Claims for pothole-related damage 2019 to 2023 - Find a freedom of information request

For each of these calendar years - 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023 - please answer the following questions:

1. How many claims for pothole-related damage did the council receive from drivers?

2. How many claims resulted in the council paying out to drivers (i.e. the number of successful pothole-related damage claims recorded)?

3. What is the average sum that was paid out to drivers per claim?

4. How much has the council paid in legal fees to defend pothole claims from drivers?

5. How many claims for compensation (property/vehicle damage or injury) were refused due to your authority not knowing about the existence of a particular pothole i.e. using Section 58 2d of the Highways Act 1980 'Special defence in action against a highway authority for damages for non-repair of highway' which states: 'whether the highway authority knew, or could reasonably have been expected to know, that the condition of the part of the highway to which the action relates was likely to cause danger to users of the highway'

1. Date Total claims:

• 2019 – 1,227
• 2020 – 1,681
• 2021 – 2,229
• 2022 – 1,330
• 2023 – 1,771

2. Date Total claims settled:

• 2019 - 598
• 2020 - 915
• 2021 – 1,167
• 2022 - 473
• 2023 - 350

3. Date Average claim:

• 2019 - £233.62
• 2020 - £228.36
• 2021 - £130.47
• 2022 - £133.32
• 2023 - £189.75

4. Date Legal Fees:

• 2019 - £143,974
• 2020 - £169,418
• 2021 - £164,958
• 2022 - £100,352
• 2023 - £95,761

5. This data is not recorded so Lincolnshire County Council is unable to address this question.