TERMS & CONDITIONS
1. ABOUT THIS PRACTICE
1.1 Delapre Dental Care ("the Practice") is operated by Dr Sabina Nasir, a dentist registered with the General Dental Council (GDC) under registration number 169400.
1.2 The Practice provides both NHS dental treatment and private dental treatment from its premises at 5 Billing Road, Northampton, NN1 5AN.
1.3 The Practice is regulated by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and operates in accordance with the GDC's Standards for the Dental Team.
2. NHS TREATMENT
2.1 NHS treatment is provided in accordance with the National Health Service (Dental Charges) Regulations 2005, as amended, and the NHS Standard Contract for Dental Services.
2.2 NHS dental charges are set by the Department of Health and Social Care. Patients will be advised of the applicable charge band (Band 1, 2, or 3) before treatment commences. Charges are subject to change in accordance with government policy.
2.3 Certain patients are entitled to free NHS dental treatment, including children under 18, pregnant women, and those who have given birth in the preceding 12 months, and patients receiving qualifying benefits. It is the patient's responsibility to confirm their exemption status and to sign the relevant declaration (FP17DC). Making a false declaration is a criminal offence.
2.4 NHS treatment covers only clinically necessary care as assessed by the treating dentist. The Practice does not guarantee the provision of any specific NHS treatment; clinical decisions rest with the treating dentist in accordance with their professional obligations.
3. PRIVATE TREATMENT
3.1 Private treatment is offered at fees agreed in writing prior to commencement. A written treatment plan and cost estimate will be provided before any chargeable private treatment begins.
3.2 Payment terms for private treatment will be confirmed at the time of consultation. The Practice reserves the right to require a deposit for laboratory work or specialist appointments.
3.3 A 50% deposit is required at the time of booking for all private treatments. This deposit will be held against the final invoice and is non-refundable if the patient cancels the appointment with less than 48 hours' notice.
3.4 Estimates given for private treatment are provided in good faith. Final costs may vary if clinical circumstances change during treatment; any such variation will be discussed with the patient before proceeding.
4. APPOINTMENTS
4.1 Appointments may be made by telephone during normal practice hours. Patients are asked to arrive on time. The Practice reserves the right to reschedule appointments where a patient arrives more than ten minutes late, where to do otherwise would cause unreasonable delay to other patients.
4.2 Patients who need to cancel or rearrange an appointment are asked to give at least 24 hours' notice. Repeated failure to attend or to give adequate notice may result in the patient being discharged from the Practice's NHS or private list, in accordance with NHS contractual obligations and GDC guidance on patient management.
4.3 A cancellation or failed-appointment charge may be applied for private appointments where insufficient notice is given. The applicable charge will be stated in the patient's private treatment agreement.
5. CLINICAL DECISIONS AND PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS
5.1 All clinical decisions are made by qualified dental professionals registered with the GDC, in accordance with their professional duty of care and the GDC's Standards for the Dental Team.
5.2 Treatment recommendations are based on clinical examination and the individual patient's oral health needs. No guarantee of any specific clinical outcome can be given; dentistry, like all healthcare, involves inherent clinical risks which will be discussed with patients as part of the informed consent process.
5.3 Patients have the right to accept or decline any recommended treatment. Declining recommended treatment may affect oral health outcomes; the Practice will advise patients of relevant risks where a recommendation is declined.
6. ZERO TOLERANCE POLICY
6.1 The Practice operates a zero tolerance policy towards abuse, violence, and aggression, in accordance with NHS national policy. All staff treating patients have the right to work in an environment free from any threat or fear of abuse, violence, or any form of aggression.
6.2 The following behaviour is unacceptable and will not be tolerated on Practice premises:
- (a) actual or threatened physical violence towards staff, patients, or any other person on the premises;
- (b) psychological abuse of staff;
- (c) verbal abuse, including shouting, swearing, or use of threatening or intimidating language;
- (d) racial abuse or discrimination of any kind;
- (e) sexual harassment or abuse;
- (f) threats against Practice personnel which occur in or in connection with the workplace;
- (g) theft of or deliberate damage to Practice property;
- (h) the taking of drugs or consumption of alcohol on the premises.
6.3 Where a patient engages in any of the behaviour described in clause 6.2, the Practice reserves the right to immediately remove that patient from its NHS and/or private patient list. In serious or extreme cases, the police will be contacted and the Practice will support any subsequent criminal proceedings.
