North Yorkshire Council paid out £385,000 to motorists last year in insurance claims due to cars being damaged by potholes and road defects.
However the amount has fallen sharply from the year before when £1.03 million was spent on compensation by the highways authority.
The figures were published in the council’s quarter one performance report, which was discussed at a meeting of the Conservative-run executive in Northallerton yesterday.
Motorists are able to claim compensation if they are able to prove that damage to a car was caused by a pothole on council roads.
During the last financial year, 282 new claims were received which is the second lowest amount since 2012/13.
David Staveley, the Conservative councillor for Settle and Penyghent, said it was a “myth” that councils are paying out millions a year in claims.
North Yorkshire has one of the largest road networks in the country with over 9,000 km of roads and the council’s executive member for transport and highways, the Conservative Keane Duncan, said:
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Cllr Duncan said:
“In terms of dispelling the myth of millions of pounds being made out in compensation, the annual figure is around £375,000. For a highway network the size of ours, we’re quite comfortable with that figure.”
Figures supplied to the Local Democracy Reporting Service show there were 3,714 reports of potholes across North Yorkshire in 2022/23, the highest number since 2018/19.
During last year, the council spent almost £6.5m repairing roads in the Harrogate district and £2.5m in Craven.
Swift action to tackle Sharow’s pothole plightVillage campaigner James Thornborough, who highlighted the “shocking state” of roads in Sharow, has had a swift response from North Yorkshire County Council.
Mr Thornborough contacted council chief executive Richard Flinton on January 30 to raise concerns about the uneven and dangerous road surfaces in the village, near Ripon.
He said fear of damage to wheels and tyres was preventing motorists from ‘going green’ by swapping sturdy SUVs for smaller vehicles with less environmental impact.
Mr Flinton promised the condition of the roads would be investigated by the council’s highways team and within a matter of days, council workmen identified 38 potholes and a temporary tarmac fix was applied.
Before … Some of the 38 potholes in Sharow and after … with temporary tarmac patches in place (pictured below)
Following a site visit by members of the council highways team, Nigel Smith, the county’s head of highway operations, sent Mr Thornborough a detailed email. It said:
“Sharow Lane and New Road are at a stage where preventative maintenance is not an option and a more substantial maintenance scheme will be considered for inclusion in our Forward Capital Programme, which presently means that the earliest a planned maintenance scheme could be delivered would be during the 2023/24 financial year.
“By way of further information, it is anticipated that a full ‘plane out and resurface’ scheme is required at this location, which will require funding of up to £200,000.
“In the meantime we will continue to do the annual safety inspections and reactive inspections to keep these carriageways in as safe a condition as possible and keep the matter under regular review.
“To that end I have asked the local area team to keep you apprised of matters with a further update at the end of March 2022 when we are reviewing our delivery programme for 2022/23.”
Mr Thornborough told the Stray Ferret:
“It was refreshing to receive such rapid and positive responses from senior county council officers and I just hope for the sake of motorists, cyclists and pedestrians, that we will eventually see a more permanent fix for our patched-up roads.”
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Poor state of Ripon roads comes under spotlight
The rapidly-deteriorating condition of many Ripon roads came under the spotlight at a virtual meeting yesterday.
Officers from North Yorkshire County Council were invited by Ripon City Council to explain the reason for extended delays to repair and renewal work for roads, including those surrounding the Market Square, Minister Road and Dallamires Lane.
The city council had wanted NYCC to make the meeting, which was held on Teams, open to the media, but in an email exchange yesterday .Karl Battersby, NYCC’s corporate director for business and environmental services, said:
“My position remains that I am not prepared to have the discussion with the media present.”
Minster Road, which runs past Ripon Cathedral, is in need of repairs
In an earlier email, Mr Battersby said:
“Our understanding was that this would be a frank and open discussion in private to try and reach a better understanding together of the possibilities and restrictions. At no point was this to be a press conference.”
After the meeting, city council leader Andrew Williams, who was involved in the email exchange and made the unsuccessful attempt to have it open to journalists and the public, told the Stray Ferret plans to improve Market Place East were agreed. He said:
“I can’t understand why North Yorkshire County Council didn’t want the press and public to be involved. It was cordial and constructive and would have given the officers a means to explain to the wider population the situation they face in Ripon and other parts of the county.
“With the government settlement meaning a loss of £4million from the highways budget, they are strapped for cash, but the officers did understand the concerns raised by myself and other councillors involved in the call.
“We were pleased to hear that a scheme for Market Place East will be drawn up and other areas are being looked at.”
Councillor Williams added:
“While roads in an around the city are in need of repair, we will continue to bang the drum on Ripon’s behalf.”
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