By Jade McCoy. Last Updated 1st July 2024. Have you suffered broken teeth or dental negligence in an accident that wasn’t your fault? Then you could be entitled to claim compensation. If the accident happened to someone else being negligent or cutting corners then you are legally entitled to claim compensation. How much compensation for dental negligence can you expect to claim? Dental compensation amounts vary greatly but your broken tooth claim could be worth thousands of pounds.
In this case study, we are going to look at a recent case where the claimant suffered broken teeth, through no fault of their own. Mrs Q, as we are going to call her for the sake of her privacy, was shopping in Wrexham town centre on the day of her accident. She bought a packet of crisps at a local shop and began to eat them. Trusting the product was as advertised she bit down and was suddenly in incredible pain. It turned out that rather than putting a crisp in her mouth, she had put a plastic-metal foreign object in her mouth and bitten down on it. After further investigation, it turned out that the foreign object was a piece of conveyor belt from the plant where the crisps were manufactured, which had come loose and made its way into a crisp packet.
Call trusted legal advisor Legal Expert today on 0800 073 8804 for your free consultation. We will advise you on whether or not you can make a legitimate broken tooth claim, how much you could be awarded and match you to a solicitor with the right expertise to handle your case. Don’t delay, call us today to begin your broken tooth claim.
Select a Section
- What Injuries Were Sustained During This Accident?
- The Allegation And Establishing Liability
- Compensation For A Broken Teeth Settlement
- No Win No Fee Dental Compensation Claims
- Contact Legal Expert Today
- Useful Links
What Injuries Were Sustained During This Accident?
After the accident, Mrs Q sought dental treatment. She had suffered a chipped tooth as well as various cuts to her mouth. Whilst a chipped tooth may be cosmetically undesirable, as an injury they do not often lead to other complications or incidences.
In many cases, the biggest consequence of a chipped tooth injury is the cosmetic effect and the impact that this can have on things such as a person’s smile or even their self-esteem. After chipping a tooth, the first thing to do is to visit a dentist to get your broken tooth evaluated, and have a range of treatment options put forward.
The Allegation And Establishing Liability
The crisp manufacturers admitted liability for Mrs Q’s accident. However, rather than offering her a reasonable amount of compensation for her ordeal, they offered her a £50 voucher to spend on their products. However, Mrs Q felt this was not acceptable compensation considering the pain and suffering she endured. As such, she pursued a broken tooth claim for compensation.
For more information about establishing liability after having your teeth broken in an accident, get in touch with our team at any time. They can offer free legal advice and could potentially connect you with one of our expert solicitors.
Compensation For A Broken Teeth Settlement
If your broken tooth compensation claim is successful, there potentially can be two heads of loss which can make up your settlement value.
General damages is the first head of loss and is always given for successful claims. This head of loss addresses the physical and psychiatric suffering you are experiencing from your broken tooth injury.
Some factors that can affect how your general damages are valued include:
- Loss of amenity.
- Pain severity.
- Length of recovery.
Along with an independent medical assessment, the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) can be referred to during the claims process.
The JCG is a document that legal professionals use to help value general damages. This document contains guideline compensation brackets for varying types of injuries and illnesses.
Compensation Table
We have taken some tooth injuries from the JCG and have included them in this table, along with their guideline brackets (only the first row contains information of our own).
However, since these are only guideline figures, there is no guarantee to what you could potentially be awarded for your general damages if your broken tooth compensation claim is successful.
| Injury type | Severity of injury | Guideline settlement brackets |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple severe injuries with special damages | Serious | Up to £150,000+ |
| Facial injuries - skeletal injuries | Fractures of jaws (e) (i) | £37,210 to £55,570 |
| Damage to teeth - significant, general deterioration | Up to £46,540 | |
| Fractures of jaws (e) (ii) | £21,920 to £37,210 | |
| Multiple fractures of facial bones (b) | £18,180 to £29,220 | |
| Damage to teeth (f) (i) | £10,660 to £13,930 | |
| Fractures of jaws (e) (iii) | £7,880 to £10,660 | |
| Damage to teeth (f) (ii) | £5,310 to £9,310 | |
| Damage to teeth (f) (iii) | £2,690 to £4,820 |
Special Damages
Special damages is the second head of loss and is sometimes given for successful claims. This head of loss addresses the finances you have lost from your broken tooth injury.
Having a broken tooth injury could potentially result in these types of financial losses:
- Loss of earnings – taking time off work to recover.
- Dentist costs, such as treatment.
- Travel expenses – making your way to and from appointments for treatment.
As we have mentioned, even if your claim is successful, there is a chance that you might not be awarded special damages. For this reason, it is important to keep any invoices, receipts, bank statements, and payslips as evidence.
For more information on how much your broken tooth compensation claim could possibly be worth, you can visit our online compensation calculator. Alternatively, you can call us today for free to speak directly to an advisor for personalised advice.
How much is a broken tooth worth in a lawsuit?
Her personal injury solicitors managed to negotiate reasonable dental compensation amounts for her. The award was nearly £6,000 awarded for pain and suffering for her broken tooth and additional funds to cover her expenses for private dental treatment.
No Win No Fee Dental Compensation Claims
If you wish to sue for pain and suffering for a broken tooth caused by another’s negligence, and compensation to cover for other inconveniences to you such as your medical expenses, then a No Win No Fee service is a less stressful way to make your claim.
No Win No Fee means that you only pay a success fee if you win your case, so there is no financial risk to you when suing for broken teeth. Call our specialist team today and if you have a legitimate case, we could match you with an expert personal injury solicitor who offers a No Win No Fee service then and there.
Contact Legal Expert Today
Legal Expert is a trusted legal advisory service, that, providing that you have a legitimate case for claiming compensation, will match you to the right personal injury solicitor to win your case, at no extra cost to you. If you suffered broken teeth in an accident that wasn’t your fault and want to make a broken tooth claim, call us today to find out how much dental compensation amounts, or how much compensation for dental negligence you could be awarded. Call Legal Expert today on 0800 073 8804 and see how much compensation you could be awarded for your broken teeth injury.
Useful Links
Food Standards Agency
A page for reporting a food or drink problem to your local authority
How Much Compensation Can I Claim for Dental Negligence?
Help and advice for claimants who have been injured due to dental negligence. This includes advice on how to claim dental negligence compensation.
Find out how you could claim if your GP or doctor treated you negligently and you were harmed as a result.
10 Things to Know About Medical Negligence Claims
Find out more about how you could make a medical negligence claim.
