Council forks out £100,000 in pothole compensation

By Ewan Foskett Wednesday, September 12, 2012
1:25 PM

DRIVERS in Hertfordshire received more than £100,000 in compensation over the last two years, because of damage caused by potholes or dodgy roads.

The figures, revealed in a Freedom of Information Act request submitted by breakdown service Britannia Rescue, show the county dealt with about 1,700 claims made by motorists during the period, with an average repair bill of £132.

But Emma Banks from the firm said many motorists do not realise they can make claims.

Stuart Pile, cabinet member for highways at Hertfordshire County Council, said: “Traffic levels in Hertfordshire are very high, with 2.5 times the national average of lorries using our roads and more than one million vehicle miles per km of road greater than anywhere else in the UK.”

He added: “We continue to invest heavily in our roads – around £30m on highways maintenance (per annum) in one form or other.

“This has meant that the number of potholes reported in 2011/12 was half that reported in 2009/10.”