Terms and Conditions
We are always pleased to assist our clients whenever we can. This document gives details of our terms and conditions of service. If, however, you have any queries or need clarification, please contact us and a member of staff will be happy to help you.
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No professional advice can be given without a clinical consultation with a dentist. For professional dental advice we strongly recommend that you see a dentist for full consultation.
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D4Dentist does not accept Medical Card services and all treatments are provided on a private basis only.
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Treatment plans and Estimates
Once your treatment plan has been agreed with the Dentist, we will provide you the details of your plan via email . If this plan changes due to radiographic or clinical findings, we will inform you and discuss this with you. Treatment plans and fees are valid for 90 days from the date the treatment was prescribed. If there are any points on your treatment plan that you wish to query, please do not hesitate to ask us, before the appointments for actual treatments are made.
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Consent forms
Certain treatments require completion of a written consent form. This is in order to explain the treatment, aftercare and any risk to you thoroughly, before any of these treatments are carried out.
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Fees
Fees for treatment are due on the day the treatment is provided. We do not operate an account in arrears facility and we require fees to be settled at the appointment where treatment is provided. Where treatment incurs a laboratory fee, a minimum of 50% of the total fee is due at the appointment where impressions are taken. Fees for certain treatments like Dental Implants and Invisalign® are taken in staged payments at each visit.
We reserve the right to request payment in advance for certain treatments.
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D4Dentist reserves the right to charge time based deposits for booking future appointments. Deposits are deductible off the cost of treatment.
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Payment methods accepted are:
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Debit/Credit Card excluding American express (preferred)
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Cash
Fees for treatment are due on the day the treatment is provided.
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D4Dentist does not accept any payments by cheque (unless agreed in advance with the practice owner). Please note that unpaid accounts are routinely referred to a Debt Collection Agency or the Small Claims Court, and we reserve the right to recover all costs incurred in doing so.
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We reserve the right to ask for payment in full before beginning any treatment plan.
We reserve the right to make alternative charges based on surgery and clinician time if planned treatment cannot be completed in the allocated time.
Prepayments
In order to secure your appointment a prepayment of €25 is required per 30 minute clinical time when booking with the dentist or the hygienist. If the appointment is booked online, please expect a call in the upcoming days to collect the prepayment.
The prepayment will go towards the booked appointment and is fully refundable or goes to the cost of the appointment unless the cancellation policy is not adhered to.
Late cancellation or missed appointments:
Our goal at D4Dentist is to provide the highest quality care to all our patients in a timely manner.
However, we cannot run smoothly if patients miss or cancel appointments without giving sufficient notice. To help ensure we give our patients the best service, we are required to plan appointments carefully to respect everyone’s time. When you book your appointment, you are holding a space on our calendar that is no longer available to other patients. In order to be respectful of your fellow patients if cancelling an appointment is necessary.
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We require a minimum of 48 business hours notice for cancellation of any arranged appointment. When we schedule an appointment for a patient, we are booking the surgery time off for that patient’s treatment. Failure to give the appropriate notice of cancellation will result in a Failed Appointment Fee being charged. Failure to give less than 48 business hours notice will result in €50.00 charge as a short notice cancellation fee. If a patient fails to attend a €50.00 fee will be charged. Please note these fees must be paid prior to rebooking the appointment.
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Our appointments are in high demand, and your advanced notice will allow another patient access to that appointment time.
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Failed Appointment fees must be settled before any other appointment is offered. Please note that we only accept notice of cancellation by e-mail or phone call.
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D4Dentist reserves the right to charge the full cost of the treatment in the event of a missed appointment or an appointment cancelled with less than 24 hours notice. For appointments longer than 1 hour, we require at least 72 hours notice.
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For missed appointments or short notice cancellations, we reserve the right to take a minimum of 50% deposit to book future appointments.
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Please note: it is also down to the principals discretion if further appointments can be booked for any late cancellations or missed appointments.
Late for appointments:
We understand that some patients travel long distances to get to the clinic, and in some cases being late for appointments can be unavoidable. If you are more than 10 minutes, please be aware that you may be asked to reschedule your appointment.
