The amount of money Cheshire East has paid out to settle compensation claims for vehicle damage caused by potholes has increased by 500% in the past four years.
In 2013 the Council paid out £58,891 in compensation compared with £10,177 in 2010. In 2011 the total amount paid in compensation was £13,889 and in 2012 it was £46,435.
The number of claims lodged against CEC, by motorists for damage to their vehicles caused by potholes on CEC highways, also rose sharply last year to 861, compared to 664 in 2012, 353 in 2011 and 394 in 2010.
Cheshire East Council accepted liability and settled 220 claims in 2013, compared with 167 in 2012, 58 in 2011 and 36 in 2010.
Of the 861 claims made against CEC in 2013, 28 were for damage to vehicles caused, or allegedly caused, in Alderley Edge or Wilmslow. The Council accepted liability for only 6 of these claims and settled them by way of compensation, 2 of which were in Alderley Edge and 4 in Wilmslow.
The total amount paid out for compensation in Alderley Edge last year was £950 compared with nothing in 2012 and 2011 and £855 for 3 claims in 2010.
These figures were obtained through a Freedom of Information request we made to Cheshire East Council.
We also obtained figures which show that the number of potholes reported in the borough has risen by 250% in the last 4 years. In 2013 13,759 potholes were reported, compared with 10,417 in 2012, 5879 in 2011 and 5478 in 2010. So far this year 2535 potholes have been reported.
The number of repairs carried out by CEC has also increased significantly over this period with 57,856 repairs completed in 2013, compared with 38,369 in 2012, 6841 in 2011 and 8919 in 2010. To date in 2014 6079 potholes have been repaired across Cheshire East.
Whilst the number of potholes reported and repaired across the borough has increased dramatically over the past four years the figures for Alderley Edge are quite the opposite.
The number of potholes reported in the village has fallen considerably over recent years. In 2013 158 potholes were reported in the village, down from 295 in 2012, 356 in 2011 and 436 in 2010.
Looking at the number of potholes repaired in Alderley Edge, there were 165 in 2013, 294 in 2012, 551 in 2011 and 667 in 2010.
Last month it was announced that Cheshire East Council is to receive nearly £1.25m from the government to help repair local roads damaged by severe weather.
Potholes can be reported via Cheshire East Council's online fault reporting page at www.cheshireeasthighways.org/ReportIt or by phoning the highways team on 0300 123 5020.
Comments
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I live in a small close with a cobbled surface . The cobbles have become disrupted in an area of approx 3mtr x 4mtr.They are a hazard to man and car and probably lethal to a cyclist
.I was therefore delighted to see the repair team arrive ,4 men plus 10t truck and all the equipment. I went into the road to welcome them and thanked them for coming to finally do this long overdue repair . They quickly quelled my enthusiasm by explaining that their job sheet only instructed them to repair /reset ONE SINGLE cobble as that is all that had been identified by their inspector. He had however helpfully identified the errant cobble ( amongst 60 other errant cobbles by a white spot.
I tried to ring the highways department to see if I could persuade them to exercise some common sense and efficiency by doing a proper job with the other 50 odd cobbles but predictably none of their many managers would speak to me .Apparently it is policy not to talk to us humble council tax payers .The waste ,the arrogance and the inefficiency of this Council I think is encapsulated by this single incident .This is what we pay for.
If you give me your address - my email is - I will investigate your complaint, because this is exactly the sort of madness which should have been eliminated.