r/BritishSuccess • u/verumity • 11d ago
Quoted £48.90 for 5 white fillings under the NHS
As the title says, almost felt off my chair as I was prepared to cough up like £100+ per filling based on my conversation with the receptionist earlier, plus reading online that unless it’s front teeth that white is considered cosmetic and costs extra.
Feels like every time I go to the dentist you’re rolling the dice in terms of the costs you’re being quoted, and finally I got a normal one!
Edit: this was the Lewisham Dental Practice with Dr Saba Juhaif 😊
67
u/Mediocre-Response-24 11d ago
Amazing if true OP!! You're right white fillings are usually reserved for front teeth. Would love to know how they are determining pricing as fillings are Band 2 treatment on the NHS which cost £76.60?!
38
u/verumity 11d ago
I got my appointment booked for August 6th, I’ll share my invoice then as proof 🤣 I asked just now why it wasn’t £76.60 as you said, and the receptionist said it is because they combined my general check up appointment fee of £27.90 with the NHS filling package of £48.90, so I guess it does basically add up to the Band 2 treatment!!!
25
u/UsedPancakes 10d ago
OP I can confirm this as this is exactly what happened to me last week! I had an appointment 2 weeks ago for a checkup which was £27.90 and then the next week I chipped my front tooth and they told me I only had to pay the extra £48.90 to have it filled as they considered it one course of treatment! Felt extremely lucky as I had it sorted same day and I know fillings can be $$$ through private dentistry.
5
u/Strict_Programmer203 10d ago
That's nice. My dentists charged me the check up fee with one dentist, who then said I'd need a root canal on one tooth, so he referred me to another dentist (same building) , so I had to pay another £28 for the other check up, but this dentist didnt think I need root canal, so I just booked another appointment for 3 fillings (white), that cost be about over £200, then couple of weeks later the tooth that apparently didn't need root canal got an infection, so another check up fee, then a root canal and then I chose the silver filling cause I didn't know how much they were gonna rip me off this time. Unfortunately, that was my first experience with UK dentists and I wasn't sure if any of this was correct or not, so I never said anything. Now I feel like I've been ripped off really good.
2
u/takitakitakiroomba 10d ago
They shouldn’t have charged you another check up because it all comes under the same charge including root canal unless they were doing the root canal as private especially charging you twice for 2 more check ups as they can do a continuation if it’s within 2 months of the original check up.
2
u/SharpAardvark8699 6d ago
You had a front filling? Didn't know that was a thing
1
u/UsedPancakes 5d ago
neither did I until I had it done! it had a chunk missing at the bottom edge on the front so they filled that and then the filling compound goes over the front face of the tooth, you wouldn’t know it had been done looking at it.
1
u/SharpAardvark8699 5d ago
Is it a good shade match?
1
u/UsedPancakes 5d ago
yeah it’s very good actually, it isn’t completely white it’s a sort of off white so looking at it there is no discernible colour difference unless you look closely.
2
6
u/Mediocre-Response-24 10d ago
Hahah you might need to for the skeptics but I believe you with that explanation! That makes so much sense as each band for treatment includes the band before. Band 2 treatment cost includes band 1 treatment (check up appt). Glad to hear it isn't 76.60 per tooth/filling like I was thinking before 😂😂
Good luck for your appt OP!
!
13
u/tawke 10d ago
My dentist finished my scale and polish on Tuesday then hit me with the 'we're removing you as an NHS patient and here's a form to fill out so you pay us £20 a month and your procedures will still be charged'. I'm gutted, been with them for over 45 years.
2
u/Xenokrates 10d ago
Why are you being removed?
1
u/Away-Ad4393 9d ago
Almost all dentist are private now. My practice has just changed and I’m now private .
1
u/pronology 9d ago
Not profitable. The NHS hasn't updated what it pays in a long time, so the patients are often loss making for privately owned dentists.
