I Am So Mad!!! - Dallas,TX

I'm not sure what your legal rights are, but you could maybe do a couple things. First, are you using insurance at all? If so, you might consider contacting your insurance company and asking them if you're obligated to pay for a procedure that he didn't really "do" so much as it just "happened". If you're not using insurance, OR if you are, but they can't give you an answer, you can try to contact the American Dental Association, or whomever is "over" dental licensing and see if they can give you an answer.

I personally would tell the dentist I'm not paying for him removing the tooth when he did NOT actually remove it. It just fell out and he had nothing to do with it. I'd tell him I want him to take it off my bill 'cause I don't owe it. If he argues the point, I would let him know that I am contacting the ADA to see what my rights are. He might back off if he knows you're going to file a complaint. I would also wait to tell him this AFTER the rest of the work is done of course.

Again, I don't know if any of this is going to work, but that's what I would do in absence of any other sound advice.

Blessings,
N.

Let your insurance company know the situation. The dentist will also send them a bill for the removal. The insurance company can contact the dentist.I hate dentists and feel for you! What a shady dentist! Make sure you let everyone know who he is so they don't go to him!

S.,
I am so sorry to hear of your troubles. I don't know if you would be interested, but my husband and I are independent associates of Pre-paid legal. You can purchase pre-paid legal for a small monthly cost under no obligation for a long term contract (less than a regular cup of coffee a day). You can use this memebership immediately to call and find out about your rights and if needed they will contact the dentist, and or write letters on your behalf.
There are many other ways to use the membership as well.
Let me know if you would like to find out more about it.
C.

The dentist you are seeing...is he a private dentist or is he working for a corporation? If he is working for a corportation....ask to speak to the office manager. She has more say so over adding or removing charges, he is just an employee in the office. If you want to PM me, I used to work in the dental field in the metroplex and maybe I will know if he's private or corporate.

I agree that this doc sounds terrible.

Prepaid Legal only costs about $25 per month and you can stop it when you don't want it anymore.

But, first, I think I would try this: Refuse to pay it in writing. State all the facts. Have someone else read it to make sure you included all pertinent info and that is is chrystal clear. Then add: based on the facts, you don't feel you owe him anything and that he should write you a letter of explanation if he thinks he does. Say in the letter that you will discuss this with your attorney and you will copy the credit bureau, the Better Business Bureau, the local Chamber of Commerce, www.complaintsboard.com, www.angieslist.com, and any other internet consumer group you can find, and that might make it difficult for him to add fees after his quote. Bet he'll waive the fee. If he doesn't respond, just monitor your credit report and if it shows up, send them the letter and dispute it. Then he will have to substantiate the claim to them. Bet he won't dispute it and it will be dropped.

Change dentists of course.

Lastly, there is a great site for asking professionals questions. www.justanswer.com has a service where for about $15 bucks, you can ask a question of another professional (dentist, doctor, vet, etc) and get a good answer. The trick is to make the letter very clear and full of the facts so they understand everything.