Thousands Stranded as Dental Chain Vivanta Collapses Across Spain

Spain’s dental industry is in turmoil following the sudden collapse of the Vivanta clinic chain. According to El Día, the company has shut down all of its locations across Tenerife—including those in Puerto de la Cruz, Costa Adeje, and the capital—as part of a nationwide closure that has left thousands of patients stranded.

The crisis began after a failed takeover attempt by Donte Group, the parent company of Vitaldent. Donte Group had planned to acquire 61 of Vivanta’s 124 clinics and take on much of its staff and patient treatments. However, the deal was blocked by the State Industrial Participation Company (SEPI). SEPI, which had provided Vivanta with a €40 million bailout in 2022 to help it survive the pandemic, refused to allow the ownership change unless the new buyer took responsibility for the company’s state-held debt. With no clear ruling from the European Commission on the legality of transferring those debts, the offer expired, leaving the insolvency administrators no choice but to begin liquidating the company.

The human cost of this collapse is significant. Many patients had financed their dental work through bank loans and are now left in legal limbo. Affected customers report that their treatments were stopped mid-process, and they have received little communication from the company beyond a QR code and a referral to consumer protection offices.

This situation highlights the risks patients face when large medical chains go bankrupt. Beyond the health concerns of interrupted care—particularly for ongoing orthodontic work—many patients are still required to pay off loans for procedures they will never receive. While administrators hope that a future buyer might step in if the situation is resolved, nearly 30,000 treatments remain unfinished across the country. For now, patients are left struggling to retrieve their medical records and figure out how to file claims against a company that has completely ceased operations.