Dentist charged incorrect price

SteveMetal

I went for a checkup at the Dentist (NHS) about 3 months ago and paid the usual Band A treatment - £17. The dentist told me I needed a filling but he did not tell me that it would cost any extra.
He did the filling there and then.
I left having just paid the £17.

I recently went back to the Dentist about another problem and they informed me I had an outstanding balance of £30 from that previous appointment and 'was I happy to pay it'?
I pointed out to them that I was not made aware of the extra cost for the filling at the time and that no I was not 'happy' to pay it. They said they would pass the matter on to their manager.

I received a letter a couple of days ago from their Accounts department regarding this £30 outstanding balance and asking me to contact the surgery to arrange payment of to discuss the matter further.

I have not yet contacted them as I wanted to look into wether I had to pay this money back or not first.

Am I right in thinking that it is down to the dentist what you should be charged, as I have had fillings before and some have only been £17, others had been £47. And as the dentist did not make me aware of the cost of the filling before going ahead then surely they can not suddenly spring this bill on me now?

It's like going to a supermarket, buying an item for £10 then getting a letter from them 3 months later telling you that they charged you the wrong price and asking you to pay the remainder of the cost. You wouldn't do it would you?

Toothsmith

The treatment would have been a band 2 charge, so you do owe the extra £30.

Ideally, the dentist should have told you that the treatment would be a band 2 charge, but it's a requirement in an NHS dental practice to display a poster which clearly explains the charge bands and what is included in each. It's not up to the dentist, they are statutory charge bands. So you owe the £30.

In any retail or service transaction (Incuding the supermarket) if you are accidentally charged the wrong price then the provider is entitled to ask for the balance (Just as yu are entitled to a refund if you've been over-charged) The Inland Revenue has been doing this to quite a few people recently where it has made mistakes with people's tax.

The practice probably didn't write to you at the time, as they thought they'd just explain it to you when you next came.

So - you do owe them the £30. I would guess if you don't pay it, they would not think it worth persuing through the courts, but you would almost certainly find yourself needing to find another dental practice.

SteveMetal

Thanks for that info, just wanted to find out what my rights were before I respond to them.

havaska

Just to add to what Toothsmith has said;

You mentioned that sometimes you've had a filling and only been charged £17.

A lot of the time with my patients, if a filling is really quite small or doesn't require me to do anything other than just place the filling material, I won't chart it as 'filling' on the computer so my patient's don't have to pay £47 as I don't really find that fair on them.

I'd imagine that your dentist has done this for you in the past, so that is why you've found out that sometimes you've only been charged £17 and had a filling too.

The majority of us dentists really do have our patient's best interests at heart and aren't all money grabbers...

SteveMetal

Thanks, I just think the dentist should have told me it would cost extra before he did the treatment. I will be pointing that out to them in my letter, but realise I am probably going to end up having to pay for it, or have to find a different surgery (which isn't easy here).

welshdent

It's not that it costs extra, that's just the cost. Perhaps the dentist on that occasion forgot to
Mention it if they were busy?

brook2jack

SteveMetal wrote: »

Thanks, I just think the dentist should have told me it would cost extra before he did the treatment. I will be pointing that out to them in my letter, but realise I am probably going to end up having to pay for it, or have to find a different surgery (which isn't easy here).

The filling needed doing, you were not inconvenienced by having to come back again as the dentist did it there and then. The statutory charge is £47 in England for a filling which is advertised on websites, literature and posters in surgeries that provide NHS treatment.

From NHS England
"Band 1 course of treatment – £17.00
This covers an examination, diagnosis (eg X-rays), advice on how to prevent future problems, a scale and polish if needed, and application of fluoride varnish or fissure sealant. If you require urgent care, even if your urgent treatment needs more than one appointment to complete, you will only need to pay one Band 1 charge.
Band 2 course of treatment – £47.00
This covers everything listed in Band 1 above, plus any further treatment such as fillings, root canal work or if your dentist needs to take out one or more of your teeth.
Band 3 course of treatment – £204.00
This covers everything listed in Bands 1 and 2 above, plus crowns, dentures and bridges."

By now the dentist has sent the forms off , the patient charge of £47 will have been deducted from the money the practice recieves from the PCT .

You needed the filling, you need to pay for it , is it really fair to penalise the dentist who in the middle of doing your check up, filling, paperwork, note writing,form filling ,etc forgot to tell you about a charge change? Does that take away your obligation to pay a government set charge as you agree to do so when accepting NHS treatment?