Pothole damage claims 'increase by 600 per cent in 3 years'

Date: 11/3/2010

The number of claims for pothole damage has increased by over 600 per cent over the past three years, new figures reveal.

According to a new study from the AA, damage to cars caused ny potholes cost insurers £2.85 million in February alone.

This is the equivalent of about 1,900 claims.

However, director of AA insurance Simon Douglas said that this sum was likely to be just a fraction of that paid out due to pothole damage, noting that it often takes serious damage for people to think it worth their while to make an insurance claim.

"Garages and tyre centres are dealing with countless thousands of punctured tyres, damaged tracking or broken springs, which don't justify making a claim," he added.

AA president Edmund King added that if the windfall from increasing fuel duty on April 1st by 2.5p per litre was diverted to repair potholes, the problem would be solved within 100 days.

Meanwhile, a pothole repair team for Cambridgeshire council has mended nearly 5,000 potholes in seven weeks, according to the BBC.