Dental Negligence Claims

There are many examples of dental negligence and you are likely to have a unique insight into the claim based on your own experience. Here are a few examples of dental negligence:

• Extracting the wrong tooth;
• Failure to refer for investigation in a timely and reasonable period;
• When presenting with symptoms, failing to consider a diagnosis for a condition, which a reasonable body of practitioners would have considered;
• Failure to properly consider a diagnostic scan, such as an x-ray or an MRI scan, leading to a missed diagnosis.
• Failure to diagnose a condition, which leads to an adverse outcome;
• Failure to prescribe antibiotics in a timely fashion, which leads to infection or a more severe infection/condition;
• Failure to properly explain the full extent of the risks associated with a procedure (informed consent);
• Failure to refer to a specialist medical expert to receive treatment, which leads to a delay in diagnosing a condition;

If you, your family or friends require advice regarding one of the examples above or wish to speak with one of our specialist solicitors, please call on 0151 559 0120 or complete our online claim form and one of our solicitors will call you back.

There are time limits for any medical/dental negligence claim. This is sometimes what lawyers call the limitation period and it is the timeframe within which court proceedings must be started, failing which you would be unable to bring your claim.

The law relating to limitation, can be found in the Limitation Act 1980; however, you must be careful when assessing the limitation period because it is a very specialist and complex area of law, and we would always urge a potential client to seek independent legal advice before delaying any action.

There are different time limits depending upon what type of claim you were pursuing. The primary limitation period in a medical/dental negligence claim, would normally be 3 years from the date of negligence to bringing a claim to court, although, it is our experience that sometimes assessing the 3-year limitation date, can be problematic, because there may have been a number of breaches during your medical/dental treatment. If the negligent act or omission is obvious, you will generally have 3 years from the date of treatment in order to bring your claim.

It is also possible, if negligence comes to light many years later and you acquire a reasonable knowledge that there has been negligence, that you can rely on that date of knowledge. In this situation, you generally have three years from the date when you had a reasonable knowledge that negligence had occurred to bring a claim.

As a patient, you have the right to make a complaint about the medical/dental services you are being provided and/or to make a specific complaint about the doctor/dentist treating you.

If your dentist is an NHS or private practice dentist, the first port of call is to request a copy of your dental practice’s complaints procedure. It is also recommended, that you keep a record of who you speak to and if you raise your complaint verbally, make sure that you write down what you discuss.

Normally, the complaint is addressed to the dental practice manager or senior Dentist in the practice. Your formal complaint is likely to include the following:

• The name of the dentist you are complaining about
• The reasons why you are complaining
• What outcome you are looking to achieve

Normally, you have to raise your complaint within 12 months, however, this can vary so it is important that you check the policy of your specific dental surgery.

If your complaint cannot be resolved, you can go directly to make your complaint to NHS England. If matters are not resolved, you can also notify the Parliamentary and health service ombudsman.

If your dental treatment involves a complaint against a hospital or a dental/medical professional in a hospital. You should complain to the NHS trust which governs hospital where you are receiving treatment. Specific details on how to complain can generally be found on the hospital's website. You can also contact patient liaison services (PALS) for further guidance and information.