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Getting Yourself Out Of A Pothole

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Getting Yourself Out Of A Pothole

Getting Yourself Out Of A Pothole

The winter sees an increase in potholes, wintery weather of snow, ice and heavy rain can leave road surfaces cracked and bearing deep potholes. Whether you are on two wheels or on four wheels, potholes can be highly dangerous and seriously damaging, what do you do if you land up in one?

If you have the misfortune of ending up in a pothole, the first thing you should do once it is safe and legal to do so is fully document the damage sustained by your vehicle or bike as well was the location of where the pothole incident took place. It is important to get photographs of the damage to your vehicle or bike as well as the pothole itself – with the latter images, it is important to do this with road safety in mind.

You can report pothole incidents to local authorities, often online which makes the process far faster and easier to complete when it is convenient with you. When you do report an incident make sure that you include all supporting evidence that you can as compensation costs for local authorities relating to potholes can be huge, as a result there is a procedure to follow for claims.

Claiming compensation for damage sustained as the result of you hitting a pothole will typically hinge on whether the local authority knew of the road defect. If it is aware of the surface damage and it has failed to repair it, or it has not followed road maintenance guidelines you may be able to make a successful claim, the local authority concern will be able to advise you of their highway duties and responsibilities.

Before making a large claim, it is a good idea to get the vehicle or bike damage professionally assessed and a quote made up for repairs. Find out whether you will be reimbursed for any  costs before you agree to work taking place so that you are not hugely out of pocket should you be heavily reliant on a successful compensation claim payment being made to you to rectify any work as a result of a pothole.

If the work needed to be conducted immediately and you have little choice as to when the rectification work needs to take place make sure you retain all receipts which relate to repair work, and keep any receipts for alternative transport which you needed to use whilst your vehicle or bike was off the road and left you paying for other modes of transport, whether it be public transport, taxis or lift sharing.

Whose Road?

When it comes to establishing who is responsible for a road’s maintenance and the
contact details for that local authority, visit: www.directgov.uk. 

If a pothole incident takes place on an a-road or motorway, you will need to contact
the Highways Agency, for more information, visit: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/highways-england

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