference is around treatment. The NHS can be a bit more prescriptive about how dentists should treat, and they have a bit more free reign privately. This was the reason my dentist gave for stopping his NHS work after donkey's years.

However, my gut feeling is that the quality of your treatment is going to primarily depend on the quality of your dentist...


In terms of it being cheaper to PAYG rather than insure, that's always going to be the case if your oral health is great and all you need are two checkups a year, maybe an x-ray every so often and a trip to the hygeinist. Insurers don't have a magic way to make those routine things cheaper, so you wouldn't save money by insuring the cost.

The reason its more expensive is that they stump up the cost should you need more major treatment - where the NHS can charge you somewhere in the region of £150 (private would, naturally, be more - so plans that cover private dentistry will be more expensive).

Cash plans work in a similar way - its unlikely it would work out cheaper if you're only getting it for the dental benefit, but if you can also make use of other benefits like optical, physiotherapy - and you value the extra bits and pieces of non-routine cover, then it could be a good deal.

foxtrot_mike

I had my Denplan assessment today and I got a good grade

However they identified a problem with a tooth through the x-ray which could cause problems in the future, they say that no treatment is needed at the moment and on that basis will see if Denplan will insure me (to be honest i had thought they would find something wrong).

So my thinking is that should I be accepted then i should go onto it, as this tooth may cause problems in the future.

Like wozearly said and have others i have spoken to is that the Dentist may wish to apply more preventative or early work to the problem I have for which id be welcome for should that not be avalaible where I am at the moment.

I asked the Dentist whether the type of treatment I recieved would change and they said no.

Just to clarifty I am not an NHS patient, just Private PAYG

Toothsmith

As dentists set their own PAYG fees and Denplan/Monthly Scheme fees, which one will cost more cannot be generalised.

My fees, for example, are quite high to 'encourage' people to sign onto the monthly scheme (I just prefer the lower hassle of not having to 'sell' every single item of treatment to a patient, but to just get on with what I feel is the best option). The patients who have seperate insurance covers, or who have a dental package at work don't mind the higher PAYG charges.

You need to look at both sets for your chosen dentist (assuming they offer both choices - not all do) and try and guess your likely annual costs.

The monthly schemes do also offer an insurance component as well, which will cover emergency call outs, emergencies whilst away from your home dentist, and trauma insurance which will cover the cost of accidental 'smack in the mouth' type damage to your teeth. Something that you would have to pay for in full if you're a PAYG patient.