NHS or private (Denplan)

[Notadogslife]

I have always seen an NHS dentist but haven't always had great service. I was told I needed a filling and was quoted but on 3 occasions I went to my appt and was told it could wait, she'd do it next time. Then the tooth crumbled and i needed a difficult repair and had pain for 30 minutes after eating anything hot for 4 months. I wrote a letter to complain which was ignored. Then I had a new dentist who was very good but he left. I haven't been since - just over 2 years.
I've found and NHS dentist nearby taking new patients but I'm tempted to go private so I don't get fobbed off again. I've found a private dentist who is accepting new patients and offers denplan but I'm worried how expensive it could get. I have a broken tooth which doesn't cause me any pain but they'll probably want to fix it before accepting me on denplan.

Does anyone have denplan? How much do you pay? Is it worth it? Or would you go NHS if you could?

I have denplan and pay around £16 a month.
Not sure if it's dentist specific but I have never paid anything else. I get priority for emergency appointments at my surgery and have never paid a penny more than my monthly fee, despite having many xrays and issues with wisdom teeth involving them having to be filed down etc.
My dh was at an nhs dentist and they completely destroyed one of his teeth by filling it in various places for absolutely no reason. He moved to my private dentist a while back and has never looked back. We pay £6 a month for ds1 who is 3 and our 1yo gets his free till he is 3.
I would never go to an nhs dentist now. I'd rather pay the almost £40 a month as a family and get really looked after.
Ps. We are not flush at all, I just think teeth are very important and so many nhs dentists seem rubbish!

Thanks Zara. That seems very reasonable and I'm even more tempted. I've been neglecting my teeth in recent years so this feels like a good way of taking control. I suppose I could go for the initial assessment and see what they propose and then decide. Thanks for responding.

I've booked an appointment gulp!

Good luck! I think you'll be fine :-)

I am an NHS patient in a surgery that offers both NHS and private care. My dentist is excellent, and I have the option to pay privately for things that the NHS doesn’t cover - eg, hygienist. I think it depends on the individual dentist more than the cost, and consider myself very lucky. I am quite an anxious patient - really scared of needles, but not the dentist or having work done - and am always booked in for longer appointments than I need if I have to get any treatment, and my dentist is very kind and patient.

My DP sees a private dentist and he says he always feels rushed, and that they seem to “upsell” treatments that are cosmetic, like whitening.