Legal Questions and Answers by
Jonathan Stones of John Barkers
Question :-
Despite numerous enquiries and expressions of concern, my daughter’s dentist
allowed her to reach 17 years of age without losing her milk teeth. This resulted in her
spending her seventeenth birthday in hospital having her adult teeth - which had turned
sideways and gone upwards into her gums - removed and stitched back into place.
We were told that this would probably last until she was forty, however she is now in her
late twenties and some of her front teeth are going black as the roots have died.
She is not in a financial position to afford cosmetic dentistry or indeed any course of
treatment. Such treatment would have been free when she was younger.
I would add that she visited the dentist every six months, from childhood through into her
teens. I strongly feel that she should now be entitled to remedial treatment free of
charge. I do not subscribe to the litigious society we are becoming, where thousands of
pounds of compensation seem to be sought for anything, but I do feel that righting wrongs
is another matter.
The mistakes were a long time ago, although the full implications are only now becoming
apparent.
What is the law in such cases?
Answer :-
The position is that where someone suffers an injury as a result of
medical negligence they have to make a claim within three years of the date of the
accident or damage, although the time does not start to run against an applicant until
that person is 18 years of age.
Since your daughter is now in her late twenties, her claim could be what is known as
Statute-Barred.
That said, there could be some help from a law called the Latent Damage Act, which covers
situations in which injuries become apparent later. That allows three years in which to
make a claim from the date of reasonable discovery of the injury.
It isn’t clear from your letter whether there has been a recent diagnosis of the
damage or not. My advice is to consult a solicitor, so that the facts can be investigated
thoroughly to ascertain if it would be possible to do anything at this late stage.
Your daughter may be entitled to free legal advice under the Legal Advice Scheme operated
by certain firms of solicitors holding a franchise. Alternatively most firms will grant an
initial interview free of charge to assess the situation.
If the solicitor thinks you may have a claim then most local firms will deal with the
matter on a no-win no-fee basis.
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