If you have suffered an injury as a result of a dentist’s error then you could be able to make a personal injury compensation claim.
Dental negligence compensation claims include: misdiagnosis of gum disease, misdiagnosis of tooth decay, damaged nerves from operations, ignoring symptoms of tooth decay, ignoring symptoms of gum disease, performing treatments incorrectly, faulty cosmetic dentistry, damage to teeth during operations, misuse of dental equipment and many more.
Overview
Dental Negligence involves making a claim against someone in the dental profession where it is considered that the standard of care provided was below the standard that could reasonably have been expected. This may be a claim against a Dentist or Hygienist or anyone else within the profession.
From the point of view of obtaining legal representation under a “No Win, No Fee” Agreement it is important to be able to establish that the claim either has a value in excess of £1,000 where a claim is put forward for damages for pain, suffering and loss of amenity or alternatively if a claim for financial loss exceeds £5,000.
Often mistakes in the dental profession can be put right through discussion direct with the Dentist and this may involve no financial cost to the individual. However some cases involving implant, grafting or fusion of crowns can involve direct costs and long term “maintenance” costs which may exceed £20,000 in which event it would be wise to obtain professional advice.
Dental Negligence cases are invariably complicated and no two claims are alike but before a claim can be considered there are three broad areas that a potential Claimant will have to establish:-
- The standard of care fell below what could reasonably have been expected.
- Injury, loss and damage occurred because the standard of care fell below what could reasonably have been expected.
- The Claim is brought within the Statutory Limitation Period, which is normally three years.
Time Limits
The normal time limit within which legal action must be taken is three years from the date when you knew or could reasonably have been expected to know that you have suffered injury, loss and damage following Dental Negligence.
In most cases the calculation of the three year period is straightforward but sometimes the person is not aware that a clinical procedure has caused injury until many months later. The Courts can take this into account in considering whether legal proceedings have been commenced in time.
Time does not run while a person is not mentally capable nor against a child who would be able to commence proceedings at any time up to their 21st birthday.
Standard of Care
Millions of visits to the Dentists occur without event every year and only a small minority of treatments are likely to fall into the bracket where a Court would consider that the standard of care fell below that which could reasonably have been expected. Understandably people often consider that if their particular procedure or treatment has gone wrong then that must have been because they were not treated properly and with sufficient care. If it was considered by the Court that the treatment provided was in line with the views of a responsible body of dental opinion then the claim would fail but if the treatment was below the standard that would be expected by a responsible body of dental opinion then, providing the other elements of the claim can be satisfactorily proved, a claim may be successful.
Did the treatment cause the Injury?
Sometimes dental mistreatment can occur without causing a person injury, loss or damage. Perhaps the easiest way of explaining this is to give an example of a more everyday situation such as driving a car. If a driver “jumps” traffic lights at a cross roads but managed to avoid hitting anything or anyone then that would not give rise to any claim. However, if the same driver “jumped” the traffic lights and by doing so ran into another road user who had gone past the traffic lights on green and was injured in the collision then it would be argued that the negligent driving caused the injury and a claim would arise.
When dealing with Dental Negligence cases a Defence may arise if a problem would have occurred in any event, possibly caused by some pre-existing problem such as an abscess.
When to Make a Claim
Although the usual time limit for making a claim is three years from the date of the negligent act it is sensible to seek advice quickly. A lot of evidence has to be gathered before a claim can be formulated. Dental records have to be obtained and scrutinised and a Specialist Dental Expert instructed to consider whether or not a claim can properly be made. When evidence is gathered careful consideration must be given as to whether or not the case is sufficiently strong to present to a Court and at that point the Dental Attendant would be notified in accordance with a strict protocol procedure.
The complexities of Dental Negligence claims often involve time consuming inquiries and gathering of the evidence and that is why it is important to consider action as soon as possible.
Paying for Advice and Representation in Court
Legal Aid may be available but Frearsons offer other methods of funding claims including “No Win, No Fee” and various insurance based schemes which do not usually involve the Client in paying anything. We would be happy to discuss both your claim and the means of paying for representation with you at any point.
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