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Medical Negligence

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Dental Negligence Claims Solicitors

If you have suffered an injury or other harm to your health as a result of negligent dental treatment, you may be entitled to compensation. This can help you pay for restorative treatment and compensate you for the impact on your life. These types of claims can be complex, however, so it is essential to get specialist legal advice as soon as possible.

Compensation can be available in a range of circumstances, including where you have experienced a delay in diagnosis of a dental or medical problem, a misdiagnosis or what you feel to be inappropriate treatment by a dentist, dental hygienist or orthodontist.

Our highly experienced dental negligence solicitors can review your situation and advise you on whether you may be due compensation for the suffering you have undergone, any costs incurred in putting any problems right and the long-term effects of any negligence.

We know that many people find the thought of taking legal action intimidating, so we aim to provide clear legal advice and compassionate personal support, ensuring that your claim runs smoothly and with minimal stress, while getting you the compensation you deserve.

Speak to our dental negligence solicitors about starting a claim

Have you suffered negligent dental care in the last three years? To find out more about starting a dental negligence claim you can:

Our expertise with dental negligence compensation claims

Clarkson Wright & Jakes’ Clinical Negligence team are highly experienced in all types of dental negligence claims, including:

  • Incorrect dental treatment claims
  • Dental misdiagnosis & late diagnosis
  • Cosmetic dentistry claims
  • Nerve injury claims
  • Oral cancer claims
  • Gum disease claims
  • Restorative dentistry claims

Our Clinical Negligence team is headed CWJ Partner David Greenhalgh, a solicitor with decades of experience in all types of medical negligence claims. David is ranked band 2 by Chambers & Partners for clinical negligence and is a member of the Law Society’s Personal Injury Clinical Negligence panels and Action against Victims of Medical Accidents (AVMA).

CWJ Partner Alex Wormald specialises in clinical negligence litigation, having originally qualified as a barrister before cross qualifying as a solicitor. With exceptional litigation experience, Alex has achieved substantial compensation for clients under even the most difficult circumstances. He is also very actively involved with AvMA.

Clarkson Wright and Jakes is regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA), providing assurance that we continue to meet the highest standards of legal practice.

Dental negligence claims explained

What is dental negligence?

This is where the dental treatment you received fell below acceptable clinical standards i.e. a competent dental practitioner would not have made the same errors under the same circumstances.

Examples of negligent dental treatment include:

  • Damage to your teeth, gums or other part of your mouth due to poor quality treatment
  • Removing the wrong tooth
  • Missing signs of a medical condition, such as gum disease or oral cancer

Do I have a claim for dental negligence compensation?

The first step in the claims process is deciding whether you have grounds for a claim. We will need to look at various types of evidence, including medical records, independent medical assessments and witness testimony.

This will help to establish whether the treatment you received was negligent and what the impact on your health, wellbeing and life has been.

How much is dental negligence compensation work?

The next step in a claim is working out how much compensation you are entitled to. You may hear this referred to as ‘assessing quantum’.

There are two main types of damages you may be able to claim for dental negligence:

Special damages – For specific financial losses, such as paying for restorative dentistry, counselling and lost income. This covers losses you have already experienced and losses you expect to experience in future as a result of your injuries.

General damages – For non-financial losses, such as pain and suffering, and changes to your lifestyle e.g. not being able to carry out activities you previously enjoyed.

How are dental negligence claims resolved?

There are several stages to the claims process:

Out-of-court settlements for dental negligence – In most cases, we can agree a settlement voluntarily with your dental practitioner through negotiation and other forms of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). This can get you compensation faster and with lower legal fees, as well as allowing you to avoid the stress and uncertainty of court proceedings.

Taking your claim to court – In the unlikely even your claim cannot be resolved out of court, we can ensure you have the very best representation and close personal support for every stage of court proceedings. This way, we can give you the best chance of securing fair compensation while keeping the process as stress-free as possible for you.

Funding for dental negligence claims

There are various options for funding a dental negligence claim, including:

Conditional Fee Arrangements (CFA) – Commonly called a ‘no win, no fee’ dental negligence claim, this allows you to pay nothing upfront towards your legal costs, with those costs only coming due if we win compensation for you. This is the most common way of funding dental negligence claims and means there is no financial risk to you.

Legal expenses insurance – Funding your claim this way may be an option if you have the right type of cover. Legal expenses insurance is often an optional extra with home insurance and car insurance policies, so it is worth checking whether you are covered.

In the event of a successful claim, some or all of your legal fees may be recoverable from the defendant, which can significantly reduce your costs.

Time limits for dental negligence claims

You usually have 3 years from the date the negligence occurred or the date you became aware of it (if this only happens later) to make a claim. However, there are exceptions where you may have longer to claim, including:

If the claimant is under 18 – Their parents or guardians can claim until the claimant’s 18th birthday. The claimant can then pursue their own claim up until they turn 21.

If the claimant lacks mental capacity – There is no time limit for someone else to pursue a claim on their behalf.

Time limits for dental negligence claims can be very complicated, so we recommend taking specialist legal advice as soon as possible to avoid missing your chance to claim.

Looking for more answers about making a dental negligence claim?

Read our FAQs, which addresses questions such as “am I eligible to make a personal injury claim”, “how is my injury claim pursued”, “how long will my personal injury claim take” and “how much compensation will I receive from my negligence claim”?

Speak to our medical negligence solicitors in Orpington today

If you have suffered from dental negligence in the last three years and would like to find out more about starting a claim, you can: