Question of the week: Can I challenge my council for refusing my pothole claim?
Fri, 22 May 2026
Dear Honest John,
"One of my tyres was completely ruined after a blowout from a pothole while driving home in the dark in December. Roadside recovery were involved and they had to bring me and my car home and they were witnesses to the pothole damage. Photos were taken of the pothole and damage to my tyre at the time. We put in a claim to Salford council and this is their reply:
'I am writing in response to your claim regarding the incident that occurred at Peel Lane, Little Hulton. Following a review of the relevant departmental records, I regret to inform you that the Council is unable to accept liability for this incident.
As the Highway Authority, the Council is responsible for maintaining roads, cycleways, and footways. However, under Section 58 of the Highways Act 1980, the Courts have recognised that it is not reasonable to expect every defect to be repaired immediately. Provided the Council has a reasonable system of inspection and maintenance in place, liability does not arise.
Peel Lane, Little Hulton is subject to a 3-monthly inspection routine. The most recent inspection prior to your incident took place on 24/09/2026, during which no actionable defects were identified at the location specified in your claim.
The next scheduled inspection was due. Between routine inspections, the Council relies on reports from the public to identify any emerging issues.
In this case, a defect was reported by a member of the public on 09/12/2025. Unless classified as an emergency, our inspectors have 10 working days to respond.
An inspection was carried out on 09/12/2025, and a repair order was raised. The repair was completed on 11/12/2025.'
They have also sent a site history report and a feature history report which looks like just pages of words not all of which is relevant to me in my situation, and what looks like the council are just trying to show a defiance by bamboozling me with paperwork and legal terms in an intimidatory way so that they think I will give up trying to claim compensation.
I'm not sure if they are right or wrong but the bottom line is that I am £150 down for a new tyre and a lot of inconvenience that evening and the following day getting the tyre sorted. Surely they can't get away with this?
What's my next move?
So that I meet fire with fire, what should my reply be and next questions be, phrased in such a way in order to show them that I mean business in the hope that they crumble?
If my car should be MoT compliant, why shouldn't roads be fit for purpose to drive on. I pay my VED and all my taxes including council tax, so why shouldn't they be liable and responsible when they're not upholding their side of the bargain?
I know they'll say in their defence that they can't possibly fix every pothole quickly but what is considered reasonable in the courts eyes? How do I reasonably pursue this? Is it realistically worth pursuing? What are my chances in this typical situation?
- IM
Dear IM,
You don't mention the exact date the incident occurred, but assuming that the information provided to you was correct, a routine inspection was not due until the 24th December and the council responded promptly to the report provided by the member of the public in December.
If the council has provided you their road maintenance policy and the road repair history already then this is a useful tool if you wish to take it further. A national code of practice for road repair is available here - https://ukrlg.ciht.org.uk/ukrlg-home/code-of-practice/ - although you should note that this is guidance and councils are responsible for setting their own guidelines.
It is then a matter of comparing these documents and attempting to build a case to show that the council either fell short of the required standards, were negligent in terms of how inspections were carried out or in the nature of the repairs.
If you believe you have a case then you would need to write a letter that outlines your claim, the costs of the repairs, how and why the council were negligent and failed to meet the required standards. Be polite but firm, and including photos, dates and times as well as invoices for repair work.
Your chances of success will depend largely on how strong your case is, so if the council have met their own standards and those outlined in the guidance, we would not expect it to be successful.
It is a lot of effort to go through and there is also the moral element to debate over whether compensation claims reduce council's budgets still further for road maintenance against the cost to your own pocket, but even if this appeal is unsuccessful you have the option to go to small claims court.