6.4 All incidents of abuse, violence, or aggression will be reported to Dr Sabina Nasir and recorded in the Practice's Significant Events Log. Any injuries sustained will be recorded in the accident book in accordance with the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR) where applicable.
7. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, VOICE AGENT, AND DIGITAL INFORMATION
7.1 The Practice's website incorporates an artificial intelligence voice agent ("the Voice Agent" or "the Bot") powered by large language model (LLM) technology. The Voice Agent is designed to provide general information about the Practice, answer frequently asked questions, and facilitate certain administrative functions such as appointment booking requests.
7.2 By initiating a conversation with the Voice Agent, whether by voice or text input, the user confirms that they have read, understood, and agree to be bound by these Terms & Conditions. If a user does not agree to these Terms & Conditions, they must not use the Voice Agent and should instead contact the Practice directly by telephone or in person.
7.3 LLM-based AI systems are known to produce outputs that may be inaccurate, incomplete, misleading, or out of date — a phenomenon commonly referred to as "hallucination." The Practice does not warrant the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of any information provided by the Voice Agent. Any information obtained via the Voice Agent must be treated as general information only and must not be relied upon as clinical advice, diagnosis, treatment recommendation, or as a substitute for professional judgement.
7.4 No dentist–patient relationship, clinical consultation, diagnosis, or duty of care is created by interacting with the Voice Agent. Nothing communicated via this website, the Voice Agent, or any other digital channel constitutes a clinical consultation or a recommendation to undertake or refrain from any course of treatment. Patients must seek advice directly from a qualified dental professional for any clinical concern.
7.5 In the event of any discrepancy between information provided by the Voice Agent or any other digital channel and information provided by a clinical professional at the Practice, the advice of the clinical professional shall prevail in all circumstances.
Appointment Booking via the Voice Agent
7.6 Where the Voice Agent facilitates appointment booking, any appointment requested or confirmed through the Voice Agent is provisional only and is not binding on the Practice until expressly confirmed by a member of Practice staff by telephone, email, or in writing.
7.7 The Voice Agent may make errors in scheduling, availability, or appointment details. The Practice accepts no liability for any inconvenience, loss, or cost arising from an appointment that is incorrectly booked, double-booked, or otherwise inaccurately recorded by the Voice Agent.
7.8 The Practice reserves the right to cancel, reschedule, or decline any appointment request made via the Voice Agent where it conflicts with actual clinical availability or clinical requirements.
Prohibition on Sharing Personal Information with the Voice Agent
7.9 THE VOICE AGENT IS NOT A SECURE OR CONFIDENTIAL COMMUNICATION CHANNEL. Users must not disclose any personal identifiable information, sensitive personal data, or special category data (as defined under the UK General Data Protection Regulation ("UK GDPR")) during any interaction with the Voice Agent. This includes, without limitation:
- (a) full name, date of birth, or home address;
- (b) telephone number, email address, or other contact details;
- (c) NHS number, patient reference number, or National Insurance number;
- (d) medical or dental history, symptoms, medications, or diagnoses;
- (e) financial or payment information of any kind;
- (f) any information relating to racial or ethnic origin, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, genetic data, biometric data, or trade union membership.
7.10 By using the Voice Agent, the user acknowledges and accepts that they do so at their own risk in respect of any personal data they voluntarily disclose, contrary to this prohibition. The Practice accepts no liability whatsoever for any loss, damage, or unauthorised disclosure of personal data that a user provides to the Voice Agent in breach of this clause.
Third-Party Data Processing and LLM Providers
7.11 Conversations with the Voice Agent are processed by third-party large language model (LLM) providers. The LLM providers used by the Voice Agent may change from time to time and may include, but are not limited to, LLMs provided by companies such as Anthropic, Google, and OpenAI. The Practice does not control and cannot guarantee how these third-party providers handle, store, retain, or process data once it has been transmitted to their systems.
7.12 The use of the Voice Agent is subject to the terms of service and privacy policies of the third-party LLM providers whose technology powers the Voice Agent. Users are encouraged to review the terms and privacy policies of these providers to understand how their data may be processed. The Practice shall not be liable for any acts or omissions of third-party LLM providers in relation to data processing.
