Revealed: Kent County Council's bill for pothole damage
Exclusive by Jo Sword
Almost £250,000 has been shelled out by Kent County Council over the past
four years to motorists who have had damage to their cars caused by
potholes.
More than 3,000 people have claimed against KCC for damage,
although that figure is quite good compared to many areas of the
UK.
The figures have been released following a Freedom
of Information Act request from KM Group.
Last year, the £83,900 paid out to claimants was more than three
times as much as the total in 2006.
However, the figure indicates KCC is doing a good job
maintaining the county's roads bearing in mind how much is spent
across the country.
According to the latest Annual Local
Authority Road Maintenance (ALARM) survey, around £35.2million
was paid out in compensation claims across England and Wales in
2009.
Andrew Howard, head of safety at the AA, said: "With Kent having about a
60th of the population you would expect the figure to be much
higher for just one year - so that may suggest Kent is doing a good
job in maintaining their highways."
One 60th of £35.2million is around £587,000, significantly lower
than the £83,900 paid out by KCC.
The figures come as the authority reveals it has fixed
10,000 potholes so far this year following last month's cold
snap.
Audio: Cllr Nick Chard,
KCC cabinet member for environment and highways, talks about the
blitz on potholes
Mr Howard added: "Potholes can cause pretty considerable damage.
It is what hits the pothole that gets into trouble, so it is the
tyres, the wheels, the suspension and perhaps the bodywork. It
can run into a substantial amount of money.
"The council is not meant to let faults exist that it knows
about. If you can prove there is a pothole on the road the council
knows about and hasn't done anything about it, you are able to make
a compensation claim."
- Kent County Council was contacted but did not wish to
comment.
Monday, February 08 2010