Dangerous tooth corrections: Consumers are the big losers!

Dangerous tooth corrections: Consumers are the big losers!

A tempting offer with devastating consequences: On social media, advertising for digital tooth corrections is celebrated, which promises to obtain teeth for only 33 euros per month ". But as found in a report by krone.at , numerous treatments end in expensive complications. Cases of gum return, tooth loss, and even migraines are just a few of the symptoms that consumers report after these often incorrect interventions. The Association for Consumer Information (VKI) has determined that the follow -up costs of the necessary correction treatments can be up to 10,000 euros.

The controversial company, Dr. Smile, which stopped operating in Austria in 2024, relied on a purely digital treatment concept that was carried out by a network of sales employees and not by dentists. The Vienna district court recently imposed a fine of 77,500 euros against the company, since the cost of treatment and liability for possible damage was not sufficiently disclosed. The contracts concluded by video calls with non -licensed persons were declared void, and the affected consumers receive a right of withdrawal.

false purchases: a financial disaster

Another alarming topic affects faults in Germany: According to a current study by the Nuremberg Institute for Market Declarations (NIM), the financial damage due to incorrect purchases amounts to around 9 billion euros per year. Young people between the ages of 18 and 29 are particularly affected because 95 percent of them provide information to have made at least one bad purchase in the past twelve months. This group spends an average of 368 euros for products that they later consider superfluous. In comparison, the older generations include fewer incorrect purchases, which is due to a better decision-making process, such as "https://www.nim.org/presse/artikel/fehlkaeufe-das-9-milliarden-euro problem"> nim.org

The majority of these bad purchases are done in online trading, which means that many products dust unused in the shelf or often end up in the trash. For example, more than 50 percent of the false purchases when remaining in the customer ended as "unused", and over 7 percent land directly in the trash. While returns are often free, this also has a negative impact on the environment. It turns out that despite a widespread consciousness for false purchases, many consumer habits could still be improved.