Councils receive pothole compensation claim every 11 minutes
Almost 50,000 drivers made claims against councils across Great Britain for damage caused to their vehicles by potholes in the last financial year.
The 200 (out of a total of 207) local highways authorities in England, Scotland and Wales who responded to FOI requests by the RAC Foundation dealt with 48,664 compensation claims in the 2013/14 financial year.
This is the equivalent of roughly one claim being submitted every eleven minutes day and night, 365 days a year and an increase on the 2012/13 figure of 46,139 claims.
However councils refused the majority of claims, agreeing to pay out in less than a quarter (23%) of cases.
The total value of successful claims was £3.2 million.
The average payout for a successful claim in 2013/14 was £286, down from £357 the year before.
The average administration cost of each claim – successful or not – was £147.
Summary table:
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Figures for financial year 2013/14 (Figures in brackets are for the financial year 2012/13) |
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Total number of claims made to local authority highways authorities |
Number of successful claims |
Percentage of all claims that were successful |
Total value of successful claims |
Average council admin cost per claim |
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England
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42,662 (38,627)
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9,792 (9,064) |
23% (24%) |
£2.9 million (£3.5 million) |
£164 (£166) |
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Scotland
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4,511 (5,846)
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1,126 (2,299) |
25% (39%) |
£228,000 (£510,000) |
£109 (£109) |
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Wales
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1,491 (1,666)
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266 (401) |
18% (24%) |
£73,000 (£141,000) |
£97 (£110) |
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GREAT BRITAIN
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48,664 (46,139)
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11,184 (11,764) |
23% (26%) |
£3.2 million (£4.2 million) |
£147 (£150) |
Note: a full list of data by local authority follows in the notes to editor. Of the 207 councils which were approached for information: 146 out of 153 responded in England; 32/32 responded in Scotland; 22/22 responded in Wales. Of those councils that responded not all answered all of the questions.
This is link to a full set of tables of all local authorities in Britain in both alphabetical order and ranked by number of claims received in 2013/14:
This is a link to English local authorities ranked by number of claims received in 2013/14:
This is a link to Welsh local authorities ranked by number of claims received in 2013/14:
This is a link to Scottish local authorities ranked by number of claims received in 2013/14: