Hike in potholes compo claims

COMPENSATION paid out to county motorists whose cars has been damaged by potholes have risen almost 20 per cent in a year, new figures reveal.

Almost 1,500 payouts have been made since January 2012 by Lincolnshire County Council – with numbers shooting up from £133,015 in 2012 to £157,266 last year.

Last year, Lincolnshire was given the title pothole capital of Britain by Britannia Rescue after statistics showed the county paid out the most in compensation for pothole-related damage. Now more figures, disclosed after a Freedom of Information request, show the county is continuing to struggle.

County Highways chief Coun Richard Davies blamed the lack of government investment.

He said: “We want to prevent potholes in the first place and we defend cases vigorously but where liable, we pay out but it’s to do with the condition of the roads.

“There’s been under-investment for generations.

“I go on the continent a lot and you can see the impact of proper, sustainable investment.”

He said it was an issue for all parties to deal with, but said he was pleased that the Government appeared to be taking the issue seriously.

The payouts  compensated people for personal injury as well as damage to their vehicles.

Among the highest payouts was £9,615 which the council awarded when the victim stepped into a hole and fell, causing them to suffer an injury in June 2012.

A further £6,500, was paid when someone tripped and stumbled in a very large pothole in November 2012.

In July this year, the council’s executive pledged to match the Government’s additional road repair funding of £5.5 million in order to fill-in thousands more potholes in the coming year.

The figures for 2014 so far show an improvement– with £46,559 paid out by the council up to August.