Gloucestershire County Council’s Low Payout Rate for Pothole Damage Claims

New analysis indicates that only 2% of claims for pothole damage made against Gloucestershire County Council result in success. This percentage represents the lowest among the 18 local authorities included in the survey, with the other councils approached paying out on an average of 20% of claims. The council stated that it does not “have to use taxpayers’ funds to pay out on many claims as we have a robust system of inspections and repairs in place”. Simon Williams, the head of policy at the RAC, commented: “There’s a get-out-of-jail-free card for councils that they don’t have to pay compensation if they aren’t aware of the pothole.” He further stated that “Gloucestershire use that defence through all the claims they receive.” Williams also noted that “Councils are obligated to inspect their networks, it’s just a question of how much inspection is going on at Gloucestershire,” adding, “As an individual you can report the pothole yourself, and that will be very good if someone else actually does end up hitting that pothole and suffering damage.” The RAC’s findings also indicated that, in 2023, the council disbursed an average of £327 per claim to drivers. This amount is 29% lower than the average of £460 that drivers typically spend for damage exceeding a simple puncture. Abdul Nasir, who manages Discount Tyres Gloucester, informed the BBC: “There’s no other thing that can cause the damage to the tyre if you’re driving on a smooth surface, so there must be a reason. ” He concluded, “The reason is the condition of the roads.” A spokesperson for Gloucestershire County Council stated: “All claims are reviewed in accordance with national guidelines when they are assessed. “The spokesperson added that the council is “also trialling innovative methods to improve road conditions.” Specific examples provided include a spray injection patching machine and a Roadmender machine, which “have speeded up pothole repairs,” and “Find and Fix teams have repaired 22,326 smaller potholes ahead of schedule before they got worse.” The council reported having “over 30 teams out on the network every working day, working to improve the condition of our roads and have repaired 35,911 potholes this year.” The spokesperson further explained that “Potholes can develop quickly on roads, particularly in winter, so it is not possible for councils to inspect every road or repair every pothole immediately.” They concluded by saying, “Every day we are inspecting roads and fixing any potholes that are a safety concern either the next working day for critical ones or within 28 days.” For updates, follow BBC Gloucestershire on Facebook, X, and Instagram. Story ideas can be submitted via email or WhatsApp at 0800 313 4630. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC bears no responsibility for the content of external websites. Information regarding our approach to external linking is available.