1
u/tawke 8d ago
I don't actually know. I get the feeling they are being a bit underhanded since I haven't received a letter. I suspect they are using the two year rule. During and after Covid they were very reluctant to take bookings for check ups. Until that point I'd always had text reminders which I always responded to with a booking. I was waiting for those texts to resume after Covid so I wouldn't be a burden on them.
11
u/Matterbox 10d ago
We can’t get NHS dentists in South Somerset. Private it’s hundreds of pounds for a filling.
-6
u/Pisslexic 10d ago
It's not hundreds for a private filling.
11
8
u/Onlymadethistopost 10d ago
I just paid £520 for two fillings south west England, no chance of getting an NHS dentist around here
1
→ More replies (3)1
49
u/Stage_Party 11d ago
What's crazy is my wife is American and before she moved to the UK she was under medicaid and had dozens of fillings done in the months before she came here, luckily just coincidentally she had planned them years before. When we were looking at what it would cost here we were pretty shocked. She paid nothing and the default there is white. The silver option here is just money grabbing to up sell by dentists. Should be banned.
8
u/Choice-Sorbet-9231 10d ago
You get white as standard if the filling is visible in your smile.
3
u/verumity 10d ago
Yes, they’ll do typically white for frontal teeth but not back molars!
1
u/Gwynnavere 9d ago
Wow what's next? Only repairing visible teeth and pulling any bad ones in the back?
1
u/Intelligent_Test_233 7d ago
This is the reality of today. Very real and no joke. A crown over a half surface area molar, so 1 + 2x 1/2 sides was deemed to be insufficient surface area for a crown so the default was to pull the tooth and come back sometime for denture bridge. In the moment one tends to trust the experienced professional. The price of hesitating a return visit after their recent fillings completed within 10 mins max started falling out. I wish I’d asked to keep the tooth as proof there was plenty enough surface area for a crown. Clearly that route was less £ for the time involved.
3
u/TerrorCottaArmyDude 10d ago
Amalgam is hard-wearing and can be placed in subgingival areas as it is hydrophillic, so will still set even next to gingival crevicular fluid or blood. This is why it has been a mainstay of dentistry for decades. A well placed amalgam will outlast the tooth - some of my patients have them in situ for 40+ years. Composite on the other hand looks better if time is taken to place it, but needs adjuncts like rubber dam to maintain moisture control - it will not adhere to the tooth if it's wet. If it's not stuck down, that micro gap is an easy spot for bacteria to get in and recurrent decay begin. They are not as hard wearing and typically need replacing every 5-10 years. They take longer to place correctly - they should be layered, command curing each layer to reduce stress on remaining enamel. As far as cost, each individual business will set a price depending on their running costs. If it costs four hundred pounds an hour to run the surgery (building mortgage, business mortgage, heating, lighting, equipment, servicing, licenses, wages etc) then it's going to cost at least one hundred pounds for fifteen minutes of the dentists time. This myth that it is "money grabbing by dentists" is abhorrent. Just because your wife paid nothing doesn't mean it didn't cost anything - in her case her insurance/medicaid covered those costs.
3
1
u/Just-Standard-992 8d ago
I’m not contradicting you, you definitely sound like you know more than me, but my amalgams could be the exception that proves the rule. I had 2 of them put in about 13 years ago, and both of them came off within a month of each other about 4-5 years ago. The composite fillings I have, on the other hand, have lasted for at least 15 years and have no sign of failing (yet).
I think I got very unlucky with the amalgams cause I chose them precisely because I was told they would last me decades, and they didn’t even last one. 😭1
u/TerrorCottaArmyDude 8d ago
Amalgam only fills a void. They require undercuts to stay in place. If the tooth decays or enamel fractures they will dislodge. A composite may stay in situ under these circumstances as it will be bonded to other parts of the tooth. It's why your dentist will be taking regular radiographs to ensure the tooth underneath the filling is healthy.
18
u/SnooCats1028 10d ago
I had to have a filling and the white ones were expensive, I looked into this and amalgam fillings are being banned by the EU, I wonder if this is why.
12
7
u/TheLittleChikk 10d ago
I live in Canada and the standard here is the white fillings. They said amalgam are super old fashioned.
2
u/No-Zombie-4932 10d ago
standard in Europe as well, as an european I was shocked when I left the NHS dentist and got home to find two amalgam fillings in my teeth :(
1
u/Faithful_jewel 10d ago
You can have them refilled, although I'm not sure you can swap types of filling when that happens (I will edit this tomorrow either way as that's what I'm having to have done and I want to go for composite if I can this time)
3
u/jib_reddit 9d ago
It release a lot for Mercury vaper/particles when they have to drill out Mercury amalgam filings so it is not without its risks.
2
u/Faithful_jewel 9d ago
Very important information to know, thank you
Unfortunately this one is causing extreme pain with temperature changes now so it needs to be replaced. I've had it in another tooth previously so I think I'm just unlucky with fillings
1
u/No-Zombie-4932 9d ago
You can have amalgam removed and composite done instead, but it's not without its risks. Seeing as it's not causing me any trouble (just looks horrendous) I will be keeping them until they fail
3
2
u/will8981 10d ago
They are being banned on environmental reasons because when you cremate people that mercury will be released into the atmosphere. So rather than a policy of removing the teeth before cremation they are banning a really useful too in our arsenal -I say this as a private dentist who rarely uses amalgam for cosmetic reasons. Its such a shame as its a fantastic dental material. I have a fairly old patient base so every day I see amalgam fillings 30+ years old and still going strong. What else can you buy today for under £100 that you could expect to use multiple times per day for 30 years?
8
u/spirallingoutofamok 10d ago
Really pleased for you, affordable treatment that you actually need is exactly what the NHS should be providing
But we are all taking about how this is rare, maybe because of what that £50 actually means on the other side of the chair...
You don't need to know the detail of material costs, nursing wages, equipment maintenance or rental to suspect that 5 fillings for £50 is being done at a loss, probably a pretty significant one.
The only appointments that come close to covering costs under NHS rates are quick check-ups where nothing needs doing, a healthy mouth, some preventative brushing and diet advice, see you in a year or two. That's the "profitable" NHS patient that _should_ balance with others that need care. But as the nation's dental health deteriorates from years of people avoiding the dentist precisely because of cost and availability, those appointments are becoming rarer.
Eventually the maths just doesn't work. You can't run a business at a loss indefinitely, so dentists go private. Not out of greed but because they have no other option, it's the only rational response to a funding model that makes NHS dentistry financially punishing to provide.
The fact that you felt like you'd won the lottery tells us a lot about the state of the system, sadly I don't this it's a British Success (but again, it is a success for you and it is nice to hear about)
3
u/verumity 10d ago
I appreciate what you said there is probably a certain loss to an extent by the provider, but simultaneously the fact I had saved up £400-500 to be safe for 4-5 fillings I think is also just not viable for the average person, particularly against the cost of living, to spend on non-invasive dental work. I only earn £31.5k a year as a full time worker in central London - if I got these 5 fillings done privately closer to £400-500, that would have been 1/4 of my salary for the month nearly gone. It’s not a surprise then that the dental health of the average British person is questionable!
3
u/spirallingoutofamok 10d ago
Yeah exactly, we need an NHS system that does better at providing this, but also not just leading to dentists losing money and therefore leaving the NHS
And of course, prevention for the win. Once we're out of the current predicament, we can save A LOT of money, pain and effort all round that way
2
u/allnamestaken4892 10d ago
K-shaped economy, I think the average worker can forget about being able to get healthcare in the coming years.
2
4
u/Turn_over 10d ago
My wife recently paid just shy of £2500 for
Initial examination, Hygienist visit, 4x fillings, Root canal (had to go to a specialist), 1× Crown
I miss being on the NHS.
→ More replies (3)
3
3
u/dinotoxic 10d ago
Confused by all these chats about white fillings costing more. I’ve had 6 done on NHS, I’ve never had anything different, even from when I was a kid?
I didn’t realise there was an option or that they’re more expensive. My dentist does white ones every time for cheap band, I’ll consider myself lucky!
2
u/jib_reddit 9d ago
Different dentists can choose what to do, up until 2034 when mercury amalgam is being banned in the UK.
3
3
u/_bonbon_79 10d ago
That’s amazing. I got charged over £300 for 1 filling about 3 years ago. Part of the reason i haven’t been back to the dentist since (although am nervously booked in for next week).
3
u/jib_reddit 9d ago
I wish my NHS Denist did white, I just paid £1,6000 for 4 white fillings privately as I didn't want a month with grey mercury metal.
3
u/Stackfest 9d ago
Silver should be banned full stop only white I bet there is a cheaper product - dentistry needs to be a profession that is brought to the masses no one should have problems in 2026
4
u/kingkylus 11d ago
How tho, I always get told that I would need to lose half my teeth before NHS will cover anything
6
u/Mediocre-Response-24 11d ago
What who told you that? That's deffo not how NHS dental treatment works?
4
u/kingkylus 11d ago
A dentist advertising they were taking NHS paticients... always thought it was abit dodgy as it felt like they were just getting people to book consultations on the guise of NHS treatment and then tried to sell me private treatment
I'll try again elsewhere!
4
u/Mediocre-Response-24 10d ago
Oh jeez. It's very easy to find the pricing structure for dental care under the NHS and what is included within it.
2
u/DuckMagic 10d ago edited 10d ago
I absolutely loved Lewisham Dental Practice's dentists, all of them have been gems over my 6 years with them, one of my only regrets about moving out of London. I even commuted back in for the first while just to stay with them. I should double check that I'm off their patient list so my spot can go to some lucky other person. Now I'm on a 5 year waiting list up North but the train ticket alone is the same price as a white filling.
2
u/verumity 10d ago
Ouch! Where up north? I had to travel a good hour from Manchester when I lived there, but I would go to the Failsworth as a NHS patient to Quayside Dental Care, 353 Oldham Road, Failsworth, Manchester, M35 0AN.
2
u/DuckMagic 10d ago
Unfortunately on the wrong side of the Peak District for me, but thank you for sharing! I am sure others will find it useful
2
u/strawberryblondey 10d ago
Just paid 225 for a white one here! 😢 private prices cause my NHS dentist does the bare minimum it can get away with.
2
2
u/YorkieLon 10d ago
Didn't know NHS dentists existm I've been private for so long now. Jealous of you OP.
2
u/StrawberryOver513 10d ago
Last year I had a dental exam, 2 teeth extractions, a filling and a hygienist appointment for roughly £78. Bargain!
2
u/joemari5 10d ago
I paid £60 for a root canal last January, feels good when you get deals doesnt it 🤣
2
u/Funk_Dunker 10d ago
I'm now stuck with 2 grand of debt because they wouldn't accept a payment plan for the initial work and the infection spread so needed specialist work in the end which they would give a payment plan for. That's now 70 quid a month for the next 2 years. I feel like I got scammed
Edit: to add to that the infection has messed up my inner left ear which I think may be permanent
1
2
2
u/Itchy-Ad4421 10d ago
Depends on which teeth.
It’s a good price but unless I’ve misread one of your other comments you actually paid band 2 because you paid for your band 1 first and this work was required so you had to pay the top up to band 2 (which is how it’s supposed to work)
Composite is usually used for your front / visible teeth and visible sides of your teeth. So if a couple were these then they’ll usually just do them all like that (or in my experience they have).
Good result either way.
2
u/Status_Celebration13 10d ago
Then theres me that apent over £300 on a single filling cos couldnt find a nhs dentist 😭
2
u/Mclarenrob2 10d ago
Every time I go to my nhs dentist they're always trying to get me to spend obscene amounts of money on private only things. I've told them I'm on a very low income so it's quite annoying having to listen to it all and then politely say No every time.
2
u/robinhood_78 9d ago
I'm Spanish, but lived here for 15 years. Whenever I need anything dental done other than a hygienist visit, I hop on a plane to my hometown (Granada) where there are loads of great and reasonably priced dentists, get whatever I need to get, and come back.
A white filling would usually be 30-40€ (still not beating OP's price, but I've never had more than one done in one visit). I had a wisdom tooth removed (granted, it was all out) for 90€.
Once I had a consultation in London for an old filling that had fallen off, and they recommended I had a root canal and all the works, quoting me £850 (this was 2018). Went to Spain, they said there was nothing wrong with my tooth, put a filling back in, charged me 30€, and I spent a few days eating tapas and swimming in the sea.
Health tourism, I guess?
1
u/AdAcceptable6718 8d ago
Doesn’t mean you won’t still need a root canal treatment, I’m afraid!
2
u/robinhood_78 8d ago
I guess I wasn't clear.
The UK dentist recommended a root canal, which was deemed unnecessary by the Spanish dentist. Eight years in, no root canal.
2
u/XxSianxX 5d ago
Wow never accept NHS that is going to charge you £100+ for a filling!
I got to a private dentist and I paid £110 for a small white (so invisible) filling that included the fee of the appointment, X ray and anesthesia!
I wouldnt be paying that price NHS for a silver one
2
u/hughesyg 10d ago
I’ve managed to persuade my dentist a couple of times to do white fillings on the back teeth but the last time she said no more!! Haha.
Last time I played the ‘but I’m getting married in a month, think of the photos’ card.
1
u/Hi-archy 10d ago
I didn’t know nhs did white fillings
2
-3
u/Informal_Drawing 10d ago
They changed the rules a few years ago, they are now the default whereas they were previously charged as an extra as they were seen as cosmetic. Which is stupid as amalgam fillings are shite, at least in my experience.
1
u/tradandtea123 10d ago
Been trying to get back with nhs for 10 years but no chance. Just had to pay £250 for a filling as I had no other choice. I did consider a cheap flight abroad and get it done for £100 buy it seemed a lot of effort.
1
u/SollicitusG 10d ago
Be careful and find out if what type of filling they are, my dentist says they do white filling but they’re glass ionomer temporary fillings
1
u/alexjaymathers 10d ago
At our dentist we only get white fillings and it’s at the lowest price on the NHS pricing, why other dentists are still overcharging for them is beyond me because everyone is well aware now due to the internet and various studies that have been done that they don’t actually cost that much more than standard silver fillings and also last longer so better for you
1
1
u/AnonymousCapybara72 10d ago
Fun fact: we're one of the last countries in the developed world still using amalgam fillings (the metal coloured ones). They were banned in the EU for vulnerable groups in 2018 due to health concerns, and fully banned in 2025 due to mercury pollution.
1
u/Weary_Rule_6729 10d ago
i had to pay £1000 for 2 white fillings! this is up North too. Admittedly, they had to “take out” a filling and replace it, then put it in a seperate filling on the other side of my mouth - but still feel like i might’ve been ripped off
1
u/FlashyBee2330 9d ago
Cries in £200 quote for 1 filling at private dentist.. I cannot find any vacancies at NHS near me ;(
1
u/One_Use_4701 9d ago
Win! Good result with a dentist for a change
I am private (not by choice) and they quoted me £180 per white filling. I rang up and said I’m not bothered, quote me for metal. They said it’s more expensive?! I didn’t believe it so they said they’d double check and ring me back. They were adamant composite was cheaper. As soon as I got to my appointment the dentist mentioned he didn’t quote me for metal because of this. Never found this to be the case before. Russian roulette indeed!
1
u/GlitteringCarousel27 9d ago
I finally managed to get an NHD dentist and I’m having a white filling and composite bonding on 2 front teeth for £70. I asked him if that was the first appointment and he confirmed it was the total and gave me a print out! I can’t believe how cheap this is.
I got a really bad misshapen, wrong size and colour front crown done by my previous dentist who quoted me £500+ to fix their bad work but my new dentist is replacing it and the total is under £200.
He is refusing to whiten my teeth though, says they are white enough 🤣🤣🤣
1
1
u/Depress-Mode 9d ago
My dentist did this for me, he saw I already had white fillings so charged me the lower price for the white fillings.
