Should I give up?

12th June 2010

Read stories
< previous post next post > Advise please, should I drop it
by chrisprice
12 Jun 2010
On 1st Feb 2010 I hit a pothole which caused nearly one thousand pounds worth of damage to my car. I approached a road junction and wanted to turn left, but the road was blocked by a barrier informing the road was closed, so I turned right obeying the sign and hit a pothole. The damage to my car was tyre, alloy wheel, track arm, and other minor parts. I had to call a garage as my vehicle doesnt carry a spare, and while I was wait for the garage, the hole was filled in. There was no road closure on the road I was traveling on.

I wrote to the Council and they sent me an Incedent Report Form which I filled out and returned.

I then had a letter stating the road was closed and they had had reports of local people moving the barriers and road closed signs!!

I replied and said the road closed signs and barriers were all in place and I hit the pothole because I was following their diversion signs.

The next letter I had was a statement from the Area Officer saying the road closure was in place for five days and the closures started on 1st Feb, which I know. I obeyed the road closed signs.

I then replied with maps and photogragphs of the pot hole, and even a photo of the men filling it in, and had another reply saying the road was closed.

I then sent another map showing where the barrier was in place and arrows showing my route.

The Councils reply to this is that they have maintained the road and are able to demonstrate they have a regular inspection regime in place.

I have the Road Inspection Report for two years preceding 16th Feb 2010 and it states the road was last inspected on 5th November 2009. In this last reply the Council says the road was to be inspected again on 5th Feb 2010. (I hit the pothole on the 1st Feb) They then go on to say they attended the site twice in Jan 2010 to monitor the area more closely.

They also have details of complaints received on 17.12.2009, 21.01.2010, 29.01.2010,01.02.2010, 03.02.2010 of potholes on this particular road.

Where do I go from here as they say they have fulfilled their statutory duty.

Any advise would be welcome. This has already been a very long process and I think most people just drop it as it seems they try then to put you off by quoteing section numbers and Highway Acts.

Replies (1)

Potholes.co.uk Expert     posted : 14/06/10 at 10:02 am

Try to put aside the road closure issue as it is mostly irrelevant and is a point you will probably lose. Concentrate on the inspection regime.

If the road was subjected to a legal road closure, you should not have been on it. The local authority are not responsible for local people moving signs and it goes on all the time. I am not saying that you are at fault and I appreciate your point 100% about following the signs, but the authority will rely on the road closure order and the advertising of it to prove their intent.

That leaves you with the issue of the inspection regime. One inspection per year is not a lot, so now you need to be looking at the national code of good practice for advice on road types and inspection frequencies. Have a look at our step by step guide for advice on where to get the relevant information.