Legal Question in Business Law in California

dentist refuses to replace faulty crown despite guarantee

My Husband had a crown done by his dentist last year the dentist guarantees his work and has re-done work in the past when there were problems.

About six months ago the dentist sold his office to another dentist. The office staff name of the office and everything has remained the same.

My husband had pain around the crown and went to the new dentist for an exam. After the examintion and xrays he was told that the crown fit badly causing decay. Now a new crown is required in addition to a procedure to remove the decay and shave the bone around the tooth to seat the new crown. The extra procedure will cost 2000-3000 dollars. My husband requested that the dental office honor their guarantee and was told that it was no longer in effect as the dentist had left. They were unwilling to contact the retired dentist to discuss the problem.

could we make a claim in small claims court, or is there any other option open to us.

thankyou


Asked on 8/24/01, 9:22 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys
Ken Koury Kenneth P. Koury, Esq.

Re: dentist refuses to replace faulty crown despite guarantee

take both to small claims court and let them sort it out there. once you collect, have a new dentist do the work.

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Answered on 9/03/01, 6:01 pm
Bryan Whipple Bryan R. R. Whipple, Attorney at Law

Re: dentist refuses to replace faulty crown despite guarantee

I agree both dentists need to be joined as co-defendants, and the case is probably suitable for small-claims court. Obtain and read a small-claims self-help law book, and consider asking for judgment on both a breach of warranty (contract) basis and a negligence (malpractice) basis. Unless the guarantee is in writing and is quite broad, it may be difficult to prove that the work done breaches it, so a negligence claim is a good back-up. You might get a decent settlement offer before the court appearance, as the dentists should prefer to avoid the nuisance and publicity of going to court.

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Answered on 9/03/01, 7:49 pm


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