braces (teeth) and orthodontists

What are people's experiences with orthodontists in NZ? I want my Daughter to have nice straight teeth and so we visited a highly recommended orthodontist and received a quote. The work itself should take about 18 months.

However I am stumbling over the payment arrangements. We can pay all up front now ($6400) or enter into a 2 year repayment plan which means we would be paying an additional $700. I would prefer to pay as we go for the quoted amount, but this isn't an option the orthodontist wants to enter into and tells me her financial arrangements are standard practice in NZ.

Our friends in aussie have monthly repayments on their Daughter's braces, but for the quoted amount only, no credit charge applies... any local (NZ) experiences?

We pay as we go with my kids' orthodontist, did with DS and just about to with DD, and it's the quoted figure, with a 25% down payment and the rest in monthly payments for 18 months, nothing extra on top for financing (and a hefty second patient discount, which was nice!).

swaggie I will PM you. My daughter had her teeth done by an orthodontist who comes to Pukekohe and her teeth are beautiful!

DiDi;366236 wrote: swaggie I will PM you. My daughter had her teeth done by an orthodontist who comes to Pukekohe and her teeth are beautiful!

I have just changed my email options Didi, if you had trouble getting through... looking forward to your reply.

Just sent it is few minutes ago from PM so let me know if it doesn't come through.

DiDi;366238 wrote: Just sent it is few minutes ago from PM so let me know if it doesn't come through.

have replied, many thanks.

good to hear that this isn't standard practice in NZ!

One other thing... how old is your daughter, swaggie? I wore braces for FIVE years in the US, because at that time, they put them on kids younger. I wore them from age 10 to age 15. When we took my son in for his initial assessment at age 11, they said wait a couple of years and see them again, as in the intervening years the teeth keep moving and require much less orthodontic assistance. Sure enough, they straightened out quite a lot, and when he finally got braces on at age 14, he only ended up wearing them for 14 months, and he had a lot more than just straightening to do, as he had a severe underbite as well. All fixed now, and his teeth and jaw look great.

Andrea she is 13, some teeth still growing and this particular orthodontist mentioned there might be a need for her to wear a plate??? thereafter to keep everything in place..

Our dentist back in aust. advised to wait until everything was fully out, but it was also mentioned it was easier to get teeth straightened in the right direction whilst they are still growing...

I think we definitely need a 2nd opinion, and not just for the financial reasons either.

Our orthodontist here said that DS could have the option of wearing a retainer behind his lower front teeth, if he wanted to, to keep things in place, as teeth are ALWAYS moving, however slightly, and if he wanted perfectly straight teeth forever, that would really be the only way to keep them there. His and our main reason for the orthodontics wasn't cosmetic, it was because of his bad bite and misaligned jaw. That's fixed and not going anywhere. He has been wearing a removeable retainer at night for the last couple of years, and so far, so good. I wore a retainer for a long time after I got my braces off, and after I stopped wearing it, a couple of teeth shifted on the lower front. Oddly, my dad, and 2 of my sisters who also wore braces - we all had the exact same 2 teeth move in to the exact same position after we stopped wearing our retainers. Must have been meant to be there, I say!:rolleyes:

Anyway, I believe the bit about teeth always moving, as I've heard from countless dental professionals, both orthodontists and dentists.

Swaggie - I think that's outrageous - who can pay that amount of money up front? And - how is this orthodontist going to guarantee that the money will be looked after properly AND that they are still alive and in business when your child's treatment is finished? What happens if you move?

Who on earth would pay 18 months worth of treatment in advance? I've only ever paid AFTER the treatment was provided.

Simkin;366292 wrote: Swaggie - I think that's outrageous - who can pay that amount of money up front? And - how is this orthodontist going to guarantee that the money will be looked after properly AND that they are still alive and in business when your child's treatment is finished? What happens if you move?

Who on earth would pay 18 months worth of treatment in advance? I've only ever paid AFTER the treatment was provided.

they were my concerns too as an unsecured creditor, I said to her that my Hubby being a roofer couldn't pre-charge for his services, why should Orthodontists... which is when I got the line that it was standard practice in NZ.:confused:

Simkin;366292 wrote: Swaggie - I think that's outrageous - who can pay that amount of money up front? And - how is this orthodontist going to guarantee that the money will be looked after properly AND that they are still alive and in business when your child's treatment is finished? What happens if you move?

Who on earth would pay 18 months worth of treatment in advance? I've only ever paid AFTER the treatment was provided.

Yup, I used the same logic and decided to off my daughters' braces at $300 a month. And why my son's braces next month start and also will be paid off over time. The ortho on North Shore offered 10% discount for the $7200 bill if paid in advance, or $1700 payment with $300 a month despite already paying @$400 in consultations, etc. Or via GE Finance over 18 months with zero deposit (which is the one I'm going for).

As I see it, it's a nice investment in them so I can leech off them in my old age

ACK! $400 in consultations!!! Ours was a flat fee of $115, including all the xrays and 2 sets of impressions. Only had to pay the extra $270 to the dentist for the 4 extractions, which I thought very fair (and very quick and reasonably painfree for my daughter, who was really worried about having 4 teeth out).

We paid $180 for consultation and panex in the franklin region.

hi swaggie, - my son got his braces at 17 years old .
$6,500 - half paid when he had them fitted, and the balance paid over the next 22 months, yes not cheap, but I would maybe check around for quotes. the ortodontist in Palmy has been good ........