Tony Hine's List: Potholes

Managing director of Quantum Claims, George Clark said: “The law states local authorities have a reasonable duty of care to carry out inspections. If a person is to succeed in securing damages for a pothole in the road, they must establish it has been in existence for a reasonable time and not repaired even though it has been reported.”
Motorists should therefore drive safely.

Step-by-step guide

With the help of experts in the field of highway engineering, local government and those who defend claims against local authorities, Potholes.co.uk has put together a step-by-step guide to help you make a claim if a pothole has damaged your car.

To cut a long story short, we have just received the cost of the wheel plus 50% of the cost of the tyre (only because we didn't have an invoice to prove how 'new' the tyre was).

As to whether I can make a claim - probably not as unless the Highway Authority had been made aware of the pothole, my chances of success are very slim.

Finding out whether the road has been inspected regularly enough is the difficult part of a claim such as this. Local authorities rarely co-operate in these claims, and often the only way to find out whether they have inspected is to issue proceedings through the court. We can then force them to show us their inspection records.

Drivers are failing to notice the dangers of water-filled potholes until it is too late, research has shown.

New findings from potholes.co.uk suggest longer hours of darkness are making people even less aware of the road surfaces on which they travel.

Taking photographs of the offending pothole is a vital step in this process. When doing so, it is helpful if you can convey some idea of its width and depth by including something that indicates it scale. Obviously, a ruler or tape measure would be best for this, but excluding this possibility, a cigarette packet, mobile phone, shoe or other similar object will suffice.

Also, be precise in reporting its location. Take photographs that clearly describe this, perhaps including notable landmarks and/or house numbers. If possible, drawing a map can help avoid any ambiguity.