Hampshire County Council refuses to compensate driver who went down “vast” pothole on New Forest road

A NEW Forest motorist claims the county council is refusing to compensate him after his vehicle was badly damaged driving over a pothole.

Ed Baker told the A&T he was driving through Sopley in March when his car went down a “vast chasm” in Derritt Lane.

He said both wheels of his Dacia Sandero were buckled by the impact, and the tyres flattened, with the damage costing £200 to repair.

After contacting the county council to claim compensation, Mr Baker was told the five foot long hole, which is around half a foot deep, was not seen during a highways inspection only a month earlier.

Mr Baker, 50, said a Google Streetview image of the road taken last year shows not only the pothole but repair works that have been done to it.

He told the A&T: “The idea that this pothole was not spotted just a few weeks earlier is risible.

“I had been playing rugby for New Milton and was returning home with two teammates on a wet evening.

“The water meant I couldn’t see the hole and when I entered it, it felt like driving into the Grand Canyon.

“Somehow I managed to get home and the following day a mechanic sucked in air through his teeth as he examined both buckled wheels.”

Mr Baker continued: “I naively assumed the council would compensate me for the damage because it has a statutory duty to maintain public highways.

“I sent them a photograph of the trench I had driven into and was stunned when they refused to cover my costs, claiming the defect was not spotted less than a month earlier during a quarterly inspection.

“An image from Google shows a defect the previous year and suggests the council’s inspections are wholly inadequate. The entire road is a disaster and looks like something you’d find in Ukraine after the Russians had bombed it.

“It is absolutely potty that the council won’t compensate me for something caused by their own shocking levels of incompetence and lack of road maintenance.”

Responding to Mr Baker’s claims, a Hampshire County Council spokesperson said: “We do not comment on individual compensation claims but would wish to underline that all claims undergo a comprehensive investigation, considering all the facts specific to a case to determine legal liability in accordance with the law.

“This states that there is no automatic right to compensation for an incident claim and claims do not have to be paid where the local authority can show that it has met its legal obligations.

“These relate to ensuring a reasonable regime of both routine and ad hoc road inspections is undertaken, as well as responding to public reports of highways issues, to ensure defects are dealt with as quickly and effectively as possible.”

Has the county council denied your claim for pothole damage in the last two years? If so, the A&T would like to hear from you – contact us with details by emailing news@advertiserandtimes.co.uk