Can anyone else not afford the dentist anymore?

It was out of reach for us until this month when a new NHS only dentist opened up 40 minutes away. The only option if you can't get in an NHS one or afford private is to wait until you're in lots of pain then get an emergency appointment and pay £30 for them to pull it, which is why I'm now missing 2 teeth!

The trouble with deplan is that you have to be dentally fit to sign up.
I paid nearly £10k for implants, crowns and a denture about 3 years ago. It’s all failed, the denture doesn’t fit anymore and the implants fell out. The dentist won’t d anything now because it’s been over 2 years, so I’m now left with hardly any teeth. I can’t eat properly and I’ve got a tooth that really needs to go but I just can’t afford a new denture to replace it.
im so depressed about my mouth that I avoid going out.

Yep, that's wild. I go to a stupidly posh dentist because my teeth are a bloody fright show and she is nowhere near those prices.
That said, even the cheaper dentists are still a lot of money if you are barely getting by.

That’s very expensive. I don’t need a hygienist as the dentist does it every time I go. It’s a posh one so I’m surprised

A check up here is £90 something pounds. X rays aren't taken annually, at least not for me.

When DD needed teeth out privately I called around for prices, which admittedly felt a bit wrong, like I was calling around garages for a new exhaust. Prices varied hugely.

That dentist is taking the mickey.

It is awful. At one point, everyone paying taxes expected to get all their care free, yet they're not offering you any of the taxes you paid back, are they?
Some people say use Den Plan, but you have to complete any needed treatment before starting that, so if you already have any issues, that might not help.
Maybe just travel to a cheaper dentist? Even if you have to drive for an hour, if it's much cheaper, as in the prices people are telling you, it's worth it. Please don't skip check ups, as it's not just about your teeth, they can pick up on cancers. This happened with a friend so I know it's true. Why are smears free and dentists not, even though both can pick up cancers? I don't know.

Lol I don't either 😂

I do one day a week at an NHS practice. Yesterday alone the dentist had 5 people not turn up for check ups and 2 ring up in the morning to cancel. That’s 7 spaces where no money coming in. It’s a shame people don’t realise how lucky they are to have an NHS dentist. But sadly a lot don’t appreciate it.

I’m in a small town but actually travel to another small town for a specialist dentist who offers sedation. All the local practices are full to NHS so this is all private but it’s much cheaper than that - check up £50 including x rays and off to the hygienist next week for £75 - were south west.

I pay £20 a month for 2 yearly check up and hygienist appts. Every 2 years this includes x rays too.

Wow thanks, you actually think I don’t already know that? Obviously I want to go. But my credit card is maxed out, bank account empty, loan interest piling up, income too low to get another loan, no family to ask for help, outgoings already cut to the bone. Maybe try to be more sensitive to other people’s situations before you make glib comments.

Up until a few months ago I was on denplan and having hygienist every 4 months and 2 checkups per year. I started to feel like it was all a bit pointless and the hygienist sessions were becoming frankly quite traumatic.

I've decided to just keep my teeth scrupilously clean and cut right down on sugar and all acidic/fizzy/sugary drinks. If I lose a tooth every few years so be it.

My granma only had 7 teeth left when she died and it gave her character 😄

Edited to add: my dad (78) says he's never had a filling or a tooth out. When I ask him his secret he says 'I've never been to the dentist'. 😁

You can get an implant and bone work done at the Brighton implant centre for around £1500. Ive had 4 done there. I drive 4 hours to get there. They do excellent affordable work. PM me if you want contact details.

Treatment would be a lot more debt

Well that’s hardly normal… I go to a very nice private dentist in Pimlico and a check up is £95.

Mine is £27 a month

You get 2 checkups a year and they clean your teeth at the appointment. This also includes any emergency appointments needed in between.

And if you go regularly less likely to need the more costly treatments.

I am in denial - havent been since before covid - but I simply cant afford it, I can’t even afford to pay off my debts, I dont want to add more debt 😫😫😫

DS and I have been on BUPA Smile plan for a little over 2 years now…everything has been covered (so far!) so no unexpected or additional costs.

Just to add to my dentist prices:

Children 0-5: Routine checkup - free
Age 6-12: £15
Age 12-17: £20

My private dentist's prices from the website:

Routine exam: £44.50
X rays: £10 each
Scale and polish: £44.50
Veneer: £60
Extraction: £120-170
White filling: £80-175
Crown: £590
Tooth whitening: £375

My cousin is a partner in a longstanding family-owned dental practice in Harley Street and they don’t charge their patients as much as £250 for a check up! That is eye-watering. My dentist charges similar to others here for a check up (c£60) and the hygienist is about the same. My DH had to have root canal work and that was four figures. I live in fear of that and try to keep on top of check ups and hygienist appointments in the hope of warding off the big bills.

Where I live in the south east there really is no NHS service at all. Adults can join some private practices who will then see their children on the NHS but I don’t know what people who can’t afford a private practice do and what it means for a generation of children and their dental health. I can also see it from a dentist’s perspective too as the reimbursement rate from the NHS wasn’t covering costs from what I understand. I hope you find a more reasonable alternative.

I have a NHS dentist im very lucky my sister got one last year by chance.
Just keep looking.

You can use a dentist in another town.

Shop around and find a cheaper dentist - you may have to travel out of town. Most of the private practices round us are more expensive than NHS (but not as wild as that) so around £50 -£75 for a check up, basic fillings and "band 2 treatments" around £90 -£150 and root canals or "band 3 treatments' are around £400+ depending on what you are having. I know dentures/ braces/ implants are a more. We are in a dental desert so private practices can get away with charging more.

A lot of private practices have their own payment plan schemes or take dental plans like denplan.

Does you dentist take insurance plans (Bupa ect)? I know the ones that take insurance plans round us are more expensive. The cheaper ones seem to have their own plan schemes.

We don’t have one available in our county, I’ve not seen one in over 10 years! I need around £12k of treatment. Luckily it’s not really noticeable at the moment.