Apicectomy problem leads to excessive claim

Dawn Wood, Claims Negotiator at Dental Protection reports on a recent case whereby the claim was reduced and saved a significant amount of the member fund. 

Mr F underwent an apicectomy of the UR1. Over the course of the next 11 years, he experienced nine infections around the UR1 and UL1, which resulted in extraction of both teeth. Mr F then claimed that this lengthy period of time where he was exposed to chronic infection had caused him to develop an autoimmune condition.

Mr F went on to make a claim against the practitioner who carried out the original apicectomy. He alleged there had been a failure to properly investigate the symptoms related to his UR1 and UL1, which led to a failure to provide an appropriate treatment plan and obtain valid consent for the apicectomy, which he also alleged was an avoidable procedure.

How Dental Protection assisted

The claim from Mr F was in the region of £100,000. While the Dental Protection legal team agreed the claim needed to be settled, the offer made to Mr F’s solicitors was £17,000. This was rejected by Mr F’s legal team but we were able to obtain expert evidence that was supportive of this offer; we continued to defend our calculation and in the end Mr F’s legal team accepted the settlement figure. 

We were also able to secure a two-thirds reduction in the costs that Mr F’s legal team claimed to have incurred. Overall this represented a significant saving to the member fund. Dental Protection will always firmly challenge claimant solicitors who have unreasonable expectations and unnecessary demands.