Personal Details:
It is very important that you give a full medical history and details of any medication you take. Should these change in any way, it is very important for you to tell your Dentist. It is the patient’s responsibility to inform the clinic of any changes in either personal details and/or their medical history.
Treatment Benefit / PRSI
Under the Treatment Benefit Scheme the Department Protection pays the full cost of an oral examination once a calendar year.
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Since October 2017, a payment of €42 is provided towards either:
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a scale and polish
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a periodontal treatment (if clinically necessary)
If the cost of either cleaning or periodontal treatment is more than €42, you must pay the rest. This is capped at €15 for a scale and polish. There is no cap on the balance charged for periodontal treatment.
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For more information please use the link: https://www.gov.ie/en/service/1fb655-treatment-benefit-scheme/
When making your appointment please provide your PPS number so that we can check if you are qualified under this scheme. If often takes several days to check eligibility.
VHI Dental network
D4Dentist is part of VHI Dental Scheme Network. This means that VHI Dental policy holders will be fully covered for 2 check-ups, cleanings and x-rays per policy year. Other treatments may also be cover up to 70% according to your policy details. If you have a VHI Dental policy and would like to avail of the VHI Direct Pay Service, please contact us in advance with your policy number in order for us to check your appointment cover.
For more information, please contact https://app.vhi.ie/dental-insurance
Guarantee:
At D4Dentist we offer a 12 month guarantee for fillings, and crown and bridgework, provided that the following conditions are met:
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The patient has fully paid for the treatment and does not owe the practice any money for the treatment received.
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The restorations have not been damaged as a result of an accident, trauma or excessive grinding.
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The patient has followed all post treatment maintenance recommendations made by our dentists.
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The patient has attended and routine examination every 12 months unless advised otherwise.
Some treatments may have a guarantee of less than 1 year, and in this case you will be informed by your Dentist either verbally or in writing, or both.
Use of Images and X-rays:
D4Dentist may use images and x-rays of your smile and teeth only, for marketing and educational purposes on D4Dentist website and social media. Your name will never be published, and identity will never be disclosed. However, if you DO NOT wish for us to use your images and x-rays in this way, please let us know.
Use of patient contact details:
At D4Dentist the health of our patients is our highest priority, and we also like to keep our patients informed of various important changes at the clinic and of our latest special offers. We like to remind our patients of their appointments, when they are due for appointments, and other various important reminders. On this note, you may be periodically contacted by the clinic via phone, text, email or by letter in the post. If you DO NOT wish to be contacted by the clinic by any or all of these means, please let us know.
Complaint’s policy:
At D4Dentist we always take complaints about any aspects of our services very seriously, in order to ensure that every patient has only the very best experience at all times.
Complaints can be made in writing by filling out a simple complaints form available from reception, or via email, by the patient or by an authorized person on the patient’s behalf. Complaints should be made to the ‘Practice Manager’, and should be clear, so that they can be dealt with efficiently.
Every complaint will receive immediate written/email acknowledgment, and the Management will strive to resolve the complaint within a quick, reasonable period of time (usually about 2 weeks). For our full complaints procedure and policy, please ask a member of our reception team. If a complaint is about any aspect of clinical care or associated charges it will normally be acknowledged by the Management team and then referred to the treating Dentist. Please note that in these cases, D4Dentist accepts no liability on behalf of the treating Dentist and acts as a liaison between the patient and the treating Dentist, only.
If you are unsatisfied with our internal handling of your complaint, you are free to forward your complaint to the Dental Council Service (https://www.dentalcouncil.ie/).
No tolerance/Abuse policy
We operate a zero tolerance policy to abuse to our Dentists and staff, loud/ disorderly/ drunken behavior, persistent missing and late cancellation of appointments (after multiple warnings). In these situations, D4Dentist reserves the right to refuse treatment and admission.
Promotions
D4Dentist occasionally runs special offers and promotions on treatments. These are subject to availability of appointments and suitability of the treatment for the patient.
Data Protection Act:
We store all patient personal details on a secure computer system in accordance with the Data Protection Act & GDPR. All clinical notes, digital radiographs, digital photographs etc remain the property of D4Dentist. Copies of notes, radiographs and photographs can be made available on request, and we reserve the right to charge an administration fee for these.