# Claiming for pot hole damage



## STEALTH K3 (Dec 29, 2006)

*THIS HAPPEND TO MY MUM​*I have been trying to claim compensation (£115) for repairs to my damaged tyre and checks to my car after hitting a pothole on 5 April 2011(photographic evidence given to Council). Apparently, under Section 58 of the Highways Act I am not eligible for this as the Council did not know this pothole existed at the time of my incident (April 2011). The last time the road was checked was 22/11/2010 and the road was not deemed hazardous then. The fact that we have had an extremely bad winter and they have repaired the pothole (approx 10 - 14 days after my claim) does not mean I am eligible for compensation. Councils may only consider compensation if they know of the pothole in advance of anyone having an incident and trying to put a claim in.

Photo's




























Letter










Section 58


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## MuZiZZle (Apr 18, 2011)

checked anually?!?!?!?!

errr, a lot can happen in a year!


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## mx_rab (May 25, 2011)

Council are arseholios, thats why i report every pothole i see on the roads i use everyday, just incase this happens to me.


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## GR33N (Apr 5, 2009)

They cant be held responsible for potholes they're unaware of, which, although your annoyance, is really quite fair.

I appreciate annual checks aren't exactly very conclusive, but you cant expect the council to drive every stretch of road every month to check it.

I think they need to be 40mm deep before they deem them a hazard, I was under the impression they only pay out if they are aware that theres a problem with road, best place usually to contact them is through www.fixmystreet.com

We've got a terrible stretch of potholed road which they refused to fix because all the potholes are under 40mm deep, I contacted my local councillor and after a few other complaints from people I think we've managed to persuade them to fix them.

Not sure if your local councillor will help but it may be worth an email.


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## DetailMyCar (Apr 19, 2010)

It is annoying but that's how they get out of it nowadays, as long as it's been checked there's nothing you can do.

I was lucky as it happened to me but the reason the hole had appeared was due to some very shoddy work and repair by a local water company as they'd had to dig the road up so their repair was at fault.


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## stargazer (Aug 9, 2006)

The best excuse I've heard. *They cant be held responsible for potholes they're unaware of*

In other words *GET OUT OF JAIL CARD...*


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## Raife (Jul 14, 2009)

I had the same reply from Essex County Council. Seems a stock reply now.


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## Rob_Quads (Jul 17, 2006)

stargazer said:


> The best excuse I've heard. *They cant be held responsible for potholes they're unaware of*
> 
> In other words *GET OUT OF JAIL CARD...*


I thinks its fair enought IMO. It would cost a forture to check all roads frequently. I would rather they spent the money they have got on a lot of other things and relied on a bit of comminuty spirit to help report/notify them when there is a problem.

Was quite interesting to see the reaction to the riots in Vancouver, the morning after the council cleaners were out but there were also thousands of locals helping clearing it up as they wanted to live in a nice place.


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## stargazer (Aug 9, 2006)

Rob_Quads said:


> I thinks its fair enought IMO. It would cost a forture to check all roads frequently. I would rather they spent the money they have got on a lot of other things and relied on a bit of comminuty spirit to help report/notify them when there is a problem.
> 
> Was quite interesting to see the reaction to the riots in Vancouver, the morning after the council cleaners were out but there were also thousands of locals helping clearing it up as they wanted to live in a nice place.


Rob_Quads - I appreciate what your saying but why do we pay our road tax for? The state of Britain's roads are atrocious. Helping to notify potholes is a good idea, however there's so many of them it would be a very time consuming task


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## bigmc (Mar 22, 2010)

stargazer said:


> Rob_Quads - I appreciate what your saying but why do we pay our road tax for? The state of Britain's roads are atrocious. Helping to notify potholes is a good idea, however there's so many of them it would be a very time consuming task


We don't pay road tax and haven't since the 60s it's vehicle excise duty.


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## Leodhasach (Sep 15, 2008)

It's a common misconception that 'road tax' as many people know it is for the roads.

If only it was!


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## stargazer (Aug 9, 2006)

bigmc said:


> We don't pay road tax and haven't since the 60s it's vehicle excise duty.


