North Lincolnshire Council has paid out more than £40,000 in compensation to drivers for vehicles damaged by potholes in the last four years.
With the exception of motorways, some A-roads, and private, unadopted roads, local authorities are responsible for the maintenance of most roads in any given area. Drivers whose vehicles are directly damaged by poorly maintained, pothole-riddled roads can try to claim compensation from their local council.
There were 135 successful claims made against North Lincolnshire Council for pothole-inflicted vehicle damage from 2020/21 to 2023/24. The year with the greatest number of successful claims, 57, was 2023/24.
In total, £42,874.29 has been paid out in pothole compensation by North Lincolnshire Council over the last four years. This averages £36.11 in compensation per successful claim.
Many other claims are unsuccessful. A total of 410 claims have been made in the last four years to North Lincolnshire Council, including 141 in 2023/24. As of 31 October, there were 17 ongoing claims from the 2020/21 to 2023/24 period, with 15 of these from the last completed financial year.
A North Lincolnshire Council spokesperson said: “1.14 billion vehicle miles were travelled on roads in North Lincolnshire in 2023 alone, which inevitably takes its toll on road surfaces. To combat this wear and tear and make journeys safer and smoother for everyone, we invest more than £13 million every year to maintain and improve the road network.
“As well as tackling potholes, this also includes major resurfacing programmes that many residents are already seeing the benefits of.”
North East Lincolnshire Council has paid out £3,000 in pothole compensation over the last two financial years. There were four successful claims made between 2021/22 and 2023/24, with none succeeding in 2020/21. In total, £3,207.23 was paid out, averaging £801.81 per successful claimant.
Across the four years, 76 pothole compensation claims were made in total. The highest number in a single year was 32 in 2022/23, while last year saw 19 claims.
A North East Lincolnshire Council spokesperson said: “The council follows an industry-standard, risk-based approach regarding our highways maintenance and is continually reviewing roads throughout the borough.”
Lincolnshire County Council, covering a much wider area, has paid out a considerable amount in pothole compensation in recent years. It paid out £666,319.37 last year alone and more than £4m since 2018. There were 1,780 requests for pothole compensation last year.
Councils have generally become more stringent about paying out pothole compensation. FOI data obtained by the Liberal Democrats and reported by The Telegraph revealed that compensation paid by 85 councils fell from £3.7m to £1.7m between 2019/20 and 2022/23.
AA president Edmund King told Highways Magazine in February that councils had tightened criteria. A Local Government Association (LGA) spokesperson stated that each claim is “robustly judged on its own merits and in accordance with the law.” Almost 630,000 potholes were reported to councils in England, Scotland, and Wales from January to November 2023.
The Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, announced in her budget an extra £500m to fix over a million potholes. In March, North East Lincolnshire Council accepted plans for £119m in Local Transport Fund (LTF) cash between 2025/26 and 2031/32.
This funding can cover a wide range of measures, not just road maintenance. For example, £170,000 of current LTF funding has been allocated to Corporation Bridge repairs.
North Lincolnshire, North East Lincolnshire, and Lincolnshire County councils are working on a two-year plan linked to future Local Transport Fund 2025–2032 cash. Each area will receive around £120m. The future Greater Lincolnshire mayoral combined authority will have power over strategic transport policy.
Two years ago, North Lincolnshire Council acquired a special pothole-busting machine, which was christened Phil. It repaired more than 5,000 square metres of North Lincolnshire road in its first seven weeks.