A FATHER spoke of his astonishment yesterday after his teenage daughter had to pay a dentist £22 - just to estimate the cost of fixing two teeth.

The 18-year-old called as a potential private patient at the surgery to ask how much it would be to have her front teeth capped.

A female dentist at the Castle dental practice in Barnard Castle, County Durham, conducted a short examination and told the university student that the bill would be £720.

She then added that the cost of providing the estimate would be £22, which the teenager paid.

But last night her father, Alan Coulthard, of Staindrop, near Barnard Castle, said: "I am utterly disgusted about this. I am absolutely furious. It should not be allowed.

"When you go to a garage to have your car repaired you don't get a separate bill for the estimate.

"Why should a dentist be any different?"

His daughter, who asked not to be named, damaged her front teeth in an accident some years ago and had them bonded at the time.

But she said they now need to be capped. She had not been to the Galgate surgery before.

Mr Coulthard, a project manager, added: "I rang the dentist to express my feelings and asked for a refund.

"But she made it clear the money would not be paid back.

"Before asking for an estimate in future, we will make sure we won't be charged for it."

The family will ask elsewhere about the treatment.

The dentist concerned declined to comment on the bill - as did the County Durham Primary Care Trust, which referred the matter to the General Dental Council, which inturn referred the inquiry to the Dental Complaints Service.

A spokesman for the Dental Complaints Service said: "Dentists can charge as they see fit for any service, including providing an estimate for any treatment.

"They can charge for giving estimates if they wish."