I think you know what I mean


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## bigmc (Mar 22, 2010)

stargazer said:


> I think you know what I mean


I don't know what you mean, as above it's a common misconception that any of your VED goes towards the roads and their upkeep.


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## Rob_Quads (Jul 17, 2006)

stargazer said:


> Rob_Quads - I appreciate what your saying but why do we pay our road tax for? The state of Britain's roads are atrocious. Helping to notify potholes is a good idea, however there's so many of them it would be a very time consuming task


VED is just money into the pot. Only a percentage is actually spent on roads. The rest spent on all the other things we need to pay for like giving India a hand out (don't get me started)

As for the task of notifying. A state in the US release a mobile app which monitored the shock sensor and then uploaded data of where there were suspected pot holes, collecting the data together was able to highlight where a large %age of them were.(this of course will get loads of people jumping up and down saying I don't want them know where I drive etcetc)


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## Spoony (May 28, 2007)

Am I the only one here who thinks it is entirely reasonable of the council that if they didn't know about it there is no claim?

How in amongst all the cuts that are going on can they have resources to always check every road. Roads are graded and based on that grade will determine the checking schedule I imagine.

People in the councils are losing their jobs and those employed are in fear of losing their jobs. 

If they knew about this the fair do's but the law is that you must prove they already knew about it and that the road is not inspected to a satisfactory standard.


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## bigmc (Mar 22, 2010)

Spoony said:


> Am I the only one here who thinks it is entirely reasonable of the council that if they didn't know about it there is no claim?


No you're not at all, I completely agree. I use fixmystreet whenever I hit/see a pothole that could cause damage, it takes less than 5 minutes to report and the email goes straight to the correct department in the council.


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## PJS (Aug 18, 2007)

What used to be called the Road Fund Licence, is now Vehicle Excise Duty - irrespective, the £50odd million paid each year, was never used mainly for roads upkeep - something like 10-15%, iirc.
That said however, their response does not absolve them of their duty to maintain the roads to the required standard.
Do not roll over - ignorance of the law, as we're told in court, is not a form of defence.
If they can't check roads often enough, then they had better hire more staff to do so - there's quite a few unemployed people who'd welcome the job of measuring and marking those potholes meeting the criteria of requiring attention ASAP.

If need be, issue a small claims writ against them, if they still refuse to accept responsibility when you write back telling them their previous correspondence does not absolve them of their duty.
Lack of knowledge about certain roads' state of disrepair is not your problem, it's theirs, which they'll have to figure out a solution to.

Maybe if the Chief Exectutive wasn't being paid £250K per annum, andgoldd-plated pension, (and others like him/her) they could easily afford a few extra bodies on the ground.


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## Avanti (Jan 17, 2006)

Spoony said:


> *Am I the only one here who thinks it is entirely reasonable of the council that if they didn't know about it there is no claim?
> *
> How in amongst all the cuts that are going on can they have resources to always check every road. Roads are graded and based on that grade will determine the checking schedule I imagine.
> 
> ...


No you are not, seen much worse potholes than that around here, if folk can't be bothered to report the road damage because they think someone else will do it, then 
1) the councils cannot initiate road repairs 
2) they run the risk of they themselves being victim of the damge that can occur.

To the OP, yes the holes have to be reported, thankfully it is very easy now to do online, or if you have a phone with camera and geo tagging then that will help too, as you can email it in and they will know the location from the picture properties :thumb:


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## alan_mcc (Oct 28, 2008)

gr33n said:


> They cant be held responsible for potholes they're unaware of, which, although your annoyance, is really quite fair.
> 
> I appreciate annual checks aren't exactly very conclusive, but you cant expect the council to drive every stretch of road every month to check it.
> 
> ...


40mm :doublesho


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## centenary (Sep 5, 2010)

stargazer said:


> The best excuse I've heard. *They cant be held responsible for potholes they're unaware of*
> 
> In other words *GET OUT OF JAIL CARD...*


But it is the reality of the situation isnt it? You cant expect councils to spend every hour of the day inspecting every inch of roads within their boundaries.

