Sandwell Council pays out £13,000 in pothole compensation

There were 37 successful claims lodged by irate drivers who were left with damaged to their cars caused by crumbling roads.

The authority was forced to give those motorists a payout after it was accepted damage to vehicles was caused by road conditions.

But the number of successful claims in Sandwell had fallen over the last two years, which was put down to its pothole teams responding to road damage and carrying out repairs more quickly.

Figures released under the Freedom of Information Act showed there were a total of 118 compensation claims made to Sandwell Council for vehicle damage during 2015/16 and 2016/17.

If all had been upheld, the council would have faced paying out more than £50,000.

However, the authority ended up paying a total of £13,682 after 81 claims were thrown out.

The amount has fallen dramatically over the last two years.

In 2011/12, the council paid out a staggering £563,921 to drivers in pothole damage compensation. The amount has gradually fallen ever since.

Council bosses have embarked on a pothole purge in recent years following complaints about the state of the road and believe the fall in compensation claims reflects and improvement in the quality of road surfaces across the borough, while milder winters have also helped.

They have urged people to report potholes as soon as possible so they can quickly be repaired.

Councillor David Hosell, cabinet member for highways and environment, said: “We have seen a reduction in the number of claims for damage to vehicles caused by potholes over the past few years.

“This is down to a combination of things.

"The winters have been relatively mild, meaning we see fewer potholes caused by water freezing on the road surface and then thawing.

"Plus residents report potholes to us as soon as they notice them, which helps us to fix them quickly and prevent damage to vehicles.”