How to proceed

29th July 2010

I hit a pothole, which caused nearly £800 damage to my car on 22/2/10. I was not able to take photos of the hole until 28/2/10 which shows a substantial hole (I have a ruler to show a scale in the photo).
I submitted a claim to the correct council at the third attempt and they rejected the claim due to their inspection criteria as outlined in your guide. I the requested details of inspections under the FIA. Today I have finally received the information requested but I am not sure how to proceed further. From what I can gather the repairs identified were completed on 26/2/10, which cannot be the case per my photograph or I cannot identify the specific pothole from their reports due to coding on the report. Help please. I can supply an electronic copy of their report if necessary.
Ian Burnell

Replies (3)

Potholes.co.uk Expert     posted : 03/08/10 at 9:53 am

If you can demonstrate (on the balance of probability) that the pothole you hit was there at the time of inspection, but was not filled, then you have some grounds for suggesting negligence.

Demonstrating that the pothole was missed during the inspection will prove difficult, as your comment that the pothole was "almost impossible to avoid" assists them to demonstrate that if the pothole had been there at the time of the inspection, the inspector would probably have seen it, if not hit it him/her self.

If you can demonstrate that the pothole was identified during the inspection, and they say they repaired it, why is it then "very unlikely" that the pothole ocurred in 2 days? On a well used road, large potholes can occur or re-occur in minutes, let alone 2 days.

unitedok     posted : 02/08/10 at 12:18 pm

It is very unlikely that the pohole re-appeared as it was a large one. It is a well used road, which is quite narrow at the position of the hole which makes it almost impossible to avoid, especially in the dark. I think my problem is identifying the exact pothole on the inspection/work reports in order to establish that it was present at the time of my collision. If I can establish this, does that make my claim more sustainable?

Potholes.co.uk Expert     posted : 02/08/10 at 9:27 am

If then problem is with electronic coding, then by all means you are entitled to write back and ask for clarification. There is no harm in telling them what you have said here about the pothole not being repaired on 26/2 as you photographed it on 28/2.

Could the pothole have re-ocurred in 2 days? Some factors to consider - What was the weather like? Can you see any loose material in and around the pothole? Is it a well used road?