That's why motorist *must* use sites such as fixmystreet.com and report every pot hole they can.

I frequently do this with my local council yet even on this forum, I've seen people say its a waste of time. No its not! Its the *only* way to give motorists a fighting chance to get money out of councils for damage to their cars.

Moaning about it on a web site does nothing if that website isnt reporting the potholes to the council.


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## centenary (Sep 5, 2010)

PJS said:


> What used to be called the Road Fund Licence, is now Vehicle Excise Duty - irrespective, the £50odd million paid each year, was never used mainly for roads upkeep - something like 10-15%, iirc.
> That said however, their response does not absolve them of their duty to maintain the roads to the required standard.
> Do not roll over - ignorance of the law, as we're told in court, is not a form of defence.
> If they can't check roads often enough, then they had better hire more staff to do so - there's quite a few unemployed people who'd welcome the job of measuring and marking those potholes meeting the criteria of requiring attention ASAP.
> ...


all very well. I trust you'll welcome the resultant increase in your council tax?


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## ChuckH (Nov 23, 2006)

bigmc said:


> We don't pay road tax and haven't since the 60s it's vehicle excise duty.


Still a tax paid by the Motorist before They are allowed to use the roads though ???:thumb:


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## ChuckH (Nov 23, 2006)

I don't care which fancy terms or words anyone uses .. I think its an absolute disgrace that the roads We have to drive on are allowed to get into the state they are when as a Motorist or Motorists We pay a ridiculously disproportionate amount into the Government coffers !!!!


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## hibberd (Jul 5, 2006)

Have a look here maybe it will help you too..they have a pothole finder

http://www.potholes.co.uk/


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## OutLore (Jan 19, 2007)

ChuckH said:


> Still a tax paid by the Motorist before They are allowed to use the roads though ???:thumb:


No it's not - it's a tax paid before they're allowed to use a vehicle.

You can quite legally ride a bicycle or a horse without paying VED :thumb:

(Horses don't take too well to detailing though. Well, to be honest I never got beyond the snowfoam, but I would assume it's no better further in the process)


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## PJS (Aug 18, 2007)

centenary said:


> all very well. I trust you'll welcome the resultant increase in your council tax?


If councils stopped spunking their money into non-jobs, giving contracts to their best mate's company, and treated running it like a proper accountable business (not for profit, of course), then the savings would easily pay for many services they're crying poverty over!
Equally, the various companies digging up the roads to provide the services we need & expect, if they were properly charged with putting it back to the required standard, then that'd be a step towards having less repairs to rectify.

None of that requires additional taxation to implement.


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## Bero (Mar 9, 2008)

OP - outside chance...but you never know. Check sites like fix me street to see if there was a report sent to the council on that street in the 3months before your accident. Then refer the council to that report and say it WAS reported before therefor they ARE liable.


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## b9rgo1234 (May 3, 2009)

We tried to claim for damage to our alloys and we got a letter near enough word for word the same from our council (different locations obviously).
Its a total joke.

The letter should read

Dear Mr..........
Sh*t happens.
Regards, 
Your local money grabbers.


:thumb:


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## bigmcclarron (Jun 11, 2011)

I damaged my car on a stupidly bog pot hole, £700 quid damage, two new alloys, new tires and to sort the suspension. What I done was report the hole to the council under a different name, made sure the hole had orange markings around it so it had been seem, then reported it, managed to get all £700 quid back plus all my expenses for train tickets as well


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## STEALTH K3 (Dec 29, 2006)

bigmcclarron said:


> I damaged my car on a stupidly bog pot hole, £700 quid damage, two new alloys, new tires and to sort the suspension. What I done was report the hole to the council under a different name, made sure the hole had orange markings around it so it had been seem, then reported it, managed to get all £700 quid back plus all my expenses for train tickets as well


Something to remember there I guess


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## ChuckH (Nov 23, 2006)

OutLore said:


