Getting your teeth into the cost of vital dental work

Published on Friday 11 April 2008 19:24

FINDNG affordable dental treatment can be like pulling teeth these days. But there are ways to make dental work affordable to help maintain that winning smile.

Relying on the NHS

REGISTERING with an NHS dentist offers the best value when it comes to looking after your gnashers. But with NHS dentists currently in short supply in Scotland, as elsewhere in the UK, it has become increasingly difficult to find one in recent years.

Figures from the Scottish Government reveal that more than half of adults in Scotland are currently not registered with an NHS dentist. At the end of September last year, only 48.6 per cent of Scottish adults had one. This problem is particularly apparent in some rural areas.

Meanwhile, research by Orbit Complete sugar-free gum has found that one in five Britons does not have a dentist at all – NHS or private. Around half of these people say it is because they do not have access to NHS dental services, while 43 per cent say that treatment is just too expensive.

Under the NHS in Scotland, patients are expected to pay 80 per cent of the cost of the treatment they receive up to a maximum of 384. For example, examinations are free, while a simple scale and polish costs around 9.76, a gold or precious metal crown costs from 97.88 and a full set of plastic dentures comes in at around 134.20. Some people, such as the under 18s and low-earners, are exempt from charges. For help locating an NHS dentist, your first port of call should be your local health board.

Dental insurance

IF YOU are struggling to get access to an NHS dentist, or need treatment that the NHS does not cover, then you may need to go private. Many NHS dentists also operate private practices. The costs for this vary from practice to practice, but can be much more expensive than the NHS.

One way to prevent the cost of treatment being painful to your bank balance is to take out dental insurance.

This could be offered in-house by your dentist, or by an independent provider. In-house cover has the advantage that you do not need to pay for treatment first and then claim the money back later. But you need to tread with caution.

"The dentists can sometimes play on that convenience and you end up paying an awful lot more," said Moneysupermarket.com head of protection services Louise Cuming.

With providers such as Tesco and AXA PPP coming into the market place, there are some competitive dental insurance premiums out there from independent providers. Basic or core cover – which will cover the cost of NHS treatment – can start from as little as 8 a month. Premium or comprehensive cover – which allows for private treatments – can start from around 15 or 16 a month.

Cuming says some dentists may also offer loans to help patients meet the cost of more extensive work, but she recommends shopping around as a bank loan could work out cheaper.

Going abroad for treatment

MEDICAL tourism website Treatmentabroad.com estimates that around 43,000 UK patients went abroad for dental treatment last year, spending an average of 4,189 each. Its website suggests that serious savings can be made by doing this, with the typical price for a private root canal treatment in the UK coming in at around 220, but as little as 35 in Poland. A white bonded composite filling comes in at around 85 in a private clinic in the UK but only 30 in Greece, for example.

However, British Dental Health Foundation (BDHF) chief executive Dr Nigel Carter urges caution and suggests that anyone considering going abroad for treatment should speak to their own dentist or another dental professional first.

"So called 'dental holidays' are presented as a cheap and hassle-free alternative to getting treatment in this country, but we know from calls to our dental helpline that if things do go wrong, then they are anything but," he says.

"Patients can be left facing all sorts of questions; am I willing to fly back? What are my legal rights as a foreign patient? Am I prepared to go through the courts? Do I have the money required to correct the treatment in this country."

Consumer group Which? has recently researched the medical tourism trend and found that dentistry was by far the most popular overseas treatment for UK patients.

"Medical tourists must do their homework before jumping on a plane and avoid rushing back too quickly – if they want to avoid potential problems," Which? editor Neil Fowler advises.

"Ask the right questions beforehand, speak to UK health professionals, and don't assume you'll have a safety net if things don't go according to plan," he said.

The BDHF's Carter said that, as well as specific dental plans like those offered by your dentist or independent providers, there are also general health cash plans that cover dental treatment. Some banks and building societies also offer special rates on loans for such work, he says.

PUTTING A SMILE BACK ON HER BANK BALANCE

SHIRLEY Norton (49), a development officer in disabled housing from Aberdeen, believes she saved as much as 13,500 by flying to Hungary to have cosmetic dental work carried out on her teeth, writes Sonia Speedy.

"I'm the last person you would expect to go abroad and get anything done at all," she says.

"But I looked at a lot of feedback and did a lot of homework before I went and thought – I'll go for it."

Norton was impressed by Smile Savers Hungary, which she found online and which arranged her treatment for her. This included having two teeth extracted, 17 crowns put in place, two dental implants and a sinus bone graft, in order to straighten out two crossed front teeth and improve her smile.

"You're so well looked after, they pick you up from the airport, take you to all your appointments – I can't fault them and I'm so pleased with the outcome," she said.

In total, the treatment cost her around 6,000, which she estimates is about a third of the cost in the UK. It involved three trips to Budapest, two of which she turned into week-long holidays with her partner, while the third involved an overnight stay.

While happy with her own dentist at home, Norton describes this as a "different sort of dentistry" and says the cost of getting the work done in the UK was prohibitive.