For UK private dental practices
Your lab bills rose last year. Did your treatment fees?
Most private practices absorb rising lab and material costs rather than renegotiate or reprice. The margin does not recover on its own, it compresses month by month until it becomes a structural problem.
Two minutes. Solva follows up with specific cost negotiation and pricing options.
- Decreasing net profit margins despite stable or increasing patient numbers
- Frequent price increases from dental labs and material suppliers being absorbed without question
- Lack of clear financial data to identify specific cost centers eroding profitability
- Reluctance to invest in new equipment or technology due to perceived high costs
- Increased administrative burden managing multiple unoptimised supplier accounts
- Reduced capacity for staff training and development due to budget constraints
- Reduced net profit margins by 10-20%
- Decreased practice valuation due to lower profitability
- Perception of outdated services if investments are curtailed
- Negative patient sentiment if price increases are sudden and significant
- The primary root cause is the failure to proactively manage rising supplier costs and adjust pricing strategies in line with market changes.
- This is compounded by a lack of regular financial reviews and benchmarking against industry standards, leading to a gradual erosion of profit margins.
- Behavioral factors include a reluctance to pass on increased costs to patients due to fear of losing business, and a tendency to absorb increases rather than renegotiate supplier terms.
- Systemically, the fragmented nature of the dental supply chain and varying lab pricing structures contribute to opacity, making cost management challenging.
Practices that engage specialized financial consultants achieve 23% higher net profitability (SVCO Dental, 2026)
Source: https://svcodental.co.uk/services/financial-consulting-for-dental-practices/
How to fix it
A cost management review, covering supplier renegotiation, lab cost benchmarking, and a pricing review, typically recovers 10-20% of margin within three months.
Frequently asked questions
Why does this problem persist?
Lab and material costs in private dentistry have risen significantly. Most practices absorb the increase rather than passing it on or renegotiating supplier terms. The result is a steady margin erosion that compounds over time.
What is the cost of leaving it unaddressed?
Laboratory costs increased by 9% in the 2023-24 financial year (British Dental Association, 2024)
This is exactly what I do with UK private practices. Answer the few questions above and I'll come back personally with where to start. Paul.