Buying a Dental Practice

Dental practices for sale

Browse by using the links of the left to find current advertised dental practices for sale.

Proactive dental practice search

In addition to the dental practice for sale list we carry out proactive searches on behalf of prospective buyers looking for specifics; such as location, price, UDA value, type of tenure and type of service. Through our dental headhunting activity we have unique market intelligence and from this vantage point we are perfectly placed act on behalf of buyers wanting more than a practice sale list. Acting on this intelligence we identify and target practice owners on your behalf and approach them with the opportunity to be introduced to a buyer.

Financial advice

We have relationships with all major UK lenders & through our Associate Independent Financial Adviser Richard Wicks can provide bespoke financial advice & funding. We can broker secure terms not generally available if you were to approach a bank directly.

Frequently asked questions

We have a wealth of experience acting for dentists both seeking to dispose of their existing practice & to acquire a new business. Whether you have bought & sold multiple dental practices, are a large investor or a new entrant & are looking for your first practice we will provide the highest level of support and guidance

Fees

It is free to register with us, to browse our website & to receive our news letter. If a practice becomes available within your specification we will call & email you.
Our proactive search service incurs a small & realistic fee.
Financial advice is regulated by the Financial Services Authority of which Richard Wicks is a member. Any fees associated with financial advice given will be within the FSA rules & transparent.
In addition you will incur legal fees for the purchase contracts & purchase process.

How much will the practice cost?

Prices vary regionally & based on the circumstances of sale. We provide vendors a full valuation service so as a buyer you can see what you are potentially buying or buying into. The sale price will include the goodwill, equipment, property and value of the stock. Heads of Terms and determining when to approach the PCT, will not only determine how the transaction progresses, but can also impact on the price itself.

What happens when my offer is accepted?

When your offer is accepted by the vendor, we will ask you to sign our deposit schedule and pay the deposit. This remains in our client account and is returned to you on completion. Once we have this the practice will cease to be marketed and we advise you to instruct a solicitor.

How do I buy?

Broadly speaking there are 2 methods of buying or selling a dental practice:

Buying / selling the business and its associated assets.
Buying / selling the shares of a dental body corporate.

A purchaser of an NHS practice will seek to secure the transfer of the GDS Contract. The incorporation of a dental body corporate ("DBC") can prove useful. If the GDS Contract is transferred to a DBC, when a sale of the shares in the DBC takes place the underlying assets (including importantly the employees and the GDS Contract) remain with the DBC. In most cases, this avoids the need for seeking the further consent of the PCT. If a DBC is not used, other means of transferring the GDS Contract are available.

How are NHS contracts transferred?

In the case of an NHS Practice (GDS or PDS contract) we advise on the structuring of the sale & the timing so that appropriate notices are given under the Contract and will report whether the PCT would have any grounds for objecting to the transfer.

The exiting dental practitioner will contact the PCT under the terms of sale to advise them of his intentions to transfer ownership, we actively support this process. A meeting will be arranged for the Commissioning Manager to meet with both parties and will seek a CRB check for the incoming dental practitioner.

Once this is done, The PCT will either arrange for the current contract to be cancelled and a new one issued to the buyer. Or the will PCT will re-commission the contract to the incoming practitioner. We will advise of either direct transfer or entering into a temporary partnership with the outgoing provider / the incorporation of a dental body corporate ("DBC") as described above.

Sale and purchase agreements and contracts.

Through your solicitor we will liaise to facilitate the exchange of sale and purchase agreements: They should be specifically tailored to the regulatory and operational regime within which a dental practice works. A sale agreement for a general business would not contain all the safeguards sensibly required.

The contract will also need to deal with the apportionment of uncompleted treatments between the Buyer and the Seller.

Restrictive Covenants

In respect of the key aspects of the dental business we will advise on appropriate restrictive covenants, indemnities & warranties to protect the goodwill & other business & operating concerns Warranties and Indemnities:

TUPE obligations

We can advise the Seller/Buyer on the obligations under TUPE to consult with and inform the transferring employees about the proposed sale. As Associates do not automatically transfer to the Buyer, we would wish to ensure that the payment for goodwill is protected by ensuring the Associates agree to work with the Buyer in the future.

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