The annual event is to raise awareness of potholes and encourage local authorities to take action against them. It comes as pothole-related car insurance claims are at their highest in six years, according to figures from insurer Admiral.
Pothole claims rose 40% between 2022 and 2023, with more than a third taking place between January and March. The previous record, Admiral says, was in 2018, when the cold weather spike known as the Beast from the East caused a surge in claims.
Here, Which? looks at the kind of damage potholes can cause, and how to claim to cover the costs.
How many potholes are there in the UK?
Some 2.4m potholes were reported across England and Wales between January 2020 and December 2022, according to Go Compare.
The comparison site submitted more than 300 Freedom of Information requests to councils nationwide to arrive at this figure.
Potholes are formed by a combination of weather and wear. Water gets into small cracks in the road, then freezes and expands in the cold. When the weather heats back up, the water evaporates, leaving gaps in the road surface, which can be worsened by vehicles driving over them.
What kind of damage can potholes cause?
Colliding with a pothole could damage your car in a variety of ways, including:
Pothole impact could also affect catalytic converters, which are pricey to repair.
According to Admiral's customer data, the average claim for pothole damage rose by 29% to £3,070 in 2023, up from £2,378 in 2022.Find out more:Does car insurance cover pothole damage?
Yes, it does. You can claim back the cost of repairs from pothole damage on your insurance.
But you should only claim once you've weighed up the pros and cons.
Rightly or wrongly, insurers regard pothole claims as 'at fault', which means you'll have to pay an excess. If the cost of your repairs is lower than your excess, there's no point in making a claim.
Then there's the fact that you'll forfeit any 'no-claims' bonus you may have had on your policy, so it could be more expensive when you renew.
If you do claim, you'll need a record of repair costs: a receipt if you've already paid, or a quote if you're paying later.
It can also help to note down the time and date you hit the pothole and to take a picture of it if it's safe to do so.
Find out more:Can you claim compensation from your council?
If you don't want to claim on your insurance, you may be able to recover repair costs from the local authority responsible for maintaining the road.
Again, you'll need a receipt or a quote, and details of where the pothole is, including that potential picture.
Councils have their own processes for making pothole claims, so you'll have to search online to find out what it is in the area where your incident took place.
If the council rejects your claim, you can appeal its decision. If it rejects your appeal, you can take it to the small claims court.
Find out more:How to help with getting rid of potholes
You don't have to hit a pothole yourself to help remove it from our roads.
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source https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/national-pothole-day-the-best-ways-to-claim-for-pothole-damage-to-your-car-aJsOl4m0G4Q8