Patient's £15,000 payout after '˜losing four teeth'

A pensioner who lost four teeth after his dentist allegedly failed to treat decay has been paid £15,000 in an out-of-court settlement.
Roger Batty, from Freckleton, was given £15,000 by his dentist after taking legal action over poor treatment he received.Roger Batty, from Freckleton, was given £15,000 by his dentist after taking legal action over poor treatment he received.
Roger Batty, from Freckleton, was given £15,000 by his dentist after taking legal action over poor treatment he received.

Roger Batty, 65, from Freckleton, first started to experience severe pain in 2009.

His dentist, Aitor Estrada Martin, who was working at M J Kenyon Dental Surgeons in Lytham at the time, advised he needed two fillings, Mr Batty’s solicitors said.

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Mr Batty, who had been a patient at the practice since 2005, continued to experience pain and underwent a variety of procedures before finally seeing new dentists who discovered a catalogue of problems that needed corrective work, his solicitors added.

He said the news was ‘soul destroying’. He added: “He was never actually spotting or addressing the real cause of my problems – he was just making them worse.

“It’s no wonder the pain persisted for years. I was left feeling extremely distressed, and have lost four teeth for no good reason.”

Over several years he underwent several fillings – including three on the same tooth – root canals and had a crown fitted. He was also prescribed antibiotics for an infection, solicitors said. When none of those stopped the pain, he went to a different dentist.

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“Enough was enough,” Mr Batty said. “I was feeling more and more worried because the problems just weren’t being resolved. It was never ending.

“I’d lost all trust in Mr Martin. I’d never experienced pain like it and the issues with my teeth had been going on for years, it was extraordinary.

“I realised if I was ever going to see light at the end of the tunnel, I needed to see a new dentist.”

In 2014 and 2015, Mr Batty’s new dentists started to uncover a catalogue of problems, and undertook corrective work including repeat root canal treatment.

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Finally in 2015, Mr Batty was referred to hospital to have a tooth Mr Martin had originally placed a filling on in 2010 extracted, Mr Batty’s legal team say.

Following that he decided to take legal action. The Dental Law Partnership, which represented Mr Batty, said analysis of his dental records revealed Mr Martin had failed to spot and treat decay that was visible in X-rays on two of Mr Batty’s teeth as far back as 2009.

He had also undertaken poor root canal treatment and performed inadequate restorative work on some of Mr Batty’s teeth, the firm said.

Sadie Cartwright, of The Dental Law Partnership, said the problems ‘could have been avoided’. She added: “The distress and pain our client experienced was completely unnecessary.”

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Last month, the dentist paid £15,000 in an out of court settlement. The dentist did not admit liability.

Martin Kenyon from M J Kenyon Dental Surgeons said he was unable to discuss specific patients, but said Mr Martin was self-employed and left the practice in February 2014.

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