Fined by the dentist
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Poppy2026
Posts: 2 Newbie
Hi everyone,
I'm feeling a bit ripped off by my NHS dentist, and I'm wondering if anyone has had a similar experience. I booked a hygienist appointment, which I was made to pay up front for (at the time of booking). I subsequently missed the appointment (I forgot) and was made to pay £20. I queried this with the receptionist as I had already paid for the appointment, therefore no one was out of pocket. She explained that the £20 is put towards the cost of my next hygienist appointment. Makes sense (sort of). I paid the £20, however when I went to my next appointment they said that I owed the full amount (not the full amount minus £20). I explained what happened and was told that the £20 was a 'fine' for missing my first appointment and would not be put towards the cost of my recent appointment. I have a few of issues with this:
1. I don't understand why I am being fined when I paid the full cost of the treatment in the first place. Surely, warm body in dentist's chair or not, they are receiving the money, right? When I asked the receptionist why I need to pay more money she said that the hygienist is only paid for the work she carries out, hence the fine. My issue is 'where is my original (£49) going then?
2. I was incorrectly advised by the first receptionist that the £20 would go towards the cost of my next treatment
3. Nowhere does it state (either in the surgery or on their website) that patients must pay the full cost of their appointment plus £20 for missing an appointment
Am I being unreasonable, or are they?
I'm feeling a bit ripped off by my NHS dentist, and I'm wondering if anyone has had a similar experience. I booked a hygienist appointment, which I was made to pay up front for (at the time of booking). I subsequently missed the appointment (I forgot) and was made to pay £20. I queried this with the receptionist as I had already paid for the appointment, therefore no one was out of pocket. She explained that the £20 is put towards the cost of my next hygienist appointment. Makes sense (sort of). I paid the £20, however when I went to my next appointment they said that I owed the full amount (not the full amount minus £20). I explained what happened and was told that the £20 was a 'fine' for missing my first appointment and would not be put towards the cost of my recent appointment. I have a few of issues with this:
1. I don't understand why I am being fined when I paid the full cost of the treatment in the first place. Surely, warm body in dentist's chair or not, they are receiving the money, right? When I asked the receptionist why I need to pay more money she said that the hygienist is only paid for the work she carries out, hence the fine. My issue is 'where is my original (£49) going then?
2. I was incorrectly advised by the first receptionist that the £20 would go towards the cost of my next treatment
3. Nowhere does it state (either in the surgery or on their website) that patients must pay the full cost of their appointment plus £20 for missing an appointment
Am I being unreasonable, or are they?
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Comments
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Sounds unreasonable.
But think hard before falling out with the dentist over this
They have ways of getting their revenge!!!
(Maybe an informal chat with the practice manager might get it sorted amicably)0 -
Are you in Wales? £46 is a band two treatment in Wales it's £62.10 in England .
Did you have other treatment done as well as the check up and hygienist?
It is very very rare to see a hygienist on the NHS as the money does not add up , so was the £49 just for seeing the hygienist in which case that is a private charge.
If you just paid £49 for the hygiene appointment then fair enough you forfeit that for missing the appointment, and the practice is entitled to make you pay in advance for future appointments. However charging £20 on top of this is unusual and perhaps sending a letter asking for clarification over the charges will clear things up.
If you had other treatment for your £49 that makes things a little more complicated.0 -
I thought it was unlawful for an NHS dentist to charge for missed appointments, regardless of what dire wearings there may be on appointment cards etc?
By the way, I am not expressing a moral opinion here just stating what I understood to be fact. Maybe I am out of date?0 -
you cannot fine on the NHS in England and Wales , you can Scotland and Northern Ireland and for private treatment , which it sounds like this hygienist treatment was.0
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brook2jack wrote: »you cannot fine on the NHS in England and Wales , you can Scotland and Northern Ireland and for private treatment , which it sounds like this hygienist treatment was.
OK, thanks.
So if an E & W NHS dentist recommends you have a hygienist appointment for supposedly (or genuinely) cosmetic reasons and you fail to turn up they can levy a "fine"?
Whilst presumably if you refuse to pay they could, theoretically at least, sue you they are still obliged to complete your current course of NHS treatment?
Should make for an "interesting" encounter......0 -
The regulations allow for NHS and private treatment to be carried out at the same time , so long as the patient is clear what is private and what is NHS.
The dentist is entitled to charge a fee for private appointments that are failed or cancelled with insufficient notice.
If the dentist/patient relationship has broken down then the dentist is not obliged to finish off any outstanding treatment. The situation described may fufil that scenario.
To put into context 40% of new dental patient appointments are missed and depending on area 12 to 25% of all NHS dental appointments are missed. When dentists were allowed to charge for missed NHS appointments that rate was much less.
Not surprisingly the failure rates for private appointments is much,much lower as dentists can charge for failed appointments.0 -
brook2jack wrote: »The regulations allow for NHS and private treatment to be carried out at the same time , so long as the patient is clear what is private and what is NHS.
The dentist is entitled to charge a fee for private appointments that are failed or cancelled with insufficient notice.
If the dentist/patient relationship has broken down then the dentist is not obliged to finish off any outstanding treatment. The situation described may fufil that scenario.
To put into context 40% of new dental patient appointments are missed and depending on area 12 to 25% of all NHS dental appointments are missed. When dentists were allowed to charge for missed NHS appointments that rate was much less.
Not surprisingly the failure rates for private appointments is much,much lower as dentists can charge for failed appointments.
Wow! That is staggeringly high and really quite appalling.
However, given how late my NHS dentist seems to run they must presumably rely on some no shows to catch up? A bit like airlines overbooking?0 -
Absolutely not. A room in a cheap NHS dental surgery will cost £120 per hour to run. Every minute of the working day has to be booked out because the minute someone is not sat in the chair the practice is loosing money .
Patients who don't turn up and miss appointments are more likely to be the cause of running late because their dental problems become worse the longer they are left and are more likely to need emergency appointments which are very unpredictable in length.
A practice where there are very few failures to attend is much better because appointments are more predictable, people's dental health is much better and there are fewer emergency appointments needed.0 -
Interesting, thanks ^^^^^^0
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