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Conversations with Rob (Part 2 - Run-off Cover)

Colin Campbell
by Colin Campbell on 21/09/19 18:00

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Part one of this blog is here from the other night, if you read it you will understand that I was talking about the incidents of Peri-implant disease with Rob Oretti after our Masterclass last week, which impacts on many aspects on the work that we do and the work that we will do including the last two topics of these little series of blogs which are Run-off cover and remedial treatment.

Run-off cover is a huge issue and as I write this blog, I am two days away from my peer review group with Neil Taylor of TDS, who will explain the implications of Run-off cover and Run-off cover insurance to a group of local dental practitioners.

I’ll write a blog about that after we hear from him.

For those of you that don’t understand what Run-off cover is, it is basically the insurance or indemnity cover you have after you have retired from practice.

Nowadays the claims just keep on coming, regardless of whether you have stopped work or not. For those dentists who work in a practice where the senior dentist retires (having placed thousands of implants) this will - in the future - be a potential time bomb for the dentists who remain in the practice, the retiring dentist and the defence unions.

Consider the patient who comes back to the same practice a couple of years later with a broken full arch bridge or failing implants. The incumbent dentist is not going to provide the remedial work for nothing and the patient will not be willing to pay for the remedial treatment so who is going to pay? it is unlikely that any retainer taken by the practice from the retiring dentist is likely to cover such large sums of money on an indefinite basis and certainly not for multiple cases years later. Should the patient become disgruntled at having to pay twice, and wishes to pursue a claim, then the defence union will have to pick up the tab.

The question is - for how long will the defence unions continue to pick up the tab for all the retiring implant dentists in the UK over the next ten years? If they use their discretionary rights, then they may eventually refuse to pay for any remedial treatment and the patient is then open to pursue the retired dentist through the courts. This is not a happy vision for any retiring dentist to contemplate and with the incidence of things like Peri-implant disease and undiagnosed Perio on the rise, it means that patients who seek damages, may well continue to come after you time and time again regardless of whether you have retired or not.

Other insurances who provide a run off cover is an attractive proposition at this time due to the low annual fees that are required for run off cover. However, in ten years time, when the claims for remedial treatment regarding retired implant dentists keep on rising, how high could this run off cover be per year?

Rob and I discussed this over a steak and a very nice hamburger at the course dinner for the Masterclass and we both agreed that it looks very much like we might reach a situation where, for some individuals, the run-off cover insurance costs and retirement could be as much as £40,000 per year.

This could make for extremely uncomfortable retirement for many people and something that I suggest you should start to pay attention to as part of your life plan!

 

Blog Post Number - 2133

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Colin Campbell
Written by Colin Campbell
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