Dental membership reconciliation: explain every difference

To reconcile dental membership payments, compare what should have been collected with what the payment provider processed and what reached the bank. Explain the differences instead of changing a figure until the totals match.

An active member, expected monthly income and money received are three different things. Keep all three visible so a failed payment is not mistaken for a fee, a timing difference or a cancelled plan.

Start with the same period

Choose the collection period and the date you will review it. Keep dated copies of the membership register, payment-provider report and bank settlement information. A “live” list that changes during the check can be difficult to reproduce later.

Use a stable member or agreement reference. Names alone can be misleading where a family pays together, a payer changes their name or duplicate records exist. Confirm how one payer and several members are represented.

For each joiner, cancellation, pause or price change, check the applicable terms and effective date. The day somebody edits a record is not necessarily the date the payment obligation changed.

Follow the money through four views

View	Question it answers	Common mistake
Membership register	Which agreement is active for this period?	Assuming “active” means paid
Expected collections	What amount is due under the terms?	Ignoring joiners or effective dates
Provider transactions	What settled, failed, was refunded or remains pending?	Counting an attempted payment as settled
Bank settlement	What net amount arrived, and when?	Treating provider fees as member debt

“Settled” means the provider records the payment as completed under its reporting definitions. Check those definitions rather than assuming every dashboard uses the word in the same way.

Worked example: a £90 gap with two causes

The following numbers are fictional and do not represent Dentorb fees or recommended membership prices.

Suppose 100 agreements each owe £20 for the period. Expected collections are £2,000. The provider report shows £1,940 collected and £60 failed. The provider deducts £30 in fees and sends £1,910 to the bank.

Step	Amount
Expected collections	£2,000
Less failed collections	−£60
Gross collected	£1,940
Less provider fees	−£30
Net bank settlement	£1,910

The £90 difference contains £60 of failed collections and £30 of fees. Calling the whole £90 unpaid member money would be wrong. If the settlement arrives next month, record the timing difference too; do not count it as another failed payment.

Your accountant should determine how the figures appear in the accounts. This on-page example explains the checking process, not accounting entries or tax treatment.

Give each exception a specific next action

Exception	First check	Next owner
Failed collection	Current provider status and any retry	Authorised payment administrator
Cancellation mismatch	Terms, effective date and collection instruction	Membership administrator
Unknown receipt	Provider reference and bank settlement detail	Finance reviewer
Refund	Original transaction and approved refund record	Authorised approver
Different expected amount	Agreed price and effective date	Membership administrator

Avoid collecting the same payment again while a retry is pending. Keep the original transaction reference and confirm how the provider distinguishes a retry from a new charge.

If money is genuinely overdue, use the separate patient-balance follow-up process. A disputed amount, a pending transaction and an unpaid amount need different actions.

Close the period without hiding open items

Have an authorised reviewer trace a sample from the register to the provider and bank. Record unexplained differences with an owner, value, period and next review date. Carry them forward visibly.

Keep changes to expected amounts traceable. A correction might be right, but it should have a reason and supporting evidence. The same person should not be able to remove a difference from a report without anyone being able to see what changed.

Limit access to member and payment information. Use references in the review where full personal details are unnecessary, following the ICO's data-minimisation guidance.

What to verify in Dentorb

Dentorb's membership plans page describes plan tiers, member records, usage and recurring revenue. Its payment-collection options are discussed with each practice. Do not assume that a specific Direct Debit provider, bank feed or automatic reconciliation is included.

Bring a fictional joiner, cancellation, failed collection and refund to a workflow discussion. Ask which source records are supported, how effective dates are shown and which checks the practice or accountant still performs. The useful result is an explainable difference, not just two matching totals.