Motorists in Manchester are eight times more likely to win pothole compensation than those down south, new data has revealed.
Last year, councils across Britain paid out nearly £20 million – a 30 per cent increase over the previous year – to replace tyres, alloys and suspension that were mangled by crumbling roads.
But while 80 per cent of claims were settled in Manchester, with payouts averaging £14,000, just 10 per cent won compensation in Kent and Surrey, where cheques amounted to £690 on average.
AA President Edmund King told the Mail that long-suffering drivers face a ‘stark postcode lottery’ that could hit them in the pocket again.
‘In simple terms, drivers are more likely to get compensation if the pothole has already been reported as highway authorities have a duty of care to keep the roads in a decent state,’ he said.
‘Almost £20m was paid out by local authorities in pothole compensation claims last year. But our analysis of data reveals a stark postcode lottery, with some councils paying out nothing while others approve most claims.
‘The real lottery comes as each authority sets its own inspection schedules and repair thresholds. So what might be classified as a pothole in one area but just be a slight defect in another.’
He added: ‘There is a certain irony that the more spent on compensation, the less money goes into fixing the roads and therefore compensation claims increase.’
Potholes can cause costly damage to tyres, alloys and suspension, but local councils won’t always pay out compensation to cover it
Pothole insurance payouts have also hit record levels, with Tesco Insurance settling more claims in January alone than during the previous six months.
The annual cost of being a motorist has soared to £3,484 due to rising fuel prices and other expenses. In London, that figure is nearly £5,000 due to residential parking fees, road tolls and Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) charges, particularly in zones 1 and 2.
It comes as the Daily Mail’s End The Pothole Plague campaign calls for more to be done to fix the issue.
The Asphalt Industry Alliance, which oversees road surfacing, found the cost of repairing all the potholes in England and Wales has soared to nearly £18.6 billion and will take 12 years. Roads in England and Wales are only resurfaced, on average, once every 97 years.
As well as paying out £19.7 million to settle hundreds of thousands of damage claims, local authorities spent £17.6 million on staff costs to deal with them last year.
Councils frequently try to dodge claims under Section 58 of the Highways Act, which allows highway authorities to avoid liability for pothole damage by proving they took reasonable steps to maintain the road.
Authorities must show they had a proper inspection system, reacted to reports, and that the defect was not known or not yet dangerous during the last inspection.
Last month, e-scooter rider George Balkwill, 32, was rushed to hospital after colliding with a ‘lethal’ pothole disguised by rainfall. CCTV footage of his dramatic nighttime crash went viral and he was left needing stitches. The hole has since been filled but he is now considering legal action against Oxford City Council.
