Areas of Law / General Legal Advice

My wife recently drove into a pothole near our home, which caused the tyre to burst. The council’s duty engineer arranged for the hole to be repaired immediately, but when I forwarded receipts to the council they denied any liability and refused to pay.

Councils are not automatically liable for damage caused by potholes. They can avoid responsibility if they show they have a system of inspection and maintenance that is reasonable. If you can show that the pothole was there for some time you might succeed, especially if people living nearby will back you up. Write to the council suggesting you will take the matter to the small claims court, since that might persuade them to pay. But I don’t think it is likely to be cost effective to actually pursue the claim through the courts.

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