Pothole damage claims triple

Richard Aucock, Contributor
Fri, 24 Jan 2025

Car insurance pothole claims continue to rise with 2024 seeing a 14% hike on 2023, according to new data from Admiral.

The car insurance provider says pothole claims have rocketed 62% in the past two years alone – and are up a staggering 175% since 2016.

The data reveals that a third of pothole-related claims occur between January and March – more than any other time of the year.

March is the worst month of all, accounting for 1 in 8 of all pothole claims each year.

The cost of pothole-related claims is also going up. It increased 20% between 2023 and 2024 alone, due to ever-increasing technology in new cars, and a general increase in the cost of car repairs.

Adimral has therefore welcomed the government’s pledge to spend £500m in 2025-26 to fix an extra 1 million potholes a year.

"Anyone who drives will be familiar with that sudden ‘clunk’ from roads that are plagued with potholes," says Admiral’s Adam Gavin.

Adimral points out that driving over a deep pothole, even at a low speed, can cause damage to your tyres, alloy wheels, steering alignment, wheel tracking and suspension. In worst cases, it can damage steering severely enough to increase the risk of accidents.

Motorists with comprehensive cover should find it straightforward to claim for pothole damage through their insurer. However, Adimral warns that they may need to pay an excess and it can affect a no-claims bonus.

What’s more, if your car gets damaged on a British road from a pothole and you don’t have comprehensive cover, you may not be able to claim on your insurance.

Drivers in this instance should look to claim from whoever is responsible for the road they were driving on, although this is not guaranteed you will be successful. It can be a tricky process.

To help motorists who may want to claim from a local authority – including those with comprehensive car insurance who don’t want to risk their no-claims bonus – Admiral has some top tips on making a successful claim.

How to claim compensation for pothole damage

• Collect evidence: Note the pothole’s location, the time and date you struck it, and take photos. Get the damage assessed by a garage – and get it in writing.
• Who’s responsible: Different authorities are responsible for maintaining certain types of roads – for example, it’s local councils who maintain local roads, B roads and some smaller A roads. National Highways maintains more major roads and motorways. This will require research.
• Reporting it: The relevant body may have a template you can fill in – pack it with information including photos, the mechanic’s report and repair costs.
• Receiving an offer: Does the offer cover your costs? If not, go back – as you have a right to fair compensation.
• Claim rejected: If you think your claim has been rejected unfairly, you could seek legal advice or go through the courts. However, this will be time-consuming and is only advisable if damage is considerable.

Ask HJ

Did hitting a pothole break my car?

In October I hit a pothole at speed. Immediately afterwards warning lights came on and the car started juddering and wouldn’t accelerate properly. Luckily there was a refuge close by and I pulled over. When we came to a halt there was a lot of smoke coming out of the exhausts and a strong smell of fuel in the cabin. I called the roadside assistance and the car was recovered and spent five weeks at the closet dealership while it was tested and repaired. A fuel sensor and spark plugs were replaced and the final diagnosis was that I had put bad fuel in the car as apparently the fuel had separated when the technicians drained the tank. I’m really flummoxed as to how I could have driven 100 miles at speed on bad fuel only for this to manifest the instant that I hit the pothole. It would be great if someone could explain this to me please as the dealership can’t.

It does seem unlikely that putting bad fuel in your car would have caused this issue to occur at the exact moment you struck a pothole, but there are a few factors to consider. Firstly we would be asking what exactly the technicians meant by 'bad fuel' - if this was the case we would want to try and trace where the fuel was purchased and investigate further. It is also worth bearing in mind that fuel added to the tank would not immediately enter the engine unless the tank was almost empty, so even if the fuel was bad you would have been able to drive normally for some time. If you are unsatisfied with the technician's explanation you may wish to consider having the car inspected by an independent engineer.

Answered by David Ross

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