How Much Compensation For Dental Negligence Claims?

Injury sustained during dental treatment can be painful and traumatic. If you have suffered an injury at the hands of a dental health professional because of medical negligence, you may be entitled to a dental negligence compensation.

You may be able to make a dental negligence compensation claim if you have suffered any of the following:

• Surgical error: If something goes wrong during your surgical procedure and you suffer an injury as a result, you may have a valid ground to make a compensation claim.

• Poorly managed anesthetic process: If local or general anesthetic is required during a surgical procedure, and its application causes you injury, you may have a valid ground for a compensation claim.

• Misdiagnosis: Your dentist owes you a duty of care. To fulfill this duty, they must promptly and accurately diagnose a condition. Delayed diagnosis can worsen the problem.

• Incorrect treatment: If, for instance, a dentist applies excessive force during treatment and this has caused you injury, you may be able to make a compensation claim.

• Inadequate care: If you have received poor medical care while undertaking treatment at the hands of your dentist, or after a dental procedure, and have suffered an injury as a result, you can make a claim.

If your experience is not discussed above, then do not worry. Get in touch with us today, as our medico-legal experts will talk you through your situation and see if we can help. Call us on 0800 644 4240 for an instant, no obligation advice from our friendly solicitors.

Making a Dental Negligence Compensation Claim

If you think that the injury you suffered was a result of dental negligence, then there are a few things you can do to prepare for a compensation claim.

As is the case with any legal process requiring adjudication, both parties must present evidence, to either prove or disprove the allegation. So, your chances of a successful claim will be enhanced if your dental negligence solicitor is well-prepared to represent you. However, before contacting a solicitor, you must be prepared to; here are a few things you can do:

• Document your injury: When you visit a dentist or hospital to have your injury treated, ensure that you ask the doctor to document their opinion on the nature of your injury, how well you will recover and how long the recovery will likely take.

• Collect information: If possible, note the names of any dental staff that assisted your doctor during the dental procedure. Also find out the name of the management of the dental clinic if it is a private healthcare service or a cosmetic clinic.

• Document the financial impact: If you have had to reduce your work hours or even miss out entirely, sorted medical bills or had to embark on trips which you have paid for, document all these. Your solicitor will include them as part of your claim for dental negligence compensation.

• Contact a solicitor: With all the facts available, it is time to get in touch with a solicitor to discuss the validity of your claim.

What Can Determine My Compensation Amount?

Making a dental negligence claim for compensation involves claiming damages to meet tangible and intangible costs. While some damages like medical bills are pretty straightforward to calculate, others are not as simple. For instance, how do you place monetary value on pain and suffering?

Well, the good news is that there are judicial guidelines that provide a structure through which value can be attached to the distress caused by an illness or injury due to negligence. Dental negligence claims generally comprise of one or more of the following:

• General Damages: This covers the physical impact of the injury, such as the pain, loss of mobility and psychological trauma you have suffered.

• Special Damages: This compensates for the out-of-pocket expenses you have incurred as a result of the dental negligent treatment you suffered.

• Loss of earnings: If you had to miss work due to the injury, and this took a hit on your income, then you can make a claim for this. You can also make a compensation claim if the injury will likely affect your future earning potential.

• Travel costs: If you have had to embark on injury related trips, such as visiting your doctor or solicitor, these costs can be claimed.

• Medical expenses: You can make claims for out-of-pocket expenses made for both past and ongoing treatment you are receiving for the injury.

These are some of the most common damages you can claim for. There are some less common ones, and if we believe your claim falls into any one of these categories, we will let you know.

How Much Compensation Can I Expect for a Dental Negligence Claim?

The amount of a dental negligence payout in the UK would depend on various factors, such as the severity of the harm caused, the extent of the damage suffered, and the cost of future treatment required. Each case is unique, so it’s difficult to provide a specific figure without knowing the details of the case.

The table below gives you a range of values within which your compensation amount may fall in if you suffered the corresponding injury as indicated.

As noted earlier, you can make claims for a wide range of damages. The figures listed above do not include damage such as loss of earnings, among others.

Start the Dental Compensation Claim against the NHS

Dental negligence claims against the NHS are typically complex, and navigating the process can be difficult. As a result, you need the support of solicitors who are medical negligence experts to manage the process for you.

With lots of experience in pursuing claims against the NHS, we can help you navigate the red tape. Our medical negligence experts will help you accelerate the dental negligence NHS process as quickly as possible.

Your claims will be handled under our no win no fee claims policy. You therefore do not have to worry about paying legal fees. 

For a free, no obligation advice about your dental negligence claim, call us on 0800 844 4240. You can also complete our free claims assessment form and we will reach out to you as soon as possible.