Oldham man wins £42.5K payout after dentist misses devastating tooth decay

A man from Lees has been awarded £42,500 in compensation in an out of court settlement against his dentist.

Ian Lisle, 51, sued Dr Michael Garside of M. Garside Dental Practice on Lees High Street after discovering he had failed to diagnose and treat decay in a number of his teeth.

Dr Garside extracted six of Ian’s teeth and he faces losing a further five because of the extent of the decay. Further treatment including bridgework, crowns and fillings was done poorly by Dr Garside and needs to be repeated.

Ian said: “Dr Garside was my dentist for 14 years between 1994 and 2008. As far as I knew, everything was fine with my teeth because I barely got any treatment for the first 12 years. It wasn’t until 2007 that I suddenly needed a lot of work. I had a bridge put in, had a number of my teeth taken out and got some fillings and crowns.”

“I was very concerned I’d had so many of my teeth removed and such extensive treatment having no problems. But I found out how bad the situation really was when I went to a different dentist for an implant consultation and was told it was just the tip of the iceberg. I found out I’d need to have another six of my teeth taken out. I couldn’t believe it.”

Leading dental negligence specialists, The Dental Law Partnership (DLP), took on Ian’s case and was presented with evidence that showed he had suffered as a direct result of Dr Garside’s treatment.

DLP solicitor Kate Chadwick, who represented Ian, said: “All dental professionals are expected to provide a duty of care when treating their patients, but Dr Garside failed in that obligation. The treatment provided during the period was either non-existent or very poor, despite clear signs intervention was needed. Mr Lisle has lost a number of teeth because of Dr Garside’s actions and now faces further treatment.

“The size of the settlement reflects the seriousness of Dr Garside’s negligence.”

Ian said: “I’ll never know how Dr Garside could have let things get as bad they did. I was led to believe my oral health was much better than it was, when in fact, the complete opposite was true. I’ve still got a long journey ahead of me but I’m trying to move on now.”

Dr Garside did not admit liability.