Follow-up on a single porcelain veneer that doesn’t match perfectly

A couple of days ago, I answered a question from David in Georgia. He had a single cracked porcelain veneer on a front tooth and had a dentist replace it. In answering him, I said that I worried that his dentist, based on how he had gone about matching this one tooth, was not an expert cosmetic dentist and listed several things an expert cosmetic dentist likely would have done differently.

David wrote back with this question:

Dr. Hall,
This has all been very helpful. My next question is, would it be safe to have the tooth veneered again despite it being a third time on the same tooth? Also, would it be reasonable to request that the office redo it for free?

Thanks,
David from Georgia

Here’s my answer:

David,
Yes, it would be safe to veneer the tooth a third time.

No, it would not be reasonable to ask that it be done over for free. If this is indeed beyond the regular abilities of your dentist (i.e. – he or she is not an expert cosmetic dentist), then it is beyond his or her abilities. That’s like buying a meal at Denny’s and then sending it back to the kitchen because it doesn’t measure up to Waldorf-Astoria quality. First of all, it’s not fair. When you’re at Denny’s you should expect a Denny’s meal. Second of all, it’s going to still come back to you as a Denny’s meal. If you want Waldorf-Astoria food, then go to the Waldorf-Astoria.

Dr. Hall