> No it's not - it's a tax paid before they're allowed to use a vehicle.
> 
> You can quite legally ride a bicycle or a horse without paying VED :thumb:
> 
> (Horses don't take too well to detailing though. Well, to be honest I never got beyond the snowfoam, but I would assume it's no better further in the process)


Are You just trying to appear clever ?? Cos to be honest You are not ..... My point is obvious . If You are all about splitting hairs then carry on ........:thumb:


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## ChuckH (Nov 23, 2006)

bigmcclarron said:


> I damaged my car on a stupidly bog pot hole, £700 quid damage, two new alloys, new tires and to sort the suspension. What I done was report the hole to the council under a different name, made sure the hole had orange markings around it so it had been seem, then reported it, managed to get all £700 quid back plus all my expenses for train tickets as well


To be honest I dont blame You Mate.. Its just a shame You had to resort to dishonesty to get what You justly deserved !!:thumb:


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## centenary (Sep 5, 2010)

PJS said:


> If councils stopped spunking their money into non-jobs, giving contracts to their best mate's company, and treated running it like a proper accountable business (not for profit, of course), then the savings would easily pay for many services they're crying poverty over!
> Equally, the various companies digging up the roads to provide the services we need & expect, if they were properly charged with putting it back to the required standard, then that'd be a step towards having less repairs to rectify.
> 
> None of that requires additional taxation to implement.


Yes, we'd all like that but again, it's not the real world. People need to play them at their own game and that means reporting every pothole they come across to their local council.


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## Ming (Oct 16, 2007)

C'mon guys
Lets calm down. 
I have knowledge of both side of this having worked with the council and having successfully claimed from the council for dmaage to my car.
If a pot hole is brought to the attention fo the council they go out and examine it and decide if it requires immediate repair.  If it does not they spray round itand give it a 'next check' date'
If it does they repair it and pretty quickly in my experience.
This shows that they are donig their job.
Like has been previously stated you cannot expect the council to do monthly or even three monthly checks of ALL the roads in their borough and as such they rely on folk to contact them and tell them.
It is in YOUR interest to do this.
In my case the road defect caused damage to two wheels and two suspension units and the road defecnt WAS marked.
I managed to put a good case forward that their assessment that the defect would not cause vehicular damage was wrong and it wasthis that got me paid.
It is of note that any claim under £1,000 is paid out in house and anything over that requires a vehicle assessor to examine the vehicle so if you are going to over egg the damage be aware of this!! (By the way i am not for one second suggesting that you should do this)
If the pot hole has nor been reported you are very unlikely to be successful in any claim.
As for the post that said ignorance of the situation is no excuse I can think of several circumstances other than this where it is actually an excuse.
The most obvious one is where you are stopped with a headlight out. If your reply is 'officer I checked my lights on...........(this obviously has to be a reasonable and more importantly believable time) and at that time they were working perfectly' you will NOT be prosecuted even though you have committed an offence.
There are others
Ming the helpful - I hope


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## bigmcclarron (Jun 11, 2011)

ChuckH said:


> To be honest I dont blame You Mate.. Its just a shame You had to resort to dishonesty to get what You justly deserved !!:thumb:


It was a shame but it had to be done, was not gonna sit on £700 worth of damage! 
I followed some guide on google, can't remember the site but I am sure it was something like potholes.com


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## ChuckH (Nov 23, 2006)

bigmcclarron said:


> It was a shame but it had to be done, was not gonna sit on £700 worth of damage!
> I followed some guide on google, can't remember the site but I am sure it was something like potholes.com


As I said I don't blame You Mate .. Its a case of fighting fire with fire !! If Im totally honest I would / should have done the same when My Wifes car was damaged but the amount was much smaller so I didnt bother .....:thumb:


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## OutLore (Jan 19, 2007)

ChuckH said:


> Are You just trying to appear clever ?? Cos to be honest You are not ..... My point is obvious . If You are all about splitting hairs then carry on ........:thumb:


No, I seriously snowfoamed a horse.


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## big ben (Aug 25, 2009)

is that pot hole actually on the road :lol:

i will report pot holes from now on after reading this, i thought you could claim if they were a certain depth and that was that?


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