EXTRACTING YOUR MONEY
Visiting the dentist can hurt your wallet more than your jaw.
But there is a novocaine that can relieve the pain of paying. It is called free treatment under the NHS. Like most dental equipment it has to be applied with care. If you get things wrong it can make the pain worse.
Several groups of people can get free dental care because their income is low. But the difference qualifying and not qualifying can be a fine one.
If you get pension credit it comes in two parts. What is called 'guarantee credit' boosts your other income if it is below £142.70 a week if you are single or £217.90 between you if you are married. If you get any of the 'guarantee credit' then you can get free NHS dental treatment. Some people with a disability or who care for someone else can get guarantee credit with higher incomes. Those with savings will find the limits are lower. So check the letter you got when your pension credit was awarded. If you get even 1p a week of guarantee credit then most NHS dental treatment should be free.
If you are under pension age and get jobseeker's allowance (JSA) or employment and support allowance (ESA) you may also get free dental treatment. Both these benefits come in two versions. If you get any of the income related version then you will get free dental treatment. If you only get the contributions based version with no income related part, then you do NOT get free dental treatment. Your letter from the DWP should say which you are getting.
If you wrongly claim free treatment when you are not entitled to it, the NHS may find out through the random checks it makes on claims. If you are discovered then you will not only have to pay for your treatment, an automatic £100 fine will be added on top. And if you don't pay the whole lot within 28 days then another £50 will be added. So check your benefit entitlement letter carefully before you visit the dentist to see which sort of benefit you get.
Even if you do not get any of those benefits you may be able to get free dental treatment on grounds of low income. You will need to fill in a form to see if you qualify. You can get more advice from the NHS for England and Wales on 0845 850 1166 (0191 203 5555 might be cheaper to call) or 0131 275 5386 in Scotland.
Go back to Paul Lewis front page