A dental practice in the Sefton area

2. Ms A complains Dr M changed a pre-agreed treatment plan and fitted a composite filling (a custom-made tooth repair, designed to fit into a hole in a tooth) without her consent on 29 February 2024.

3. Ms A says the experience left her with lasting emotional impact, making her feel more anxious about giving consent and attending dental appointments. As a result of the work completed, Ms A had to seek further remedial dental treatment and is concerned she will likely need future treatment to correct the issue.

4. As an outcome to her complaint, Ms A would like a financial remedy that includes reimbursement of her £340 dental costs and to cover the cost of any future work required.

5. On 1 January 2024, Ms A experienced significant discomfort in a tooth Dr M had worked on and returned to the Dental Practice. Dr M confirmed she had an infection and prescribed a course of antibiotics.

6. Due to the persistence of her symptoms, she signed a revised treatment plan on 10 February 2024. This plan specified the placement of a crown (a custom-made cap that covers a damaged or weakened tooth) on tooth UR6 (this is the sixth tooth on the upper right side). This had a total cost of £306.80, which was covered under Ms A’s maternity exemption form.  This updated plan outlined:

•            Appointment 1 – Root filling and crown prep •            Appointment 3 – crown fit (within the records, there was no mention of a second appointment).

7. Ms A attended the dental practice on 29 February 2024 under the impression that Dr M would fit a crown, as per the agreed treatment plan. However, in the weeks following the procedure, she told us she experienced discomfort, including a jagged sensation, gum irritation, and pain. When she returned to the Dental Practice, the dentist offered to "shave" the restoration, which raised concerns for Ms A.

8. Due to continued discomfort, Ms A sought a second opinion from a private dentist, who confirmed that no crown had been fitted. Ms A subsequently raised this issue with the Dental Practice.

9. On 14 August 2024, Dr M, Dr M responded to Ms A’s concerns. They explained they had placed a composite inlay filling instead of a crown. They said this treatment fell within the same NHS Band 3 category (the band determines how much the NHS charges for different dental treatments) as a crown. Dr M acknowledged they should have discussed their clinical reasoning and the benefits of an inlay with Ms A prior to proceeding.

12. The law says we cannot investigate a complaint where a person has (or had) the option to take legal action, unless we consider this is (or was) unreasonable in the circumstances. We do not consider whether legal action would succeed but whether it would be a reasonable option to look in to.

13. Ms A’s complaint is about Dr M completing a dental procedure she did not consent to, which has resulted in her needing work to correct the problem. She is also concerned she may need potential future work.

14. By making her complaint, Ms A is seeking financial compensation. There is therefore a possible legal cause of action available to her as she may be able to make a clinical negligence claim to achieve this.

15. Ms A confirmed she would be happy to receive the £340 she has paid for the further dental, in order to resolve her complaint. However, her preference would be for more financial redress to cover the cost of the implant her current dentist has advised she may need in the future.

16. The cost of a dental implant in the United Kingdom generally ranges between £1800-£3000 (taken from Cost of Dental Implants in the UK: Comprehensive 2025 Guide). This is higher than the amount we would be likely to recommend based on our Severity of Injustice scale and the impact Ms A has told us about. She may then also need further work to maintain or replace this in the future. This indicates that the overall cost of care relating to an implant may be in excess of the usual amounts we recommend.

17. Whilst we could potentially achieve part of the outcome Ms A seeks (£340 reimbursement) she is actually seeking a larger amount. It is more appropriate for her to explore this via a potential legal claim.

18. We understand Ms A would find the legal process stressful. We appreciate this, but an investigation by this Office would also have an element of stress. We cannot therefore say this in itself is a barrier to Ms A exploring legal action.

19. At this point in time, we are satisfied there is a potential legal route available for Ms A to pursue her concerns, which may provide the outcome she seeks. As there are time limits for making a legal claim, we do not want to remove this as an option when it could potentially offer what she is looking for.

20. We are very sorry to hear about what happened to Ms A and how this has affected her. We thank her for bringing her concerns to us. We hope this statement clearly explains why we will not be considering her complaint further at this time.

1. We have carefully considered Ms A’s complaint about the dentist. We were really sorry to learn about how much discomfort and distress she has experienced. We will not be looking at her complaint further at this time as we consider Ms A could take legal action on the matter she has brought to us.