--- title: "Orthodontic Patient Finance Software UK | FCA Plans" url: https://virtualconsultant.online/orthodontic-patient-finance description: "Present FCA-regulated 0% and interest-bearing payment plans at the point of quote to improve case acceptance across your orthodontic practice." updated: 2026-10-15T00:00:00Z publisher: Virtual Consultant Online --- # Patient Finance for Orthodontic Practices Treatment cost is one of the most common reasons a patient delays or declines orthodontic treatment after receiving a quote. Presenting a clear, FCA-compliant finance option alongside the fee — rather than leaving the patient to ask about payment plans separately — measurably improves case acceptance. Digital quote tools that build finance into the presentation, rather than treating it as an afterthought raised at the end of a consultation, help practices convert more of the enquiries they already have. [Start Free Trial](https://virtualconsultant.online/account/register) [Book Demo](https://virtualconsultant.online/book-demo) ## How does patient finance work for UK orthodontic practices? Patient finance for orthodontic treatment falls into two broad categories: FCA-regulated credit, arranged through a third-party lender under a regulated consumer credit agreement, and unregulated in-house payment plans, where the practice itself spreads the fee over instalments without involving a lender. Regulated credit — offered by partners such as Chrysalis Finance, Tabeo or Medenta — requires the practice to be an FCA-authorised credit broker or to operate under a lender's principal authorisation, and comes with specific requirements around pre-contract information, affordability considerations and the patient's right to cancel. Interest-free (0%) plans are the most common structure for orthodontic treatment, typically spread over the length of active treatment (12-24 months). The practice usually absorbs a subsidy cost to the lender in exchange for offering 0% to the patient — commonly in the range of 3-8% of the treatment value depending on term length and lender — which needs to be factored into the practice's overall fee structure. Longer-term or interest-bearing plans are also available for higher-value treatment, extending affordability further but requiring clearer presentation of the total cost to the patient given the interest involved. The evidence on case acceptance is consistent: practices that present finance options proactively at the point of quote, rather than only in response to a patient asking, see materially higher conversion from quote to treatment start. This is particularly true for private orthodontic treatment, where fees commonly range from £2,500 to £6,000+, a sum many patients would not pay from savings without a payment plan being visible as an option from the outset. Compliance matters throughout the process: pre-contract credit information must be provided before an agreement is signed, the practice must not imply the finance is interest-free ("0% APR representative") unless that is genuinely and unconditionally the case, and staff presenting finance options need enough training to explain the terms accurately without straying into regulated credit advice they are not authorised to give. Digital quote tools that generate finance illustrations automatically, linked to the specific treatment plan and fee, reduce the risk of inconsistent or non-compliant presentation across different team members. ### Digital quotes Present the treatment fee alongside a finance illustration at the point of quote, generated automatically from the same treatment plan. [Open page](https://virtualconsultant.online/orthodontic-software-financial-benefits) ### Case acceptance software Track how finance options presented at quote stage affect conversion from enquiry to treatment start. [Open page](https://virtualconsultant.online/orthodontic-case-acceptance-software) ### Patient portal software Give patients a secure place to review their finance agreement and payment schedule after treatment starts. [Open page](https://virtualconsultant.online/orthodontic-patient-portal-software) ## Quote and conversion tools Connected pages for UK orthodontic practices improving case acceptance through finance and quote presentation. [Case acceptance software](https://virtualconsultant.online/orthodontic-case-acceptance-software) [Quote follow-up](https://virtualconsultant.online/orthodontic-quote-follow-up) [Treatment coordinator software](https://virtualconsultant.online/orthodontic-treatment-coordinator-software) [Patient conversion](https://virtualconsultant.online/orthodontic-patient-conversion) [Software financial benefits](https://virtualconsultant.online/orthodontic-software-financial-benefits) [Book a demo](https://virtualconsultant.online/book-demo) ### Frequently Asked Questions Does an orthodontic practice need FCA authorisation to offer patient finance? If a practice is arranging regulated consumer credit — introducing patients to a third-party lender and receiving commission for doing so — it generally needs to be FCA-authorised as a credit broker, or operate as an appointed representative under a lender's or network's principal authorisation. Most UK orthodontic practices offering finance work with a lender such as Chrysalis Finance, Tabeo or Medenta under the lender's own regulatory framework rather than seeking independent FCA authorisation directly. Practices should confirm their specific compliance status with their chosen finance partner rather than assuming coverage, since the requirements differ depending on how the arrangement is structured. How much does offering 0% finance cost an orthodontic practice? The practice typically pays a subsidy to the lender in exchange for the patient receiving interest-free credit — commonly 3-8% of the treatment value, varying by lender and term length. A 12-month 0% plan usually carries a lower subsidy than a 24-month plan, since the lender's cost of capital and risk exposure increase with term length. Practices generally build this cost into their overall fee structure rather than treating it as a separate loss, so the fee quoted to the patient already reflects the availability of interest-free terms. How much does patient finance improve orthodontic case acceptance? While exact figures vary by practice and patient demographic, UK orthodontic practices consistently report meaningfully higher case acceptance rates when finance is presented proactively at the point of quote compared with fee-only presentation, particularly for private treatment in the £2,500-£6,000+ range. The effect is strongest when the monthly instalment figure — not just the total fee — is shown clearly alongside the treatment plan, since patients often assess affordability against a monthly budget rather than a lump sum. What must a practice disclose when presenting orthodontic patient finance? Pre-contract credit information — including the total amount payable, the APR (even if 0%), the number and amount of instalments, and the patient's right to withdraw — must be provided before the credit agreement is signed. The practice must not describe finance as "interest-free" unless that is unconditionally true for the offer being presented, and any representative APR example must reflect terms that are genuinely available to the majority of applicants at that rate. Staff presenting finance need enough training to explain these terms accurately without giving regulated financial advice they are not authorised to provide. Can a patient be refused orthodontic finance and still get treatment? Yes. Finance applications are subject to the lender's own credit and affordability checks, and not every patient will be approved, particularly for higher-value or longer-term plans. Practices should have a fallback conversation ready — a shorter plan, a smaller deposit with a longer balance, or an in-house instalment arrangement — rather than treating finance refusal as the end of the conversation, since a declined application is a common and expected part of the process rather than a rare edge case. How does digital quoting improve compliance for orthodontic patient finance? Digital quote tools that generate the finance illustration automatically from the treatment plan and fee reduce the risk of inconsistent presentation between team members — the APR, total payable and instalment schedule are calculated the same way every time rather than depending on an individual coordinator's manual calculation or memory of the current terms. This also creates a clear record of exactly what finance information the patient was shown and when, which is useful both for internal quality control and if a query about the terms presented arises later. 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[Start free trial](https://virtualconsultant.online/account/register) [Book demo](https://virtualconsultant.online/book-demo) Citation details Title Orthodontic Patient Finance Software UK | FCA Plans Publisher Virtual Consultant Online Published 2024-06-01 Updated 2026-10-15 URL [https://staging.virtualconsultant.online/orthodontic-patient-finance](https://staging.virtualconsultant.online/orthodontic-patient-finance)