Pot Hole claim

GDJTAM

Hi all,
Driving on a A road in Staffordshire at night and I hit a pot hole 5 inches deep by 54 inches long by 18 inches wide. My tyre burst and the alloy bent and cracked. It was all caught on Dash cam and I have submitted photo's and completed a claim form sent by Staffordshire Council. I received an email today from the council and this is what they said:
"We write with reference to the above matter and further to your recent correspondence addressed to our Client.
Please note that we are the appointed claims handling agents for the Staffordshire County Council. Your claim has been passed to this office for our consideration. Please address all future correspondence here quoting our reference. 

We are of course sorry to hear of the damage to your vehicle. 

We confirm we are making enquiries into this matter, but please note that owing to recent weather conditions and Covid-19 Gallagher Basset has experienced an increase in reported incidents and difficulty investigating claims that may result in a delay in providing you with a decision on liability. 

We hope to be in a position to revert to you in the near future. 

Yours sincerely, 

Linda Fitzsimons | Claims Adjuster | Gallagher Bassett

High Point, Sandy Hill Business Park, Sandy Way, Tamworth B77 4DU"

May I ask if anyone has previous experience with the time frame these matters are dealt with? I have sent a reply thanking them for their email and also asking for their expected time to make a decision.

Scrapit

nothing they have said sounds unreasonable. There is a pothole guide on here somewhere

mattyprice4004

If my experience is anything to go by, these things take a long, long time. 
The way I got a quicker result was to offer to use 2nd hand parts and fit myself (reducing the cost from £600 to £120) but put a time limit on this offer with a 'without prejudice' phrase in there too. 

The problem may be that some council staff are redeployed elsewhere, and if there's a backlog to go through the road maintenance records you may be waiting a while. 

Also note they'll reduce the price paid out for the tyre for any wear it has, and it wouldn't be reasonable to expect them to pay for a brand new alloy on a car older than 5 or so years. 

GDJTAM

I claimed for a second hand Alloy costing £70 as opposed to a new one at £240. I didn't mention that I used a second hand one so will follow up my claim and add this as additional information. Great reply many thanks

Super8Avio

They are the claims adjuster for Staffordshire County Council, and are either very inept at their job or liars. I am currently jumping through hoops to get my damage paid for, and are taking the Council to the small claims court. It is a long and arduous process because you get no satisfaction from either the Council or their legal representatives. The article on this website is brilliant, but make sure you follow it carefully. Good luck.

peter_the_piper

Chap at work burst 2 tyres in a pothole, along with the alloys. Council accepted and will sort it. /this was in March and he's still waiting.