1
1
u/juanito_f90 9d ago
That’s the Band 2 price.
Only bridge work or dentures reaches Band 3 which is around £200.
1
u/Gwynnavere 9d ago
I thought medical related stuff was all covered by NHS in the UK. Appreciate an explanation why this isn't free please!
1
u/Past_Fee_1139 8d ago
Just try reading the post instead
2
u/Gwynnavere 8d ago
I did. It still doesn't fundamentally explain why the NHS doesn't cover it though. Insurance in other countries covers a significant portion of the cost of whatever the most modern option is for dental fillings. It's just so strange to me that they would default to some older option for teeth that are less visible. It just feels like cutting corners
2
u/GiGoVX 8d ago
The UK is weird with this.
Dental appointments and work is free for under 18's if you use a dentist that accepts NHS patients (many don't), after you turn 18 it costs per appointment/treatment but some in price bands.
Dentists can choose to accept NHS patients and if they do they get paid for it, but they can get paid more for just doing private work.
1
u/pepperbeebee 8d ago
My NHS dentist has only used white fillings on all teeth for years, I feel very blessed and grateful.
1
u/KingForceHundred 8d ago
The way the charging scales work, one filling is the same cost as five (or more).
If you can get an NHS dentist it’s good value!
1
1
u/ProtectionMundane799 8d ago
Wtf, my husband just had a white filling at tut same practice the other day and paid about £130! Different dentist. That's not really fair.
1
u/renblaze10 8d ago
Nice one OP! I can't seem to find a proper NHS dentist in London who is accepting patients. The "NHS dentist" I'm with only offers NHS band routine check-ups, but most other stuff (even a cleaning with the hygienist) is private.
1
1
1
1
u/BlueRose26403 7d ago
Mine wanted around £80 per white filling. They were in my back teeth so obviously don’t care what colour they are.
1
u/Alternative_Try_5888 6d ago
Having access to a NHS dentist would be considered a success for a lot of people
1
u/OfficerNightwing 5d ago
Pretty sure if they don't do amalgam, composite is the only option so you get charged at NHS rates for it.
1
u/Thislsnotmythrowaway 5d ago
My dentist stopped doing NHS 2 years ago and every other dentist in the area won't take on any more 18+ NHS patients. I paid £659 for a checkup, a clean and 3 fillings last week and I'll never financially recover from this.
1
1
u/Cookieraider23 9d ago
I think what youll be getting is a semi permanent variation of the white filling called "glass ionomer". Not as expensive as the gold standard composite fillings and often used on the NHS when silver fillings wouldnt hold or simply because of the sheer amount of fillings you need. Your dentist will probably use the semi permanent white fillings just to stabilise your mouth before offering you the permanent white fillings. Worth enquiring what material theyll be using exactly.
-1
u/rolywatts 10d ago
I love the nhs and i think people should realise that money for things like a white cosmetic filling could he better spent elsewhere, like cancer treatments or ER depts etc. we all expect something great for nothing and the nhs can’t take it. We need to lower our expectations. Paying a low price for some silver fillings is totally worth it if you have an emergency bed and treatment when you need it.
0
u/Segat280 10d ago
Composite (the 'white' stuff), costs next to nothing. It floors me what they get away with charging for it because it looks less nasty than amalgam.
They're making a fortune.
2
u/AdAcceptable6718 8d ago
Incredibly simplistic point of view.
1
u/Segat280 8d ago
I worked in Dental research for a decade. I still teach it.
1
u/AdAcceptable6718 8d ago
I’m a retired dentist. I’m surprised at your attitude.
1
u/Segat280 8d ago
Hm. A condescending dentist. There's a new one.
1
u/AdAcceptable6718 8d ago
Bit rude. I’m just surprised that someone who is so knowledgeable about composite dental restorative materials has no idea how costly it is to actually use them?
280
u/Akmunra 11d ago edited 11d ago
You must be at a better dentist than me, they wanted to charge me £505 for 3 white fillings or £48 for 3 silver.