DENTAL ARTICLE

Why We Don’t Quote Prices Online

Why We Don’t Quote Prices Online

The most common question that we get asked on social media, private messages and online enquiries is ‘How much for X?’

At Aria Dental, we have an internal best practice policy which is we do not offer any treatment plan or quote without physically seeing the patient. We do understand that this can be disappointing or even annoying to patients, but we do this for several reasons – all for the benefit of you, the patient.

Getting a treatment plan quote without being seen by a dental specialist can often be very misleading.

You may think that you need a single tooth implant, but you don’t know if you have any other underlying oral or dental issues. If you have been missing a tooth for a while, your bone and gums have likely shrunk, and you will require a level of grafting.

Do you have any gum disease affecting your oral health that needs to be addressed first? The bone quality of your actual jawbone can determine whether you can simply have a single implant fitted or whether bone grafting is required.

Damaged or decaying, or missing teeth for some time affect the health and wellbeing of your surrounding teeth – are those teeth healthy, or do they require management? Have your teeth moved and need straightening?

All these things can only be assessed in person by a dentist, and different factors will affect the overall cost of your treatment. Not only do they affect the cost, but if left unmanaged, can affect the success of your implant rehabilitation and increase the risk of complications and failure.

Being given one price via Facebook messenger, then another price when you see the dental provider is a surprise and disappointment for patients – we avoid this by not creating false hopes or set treatment dollar expectations without knowing what we are quoting on.

Is the person you are communicating with online a professional and certified dentist?

Who is quoting your treatment or talking to you about your procedures? Is it a receptionist, a dental nurse, a website administrator, third-party marketing person, are they here in Australia or outsourced overseas – or is it just an automated computer bot with pre-loaded answers?

When you are asking questions online, are they taking into account your situation, and your oral health and are they certified by the Australian Dental Association to be giving you advice on dental surgery? Or are they just copying and pasting answers supplied to them, giving you a stock standard price just to get you in the door?

At Aria Dental, we have an internal marketing team who looks after our website and our social media – they are not dentists and they do not ever represent themselves as so.

With the Aria Dental website, all content is drafted and then vetted by a registered dentist for dental fact-checking and then permission is given to publish. We do not offer professional advice via social media and our team’s core aim is to assist patients in learning and assisting in their education.

They will always decline talking prices and always recommend patients take up our offer for a complimentary consultation. That way, our patients get the professional advice they require from a dental specialist and walk away being informed on what surgery is required for them. The patient can then make their own educated decisions on their treatment.

Getting dental implants requires surgery and should be taken seriously

Who will be completing your surgery is the most important consideration when considering dental implants. Are they a dental specialist, or are they general dentists? What is their experience, and how long have they been practising prosthodontic treatments and dental rehabilitation?

In Australia, regulations allow a general dentist to perform dental implant surgery if they feel confident doing so. But just because the general dentist feels confident with ‘scale and cleans’ and can also place dental implants does not mean that you should not investigate your options.

A dental specialist who has undergone years of specialist training and only sees patients requiring specialist help, such as dental implants, is a good first option. At Aria Dental our specialist Prosthodontist, Dr Zaninovich, is in-house and ready to help you.

Quality of the implant, crown and fixtures – did you get quoted for everything?

As you likely know, a dental implant is made up of three different parts – they are regularly not quoted as a single unit, often quoted in two halves – the fixture and then the abutment + crown.

Patients at other dental clinics are often quoted for the first stage, at a much lower price to get them in the door/in the chair and then find the second stage, the price can be inflated to make up for the cheaper stage one.

A full arch bridge is commonly referred to as a ‘basic All on 4’. But often, 4 implants are not adequate for your situation and can require 5 or 6 implants to support it – so you might need an All on 5 or All on 6 Full Arch treatment.

The price you have been quoted online, does that include the labour to fit both the fixture and crown? Does that include your x-rays and moulds? Are you having sedation, or will you be awake during your surgery?

There is also a wide range of prosthetics, from custom-made zirconia to acrylic (plastic) – the design, shape, and crafting of your crown or bridge will be a factor in the cost and visual appeal of your final tooth or a full arch.

At Aria Dental, we only use the highest quality range of dental implants and our crowns are all manufactured in-house by our team of dental technicians under the supervision of our master ceramist in our laboratory.

Special offers, time-limited deals or discounts on medical treatments are a no-no

The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) body does not allow medical or dental providers to place any pressure on patients to have medical treatments. This means a dentist cannot offer or advertise imminent end date offers such as ‘for this month only’ or ‘book before this date’ discounts or special offers – which place pressure on patients to make a faster and potentially unqualified decision before the discount deadline.

You will often see these breaches on Facebook or Instagram – $99 Teeth whitening if you book in March, 20% off Invisalign or $3700 Dental Implants for a limited time only etc. Legally, if a dentist offers or advertises a definitive price for a service, the law requires them to honour it, regardless of the length of time that has passed.

So for the safety of patients, there is never any feeling of rush, and you have as much time as you need to find out all the information you want before you decide on your medical treatment.

You get what you pay for

At the end of the day, dental implants are a significant purchase. They are an investment in your life and, when looked after, can last you a lifetime.

If you shop around based on price, there is likely a reason why the ‘cheapest price’ is the cheapest. Having state-of-the-art technology, which makes the surgical process smoother and easier for the patient, isn’t available in every clinic. The skill level and experience of your dental surgeon, your assisting dentist, your dental assistant or your dental nurse all contribute towards your final result.

We see a lot of patients who have ended up at Aria Dental seeking further help (which was avoidable). Those cheap dental implants or cheap dentists are not so cheap anymore. Some dentists may push the protection of their warranties – but don’t forget that this is surgery and something being implanted into your body – you don’t ever want it to fail.

A dental implant isn’t a laptop that you can take back to the shop and get a new one – it’s your entire treatment plan and the months to heal & complete again! Understand what you are paying for (or not paying for) and pick a specialist Prosthodontist whose only aim is for your dental implant success – and for it to never fail. Take a moment and hear from some of our patients about their dental journey at Aria Dental.

Price Guide for Dental Implants

We do understand that when doing your research and planning financially for dental implants, understanding ‘what you are in for’ is valuable. At Aria Dental and across our website, you will see some price guides to help patients understand costs and start to understand financial expectations.

The cost of a dental implant at our state-of-the-art Aria Dental clinic starts from around $5,500 for a single tooth implant. However, as we have explained, how much dental implant/s will cost you will depend on a variety of issues, as no two people are the same. In your clinical consultation, we can complete the diagnostics required to give you a treatment plan, which includes your costs.

But to give you an indication of pricing, here are a few ballpark figures. These costs are before health insurance rebates and assumptions of good oral health. Payment plan options are available to make the procedure more financially manageable.

Everyone’s mouth is a bit different. Everyone’s surgical needs are a bit different. Everyone’s cost is different. Don’t waste your time or set yourself up with false expectations by getting quotes online. Book your complimentary dental implant consultation with Aria Dental today and find out for yourself.

We go the extra mile for your smile.

Book an appointment