[Spoony]

The amount of pot-holes around my area now is bordering ridiculous. I hit a HUGE one yesterday afternoon which cant have done my S much good

It got me wandering yesterday; if a pot-hole does cause damage to my car would it be worth trying to claim off the council? I'm guessing its possible as long as evidence is shown that it was the pot-hole that caused the damage

[astilla]

Quote: Originally Posted by Spoony (original)

The amount of pot-holes around my area now is bordering ridiculous. I hit a HUGE one yesterday afternoon which cant have done my S much good

It got me wandering yesterday; if a pot-hole does cause damage to my car would it be worth trying to claim off the council? I'm guessing its possible as long as evidence is shown that it was the pot-hole that caused the damage

Don't know about the legal side but I share your pain about the general state of roads. It's not great around here also - there's a road I use frequently between my parents place and here and you basically have to be in the middle of the road (if possible) to avoid the mess on either side - it's a well used B-road but is a disgrace.

I've got an 'S' with the standard suspension but 17" wheels and it jars my teeth with even that...

[Randall Raines]

You can claim for damage in certain circumstances, I would say get pics etc... ASAP of the damage / pot-hole that caused the damage and some sort of report from someone qualified, main dealer, mechanic etc.. stating the damage could be a result of pot-hole damage, because I've heard of people reporting things like this (having a genuine claim) and by the time they've gone back to take a pic (sometimes a few days later), the hole has been filled in (IMO to try & avoid a claim rather than being on top of repairs), and you have no evidence of how bad the pot-hole was .

The damage can be quite extensive and expensive to put right (and shouldn't be underestimated, there's a few threads knocking about on damage / possible damage caused by pot-holes).

Here's one:

( A Mini and a pothole)

Here's another I read very recently (while doing some investigating ) :

(Pot-Holes....)

[Lolance]

Was in Shef over the weekend and that place doesn't do smooth roads.

They've recently resurfaced the road that I commute on just after I memorised every pothole in the road

[Darthbladerni]

Of course you can claim off the council!!

If you hit a pothole with standard wheels and they get damaged, take a picture of the area as well as the damage and pothole and that is you covered

With aftermarket wheels, if you try and claim the first thing they will ask is "are the wheels declared?"

I put a complaint in to the Road Service in Northern Ireland for the state of the roads near me, not just potholes but bad workmanship. They were filling in holes they made higher than the original road surface I received a letter back stating that it was nothing to do with them because NI water were in charge of the area at the time but they have already delt with the problem.
Everything is fixed.

Ring the road service wherever you are and complain, they might not even be aware of the problems!

[Harpo]

Quote: Originally Posted by Darthbladerni (original)

...I received a letter back stating that it was nothing to do with them because NI water were in charge of the area at the time but they have already delt with the problem...

Nothing more than a fob-off. They are responsible for the road surface, and indeed for the contract with NIW that allows them to alter the dressing while in their possession.

Ask for the name of the contact/Project Manager/Contracts Dept within NIW, write a letter to them and copy the council.

That way they will see that you mean business and that a standard letter will not be acceptible.

[Harpo]

The A-road that I use on the way to work is peppered with pot-holes and looks a bad case of chickenpox. Curiously the council came along and repaired some of them (to a good standard which surprised me) and left others untouched.

I think there ought to be complaint system and regulatory body to monitor councils and their pot-hole management antics.

I suggest the name 'Potwatch'

[BrianDromey]

Guys...however bad the roads might be here in the UK, in Eire they are much, much worse, especially on the 'regional'/B roads. I think a laser tracker might be something to invest in if/when I take a car home for an extended period!

Brian.

[OJM]

Spoony, take a look at this thread - http://www.mini2.com/forum/general-d...good-luck.html

Just give me a shout if you'd like a copy of the letter I sent.

[zyo]

I'm sure Quentin Wilson was on GMTV a month or two ago suggesting that there was a billion pound shortfall for pothole repairs....ummm..strange when we pay so much to use our cars....next someone will be telling me that a huge proportion of the money generated from using the roads isn't actually spent on road repairs
perhaps that's why all the speed limits are being lowered, so people are going so slowly they see them well in advance and can steer round them.
I'm, also sure that Quentin said the insurance claims people make for pothole repairs to their cars is more than the billion pound repair bill to fill in the potholes.
False economy.

[Harpo]

Quote: Originally Posted by zyo (original)

...perhaps that's why all the speed limits are being lowered, so people are going so slowly they see them well in advance and can steer round them...

You might just have a point there, although not in the interests of the long suffering motorists, more the lowering of damage claims for the councils.

[Harpo]

Just supposing...

...that instead of the councils dumping huge quantities of tarmac and other assorted builders rubble on our roads and calling them 'speed humps', why don't they use all that material to fill the pot-holes and call them 'safe roads'?

Nah, much too sensible.

[fordcymru]

I sympathise with your pothole misery. some of our roads in south wales are like slalom courses to avoid them. I know the policy of our local council is that if a pothole has been marked with paint then it`s on their list for repair and you cannot claim, but if the pothole is unmarked then you can claim. But i always say if you don`t ask then you don`t get. As others have said get some photo`s, an engineers report and a good solicitor, then they might do something about them damn potholes.

[Gristy]

One deep pot hole used to annoy me going into Loughborough, you either had to swerve on the other side of the road or go very close to the kurb - not good for the 17' RF's

Found out that Leicestershire council had a website to report them - reported it, within 24 hours it was filled up nicely with tarmac

Once they know about it, they have a duty of care to get it fixed ASAP

Highways Defect Reporting Form

[Shaun]

Oldham is amongst the worst offenders on roads, some of the drain covers are so badly recessed the council have filled the top with tarmac over the metal plates.