Most fleet drivers and managers will agree that Britain’s roads are in a terrible state. In all likelihood every fleet has been forced to contend with significant pothole damage in recent years.
In this post we’ll take a quick look at the current state of Britain’s pothole problem, before exploring some ways you can manage, avoid, and insure against pothole damage for your fleet.
For more information on how we can help you and your fleet, get in touch with us on 020 8290 9099 or email us at commercial.motor@anthonyjones.com.
How Bad is Britain’s Pothole Problem?
The latest Annual Local Authority Road Maintenance survey report certainly gave cause for alarm: Almost 50% of the local road network has less than 15 years of structural life remaining. That accounts for around 100,000 miles of road. Even worse, around 32,500 miles of road has only five years of life left.
The report also revealed that local authorities are facing an 18.2 billion backlog of carriageway repairs. Despite recent increases to highway maintenance budgets, it would still take over a decade to clear this backlog. In which time, the roads are only going to get worse.
Data from the report shows that, in the past 12 months, local authorities have filled in 1.9 million potholes at a cost of £149.3 million. However, to maintain their network to their own target standards, local authorities would have needed an additional £8.1 million each.
Meanwhile, separate reporting from Kwik Fit revealed that the cost of repairing vehicle pothole damage reached an all-time high of £1.8 billion over the past 12 months. The average cost for repairing pothole damage is £137.40 per vehicle.
Managing and Avoiding Pothole Damage For Your Fleet
So, Britain’s roads are in an awful state, and they’re not likely to get any better any time soon. But some roads are worse than others, and some local authorities are better than others when it comes to maintaining their roads.
Route planning to avoid potholes
If you want to avoid pothole damage for your fleet, a good place to start would be through familiarising yourself with the worst areas for potholes.
A few years ago, we published a guide to the worst cities and areas for potholes in the UK. More recently, the Department for Transport released a new map which grades 154 local highway authorities based on the current condition of their roads, along with how effective they are at maintaining them.
In green areas, the roads are in a comparatively good condition, and the local authorities are pretty much on top of things when it comes to maintenance. The opposite is true in red areas, and amber areas are somewhere in between.
Take a look at the interactive road condition map here.
Driver awareness to reduce pothole damage
Once you understand the risks of potholes in your area, and in the areas where your fleet operates, you could instruct your drivers on how they might work to reduce the risks of pothole damage.
You probably don’t need to tell them about how bad the roads are – they drive them every day. And you probably don’t have to instruct them to drive extra carefully on roads that are in a particularly dire condition.
However, you could instruct your drivers to :
- Take immediate action if they suspect they’ve driven over a pothole
- Pull over as soon as it’s safe to do so
- Check their wheels and tyres for any signs of damage
- Take pictures where possible, not just of any damage, but also of the road where the incident occurred.
Checking early for any signs of damage could help you address any small issues before they have a chance to escalate into more serious issues. And gathering evidence at this stage could prove useful should you choose to make a claim for pothole damage.
Check whether your insurance covers you for pothole damage
Your insurance may cover you for pothole damage. However, this may involve making a claim against your local authority, who are responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of roads in your area.
This is why it’s important to gather as much evidence as you can, as soon as it’s possible to do so following an incident with a pothole. This will help you to demonstrate the specific damage caused by a specific pothole on a specific road.
Your claim may only be successful if it transpires that the local authority has been negligent. Authorities may not be held responsible for damages arising from potholes of which they were unaware. This is why it’s also important to report any problematic potholes as soon as possible.
Be sure to read our full guide to claiming for pothole damage.
Make Sure You Have The Right Level of Cover For Your Fleet
Steve Blackmore, Director at Anthony Jones says:
“The UK’s roads are in such a bad state that it feels inevitable that most fleets will have to contend with pothole damage at some point.
“At Anthony Jones, we can advise on essential risk management procedures that may help you limit your drivers’ exposure to pothole damage. We can also help you ensure that your fleet insurance covers you for these risks, and we can support you if you ever wish to make a claim for pothole damage.”
For more information on how we can help you and your fleet, get in touch with us on 020 8290 9099 or email us at commercial.motor@anthonyjones.com.
