Defective dentures and a reimbursement promise that never arrived

Attorney Answer

You have two different claims on two different clocks. The money the practice promised to reimburse can be pursued in small claims, without a lawyer or an expert, on contract deadlines. A claim that the dentures and implants were made negligently is a dental malpractice claim: it needs a dental expert, 90 days' notice before suing, and a deadline that may already be close after more than a year of problems.

The reimbursement. Small claims court in California takes claims up to $12,500 by an individual. Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 116.221:

In addition to the jurisdiction conferred by Section 116.220, the small claims court has jurisdiction in an action brought by a natural person, if the amount of the demand does not exceed twelve thousand five hundred dollars ($12,500), except as otherwise prohibited by subdivision (c) of Section 116.220 or subdivision (a) of Section 116.231.

The deadline depends on whether the promise was in writing. Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 339(1) gives two years for an oral promise:

1. An action upon a contract, obligation or liability not founded upon an instrument of writing, except as provided in Section 2725 of the Commercial Code or subdivision 2 of Section 337 of this code;

A written promise has four years under § 337(a). One caution: a claim labeled as a broken promise may still be treated as a claim about the dental care if the loss comes from the work itself, so do not assume the label avoids the malpractice rules below.

The dental work. A claim that the dentures or implants were done negligently needs a dentist's expert opinion on the standard of care: Willard v. Hagemeister, 121 Cal. App. 3d 406 (1981); Flowers v. Torrance Memorial Hospital Medical Center, 8 Cal. 4th 992 (1994). The deadline is Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 340.5:

In an action for injury or death against a health care provider based upon such person’s alleged professional negligence, the time for the commencement of action shall be three years after the date of injury or one year after the plaintiff discovers, or through the use of reasonable diligence should have discovered, the injury, whichever occurs first.

And § 364(a) requires 90 days' notice before suing:

(a) No action based upon the health care provider’s professional negligence may be commenced unless the defendant has been given at least 90 days’ prior notice of the intention to commence the action.

The Dental Board. Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 1670:

Any licentiate may have his license revoked or suspended or be reprimanded or be placed on probation by the board for unprofessional conduct, or incompetence, or gross negligence, or repeated acts of negligence in his or her profession, or for the issuance of a license by mistake, or for any other cause applicable to the licentiate provided in this chapter.

The Board can discipline a dentist; it does not award you money.

Your credit. If a credit reporting agency is reporting something about this that is inaccurate or incomplete, you can dispute it with that agency. Cal. Civ. Code § 1785.16(a):

(a) If the completeness or accuracy of any item of information contained in his or her file is disputed by a consumer, and the dispute is conveyed directly to the consumer credit reporting agency by the consumer or user on behalf of the consumer, the consumer credit reporting agency shall within a reasonable period of time and without charge, reinvestigate and record the current status of the disputed information before the end of the 30-business-day period beginning on the date the agency receives notice of the dispute from the consumer or user, unless the consumer credit reporting agency has reasonable grounds to believe and determines that the dispute by the consumer is frivolous or irrelevant, including by reason of a failure of the consumer to provide sufficient information, as requested by the consumer credit reporting agency, to investigate the dispute.

That reaches inaccurate reporting, not an accurate report of a balance you owe.

What you can do

1. Gather the receipts for the repair, and every message from the practice about reimbursement.

2. Send the practice a short written demand for the amount, with copies of the receipts, and keep a copy.

3. Ask your treating dentist to note in your records what was wrong with the original work.

4. If something on your credit report is wrong, dispute it in writing with the credit reporting agency.

5. Most lawyers offer a brief initial call at no cost, and a few minutes on your specific facts is worth more than any general guidance, including this page.

⏱ Time limits apply. The reimbursement claim has two years if the promise was oral and four if written (Cal. Code Civ. Proc. §§ 339(1), 337(a)). A malpractice claim must be filed within one year after you discovered, or should have discovered, the injury, or three years after it, whichever comes first (§ 340.5), with 90 days' notice first (§ 364). After more than a year of problems, the one-year period may already be close or past, so ask a lawyer now.