Potholes costing £1m a month

Drivers and insurers are losing £1m a month repairing damage to vehicles caused by potholes, according to the AA.

The AA states that the number of claims for the first four months of 2018 already equal those for the whole of last year. It said there was a pothole ‘epidemic’ that was a ‘national embarrassment’. Based on its share of the car insurance market, the AA has inferred that there have been 4,200 claims this year across the UK.

Janet Connor, the AA’s director of insurance, said, ‘Local council budgets have been squeezed to the extent that competing priorities mean they don’t have the resources to keep their roads up to scratch.

‘Our nation’s highways have become a national embarrassment.’

The estimated average repair bill was £1,000 last year, but the AA said that underestimated the true extent of the damage.

In March, the Secretary of State for Transport, Chris Grayling, announced a £100m fund for road repairs, and admitted there had not been enough spent since the 1980s. A representative for the Department for Transport said it was providing councils in England with more than £6bn to help improve the condition of roads.

The public has also admitted to their frustrations with the conditions of UK roads. The AA conducted a study and found that nine out of 10 drivers said the condition of UK roads had deteriorated over the past 10 years.