Overview
- Dorset has recorded 974 pothole claims since 2022 and paid £24,451.14, including a single £14,456 personal-injury payout in 2023/24, with 185 defects logged as unrepaired on August 15.
- Plymouth received 163 claims between 2022 and 2025 and has paid more than £25,000, while its pothole repair budget fell from £746,310 in 2023/24 to £616,653 in 2024/25 and 186 defects were outstanding on August 15.
- Wiltshire reports 3,220 claims since 2022 and £600,000 in compensation over three years, as its pothole spending rose to £34,893,749 in 2024/25.
- RAC figures show 25,758 breakdowns linked to poor road surfaces between October 2024 and September 2025, an 11% year-on-year increase, averaging about 71 incidents a day.
- Dorset says it is reducing reactive repairs in favour of preventative work, notes claims are handled under the Highways Act 1980 via a self-insurance fund, and reports annual pothole spend has edged down to close to £2.5 million.