Man takes Gloucestershire Council to court over pothole claim

A man whose car suffered £189.60 of damage says highways chiefs could cost the taxpayer thousands of pounds by not settling his case.

Richard Broadbent put in a claim to Gloucestershire County Council after the wheel of his Volkswagen Golf was damaged last year.

His wife was taking his daughter to school when she hit a pothole near Quenington. He said dashcam evidence shows she was “driving like a vicar” and within the speed limit.

A spokesperson for Gloucestershire County Council said: “We are in the process of responding to the court action brought forward by the claimant, and therefore cannot comment any further at this time for legal reasons.”

Mr Broadbent said: “She [his wife] has a faultless 24 year driving record,” he said. “The wheel and tyre of the car were damaged.

“We reported the pothole, fixed the damage, and made a claim of £189.60. The council conducted a ‘next working day’ repair, and promised us a ‘thorough investigation’ of the incident.”

Mr Broadbent, who is a former Metropolitan Police officer, said he offered the council his dashcam footage but they declined to look at it.

Mr Broadbent says he investigated the council’s data on that particular road and established that in the previous eight months it had a rate of incident approximately 80 times the average across the county’s road network.

Mr Broadbent claims the council’s lawyers “hit back hard” and questioned whether “there was even an incident at all”.

“I have this on video,” he said. “I supplied a receipt, and photos of the damage, and if there was a pothole at all. I have photos, and they came out to repair it.

“I asked to discuss the matter with them to avoid the need for a trial. They declined.

“I proposed mediation, as advised by the court. They declined.

“It’s unbelievable, irrational, and incredibly wasteful.”

The council says the claimant has had considerable contact with them and at all stages and the authority says they have responded to his requests and provided the information and data to support their position.