Claims for pothole compensation are on the rise.

While this may not be surprising, new data suggesting just 15% of local authorities end up paying for vehicle repairs probably is.

The news comes via new RAC research into local authorities and their pothole problems.

The damage

Pothole compensation claims submitted to 18 local authorities with the longest road networks in Britain have more than doubled.

In the 12 months between 2022 and 2023, claims rose from 8,327 to 20,432

A Freedom of Information (FOI) request was sent to 21 councils covering almost 92,200 miles of local roads.

From the 18 that responded, Surrey County Council saw the most significant increase in claims, from 734 in 2022 to 3,418 in 2023.

Hampshire County Council was second, with claims rising from 750 in 2022 to 2,654 last year.

It was followed by Gloucestershire County Council, with claims increasing from 257 in 2022 to 829.

Despite this, 17 councils paid out just 15% (3,131) of the 20,432 claims submitted by drivers in 2023.

The RAC estimates this equates to around £824,000 paid out at an average of just £260 per claim.

Lost in a hole

According to the FOI request, the chances of making a successful claim for pothole compensation are minimal.

Thirteen of the 17 councils that paid drivers compensation for pothole damage refused more than three-quarters of the claims they received in 2023.

Furthermore, according to the FOI data, five councils refused nine-in-10 pothole claims last year.

Gloucestershire County Council refused 98% of its 829 claims; Essex County Council refused 95% of its 2,560 claims; Kent and Cornwall Councils both refused 92% of their 1,884 and 407 respective claims; and Powys County Council refused 90% of its 107 claims.

Surrey refused the greatest number of pothole compensation claims in 2023, refusing 86% (2,954) of the 3,418 claims it received.

Only Shropshire Council paid more than 30% of the compensation claims it received, paying 68% of its 546 claims in 2023.

The claims

See no evil…

The numbers also show that despite increasing pothole damage claims, the proportion of claims refused by councils has risen slowly.

Between 2021 to 2023, claims refusals rose five percentage points, from 76% to 81%.

Under Section 58 2d of the Highways Act 1980, councils can refuse claims if they are unaware of a pothole cited.

As part of the FOI request, the RAC asked how many times this disqualification had been used.

Of the 8,172 compensation claims refused by the nine councils that provided data for this question, an overwhelming majority – 74% (6,028) – were refused on Section 58 grounds in total.

Gloucestershire and Hertfordshire councils both stated that every single claim (100%) they refused was because they did not know that a particular pothole existed.

Miles of moans

Looking at the number of claims per mile of road, Surrey received the equivalent of one pothole claim for every single mile of its 3,410-mile road network – 3,418 total claims in 2023.

Hampshire, Essex and Hertfordshire all received a pothole claim for every two miles of their respective 5,641, 5,188 and 3,110 miles of roads.

Hampshire had 2,654 claims, Essex 2,560 and Hertfordshire received 1,914 in 2023.

Kent and Lincolnshire had claims for every three miles of their 5,822 and 5,559-mile networks, totalling 1,884 and 1,771 respective claims each.

Meanwhile Gloucestershire had claims for every four miles of its 3,496-mile stretch, totalling 829 claims last year.

Courting claims 

The data also shows that last year, 13 of the 18 councils that responded to the RAC paid more than £166,000 in legal fees to defend drivers’ pothole claims.

Lincolnshire County Council spent nearly £96,000 defending itself against some of the 1,771 pothole claims it received in 2023.

Devon County Council was the second biggest spender, although at a much lower fee of £33,232, while Essex County Council spent almost £20,000 (£19,685).

The fee total then drops below £10,000 for all other authorities.

RAC head of policy Simon Williams said: “While some councils appeared to prioritise paying legal fees over settling pothole claims, the cost in time and money of defending claims appears to far outweigh the expense of reimbursing drivers for the damage done to their vehicle in the first place.

“Even if a driver successfully pursued compensation, the average sum paid out of £260 is often well below the cost to fix a pothole-damaged car for anything more serious than a punctured tyre.”

Premium pressures

According to data from Allianz, a fifth (21%) of insurance claims in which a car hits a pothole result in the vehicle being declared an insurance write-off.

Since the start of last year, the insurer has paid out more than £4.6 million for 1,266 pothole claims.

Of the 1,114 single-vehicle pothole claims,  225 vehicles were deemed beyond economical repair, and the average loss claim cost £7,900.

Williams believes that we may only be seeing the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the true extent of the problem.

Almost the same number of councils refused to tell the RAC why they threw out pothole claims compared to those that did.

Time or change

The RAC strongly urges drivers to inform councils about any potholes.

This can quickly be done via the RAC’s website or using the free Stan app.

Williams added that local authorities have been severely underfunded when it comes to repairing local roads.

The RAC are pleased that the new government has been promised £500m in the immediate future to begin improvements.

“It’s vital that this money is used by councils not to merely fill potholes, but to carry out preventative maintenance – through surface dressing roads at regular intervals to stop roads falling apart in the first place.

“Roads that are beyond reasonable repair should be resurfaced.”