British patients can’t get dental care after an ‘eye-watering’ rise in private fees

Private dentists are taking advantage of the scarcity of NHS treatments by increasing their costs for fillings, checks and extractions to “eye-watering” levels, research has found.

Patients are paying as much as £775 for root canal treatment, £435 for a tooth extraction and £325 for a white filling, as rates for routine dental procedures have soared since 2022.

Rates for many treatments have risen at an inflation rate over the past two years as more and more people are forced to seek non-NHS care, with the average cost of a non-surgical extraction rising by 32%. dental practices across Britain have found this.

Patient groups warned that some people with dental problems were missing out on care altogether because NHS help is so difficult to access and private treatment has become so expensive.

“For patients who struggle to access NHS dental care, and for those who choose to go to the private dentist, the dramatic increase in private dental costs is putting essential care out of reach for many,” says Rachel Power, CEO of the Patient Association.

“This creates a dangerous cycle where patients bounce back and forth between an inaccessible NHS system and unaffordable private care, as their oral health deteriorates. The stark reality is that many no longer have a viable route to essential dental treatment.”

Prices have risen dramatically over the past two years, with patients now paying between 14% and 32% more for the same treatments than in 2022. according to MyTribe Insurance researchwhich tracks the cost of private health insurance and also various types of paid healthcare in the United Kingdom.

Their analysis of data on six common treatments, drawn from 450 private dental practices in 52 UK cities, found that the average cost of:

• A white filling has gone from €105 to €129 – an increase of 23%.

• An extraction has risen from £105 to £139 – 32% more.

• A half hour scale and polish now costs £75, up from £65 – a 15% jump.

• A first consultation for a new patient has increased by 23%, from €65 to €80.

In addition, a routine check-up has risen from €48 to €55 – an increase of 15% – while the average cost of a root canal treatment has increased by 14%, from €350 to €400. However, many surgeries cost much more, MyTribe found. For example, a root canal can cost between £366 in Northern Ireland and £775 in the East Midlands.

To have a tooth extracted, you will pay £435 in the east of England, and £350 in the south-east and south-west. And for a white filling in the east of England you have to pay £325.

“Given these large recent price increases, some of the prices now being charged for private dental treatments are eye-watering and beyond the budget of very many people who need help with their dental health,” Power said.

One in five peopleAccording to a survey by Healthwatch, the statutory patient champion, two in five people on lower incomes in England already avoid visiting the dentist because it is too expensive. Recent increases in private treatment costs are “alarming,” the report said.

Louise Ansari, CEO of Healthwatch, said the research into the costs of private treatment paints “a worrying picture of access to dental care if you don’t have the financial resources”, especially given the previous government’s failed attempts to encouraging new NHS patients to visit. .

There are significant differences in the amounts charged by private dentists in the four home countries. For example, the most expensive white filling in Britain cost £198.90 in Watford this year – but just 17 miles away in Luton you could get one for £70.

Milton Keynes is one of the most popular places to get treatment. An extraction there costs £242 – while in Dundee it costs just £75.93, while a check costs £70 in the former and just £33 in the latter.

Similarly, the three most expensive root canals were in Cambridge (£660), Watford (£609) and Bournemouth (£550), while the cheapest were in Aberdeen (£250), Bangor (£250) and Belfast (£250). .

“Our research clearly shows the increasing financial burden the public feels in accessing dental care. It is worrying because NHS dental services are in crisis and people need an affordable and accessible alternative,” said Chris Steele, founder of MyTribe.

“I advise people to look around when they are looking for a dentist. Most publish their prices on their websites and the time you spend comparing them beforehand can save you a lot of money in the long run.”

He also advised patients to look closely at the costs of more complex procedures, such as extractions and root canals, as these often have the largest price differences; consider joining a practice’s membership program, which may provide discounts; and to pay for dental cover if you take out private health insurance, so that you can reclaim some of the costs of dental care.

Eddie Crouch, the chairman of the British Dental Association, which represents dentists, said “huge inflationary pressures” on dental practices, including the cost of energy and laboratory bills, and higher costs due to the budget, had helped explain the price rises.

But private practices are also charging higher prices to help cover the costs of treating NHS patients because the fees they receive do not cover the costs, he said.

“Private practices have the opportunity to reflect cost increases in their prices. NHS rates are fixed, but a generation of poor funding means many treatments are now carried out at a financial loss,” Crouch added. “Private dentistry has effectively subsidized loss-making NHS care.”

Dentists claim they have been doing more and more private work in recent years because the fees they receive for providing NHS-funded treatments have not kept pace with rising costs.

Responding to MyTribe’s research, Neil Carmichael, the executive chairman of the Association of Dental Groups, said the widespread shortage of dentists was also driving up prices.

“This is the classic outcome of huge demand with limited supply,” he said. “The ADG has been signaling for some time that an additional 3,000 or more dentists are needed in the NHS and private sector across the dental sector.

“This huge gap means that access to all dentistry is reduced. So with continued patient demand and as overhead costs rise, it is inevitable that there will be upward pressure on prices.”