7.13 Conversation data transmitted to third-party LLM providers may be processed on servers located outside the United Kingdom, including in the United States and the European Economic Area. By using the Voice Agent, the user acknowledges and consents to this international transfer of data.
Recording and Monitoring
7.14 All interactions with the Voice Agent may be recorded, transcribed, logged, and monitored for the purposes of quality assurance, service improvement, system diagnostics, and compliance. By using the Voice Agent, the user consents to this recording and monitoring in accordance with the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000, the Telecommunications (Lawful Business Practice) (Interception of Communications) Regulations 2000, and the UK GDPR.
7.15 Recorded interactions may be reviewed by authorised Practice staff and by authorised personnel of the Practice's technology providers for the purposes stated in clause 7.14 above. Recordings will be retained in accordance with the Practice's data retention policy and applicable law.
Age Restriction
7.16 The Voice Agent is intended for use by persons aged 16 or over. Persons under the age of 16 must not use the Voice Agent unless they have the verifiable consent of a parent or person with parental responsibility. Where a parent or guardian uses the Voice Agent on behalf of a child, these Terms & Conditions apply to that parent or guardian.
8. DATA PROTECTION AND PRIVACY
8.1 The Practice processes personal data in accordance with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018. The Practice's Privacy Notice, available on request and on the Practice's website, sets out how personal data is collected, used, stored, and shared.
8.2 For the avoidance of doubt, the restrictions and disclosures in Section 7 above apply specifically to the Voice Agent. Clinical records and personal data provided directly to the Practice (in person, by telephone, or in writing) are handled in accordance with NHS information governance standards, GDC requirements, and applicable data protection legislation.
8.3 The Practice is the data controller for personal data collected through its clinical services. In respect of data processed by third-party LLM providers via the Voice Agent, the Practice acts as a data controller to the extent it determines the purpose and means of processing; however, the third-party providers are independent controllers in respect of their own processing activities.
9. COMPLAINTS
9.1 The Practice takes complaints seriously. Any patient who is dissatisfied with their care or treatment is encouraged to raise their concern in the first instance with the Practice directly, either in person, by telephone, or in writing to 5 Billing Road, Northampton, NN1 5AN.
9.2 The Practice operates a complaints procedure in line with NHS and CQC requirements. Patients will receive a written acknowledgement within three working days and a substantive response within 10 working days of the complaint being received.
9.3 If a complaint cannot be resolved to the patient's satisfaction, patients may refer the matter to:
- The Dental Complaints Service (private treatment): 08456 120 540
- NHS England (NHS treatment): 0300 311 2233
- The General Dental Council (fitness to practise concerns): 020 7167 6000
- The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (NHS complaints not resolved locally)
9.4 Complaints relating specifically to the Voice Agent or the Practice's digital services should be directed to the Practice in writing. The Practice will investigate and respond in accordance with its complaints procedure. Where a complaint relates to the conduct of a third-party LLM provider, the Practice will assist the patient in directing their complaint to the appropriate provider, but accepts no liability for the provider's response or resolution.
10. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
10.1 Nothing in these Terms & Conditions limits or excludes liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or for any other liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited.
10.2 To the fullest extent permitted by law, the Practice's liability for any claim arising from the use of this website, the Voice Agent, or its digital services (excluding clinical liability governed by clause 10.1) shall be limited to the value of fees paid by the patient in connection with the matter giving rise to the claim.
10.3 Without prejudice to clause 10.1, the Practice shall not be liable for any indirect, consequential, or incidental loss or damage arising from the use of the Voice Agent, including but not limited to: reliance on inaccurate information provided by the Voice Agent; unauthorised disclosure of personal data provided by the user in breach of clause 7.9; any act or omission of a third-party LLM provider; or any failure, interruption, or error in the Voice Agent's operation.
11. GOVERNING LAW
11.1 These Terms & Conditions are governed by the law of England and Wales. Any dispute arising under these Terms & Conditions shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.
12. CHANGES TO THESE TERMS
12.1 The Practice reserves the right to amend these Terms & Conditions at any time. The current version will always be displayed on this website. Continued use of the Practice's services, including the Voice Agent, following any amendment constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms & Conditions.
12.2 Where material changes are made to the provisions relating to the Voice Agent or data processing, the Practice will use reasonable endeavours to draw such changes to users' attention via a notice on the website.