The number of claims made against Stormont for vehicle damage from potholes this year has been revealed in new data.
Figures released by the Infrastructure Minister John O'Dowd, following a written query from the SDLP MLA Justin McNulty, show that over 2,300 vehicle damage claims have been received in the space of eight months, from April to November this year.
The Minister, in his response to the SDLP MLA, also pointed to existing data published earlier this year that shows the number of pothole claims doubling in the space of five years.
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Mr McNulty had written to ask the Minister to "detail the claims; and compensation made to date in 2024 for vehicle damage due to potholes and surface defects, broken down by constituency."
Mr O'Dowd, however, said records are not kept with a breakdown by constituency available. Instead, the Minister said, records are kept with a breakdown by 'roads section office' which he said "broadly align with council areas".
He said the "number of vehicle damage claims received" in the period between April 1 and November 30 this year was 2,348.
A total of £802,668 was paid in compensation during the same eight-month period.
Mr O'Dowd said: "Claims received in a financial year are not always concluded in the same financial year. Therefore, the compensation figures for a financial year or a specified period will usually include claims that were received in prior financial years or a previous period."
He also pointed to figures published in July this year that show a breakdown of the total number of compensation claims made against his Department for vehicle damage in each of the past five financial years.
In the first year covered by the figures, 2019/20, there were a total of 1,952 claims for vehicle damage received by the department - 1,663 of which were blamed on potholes.
In the most recent year covered, the 2023/24 financial year, the figure had swelled to a total of 4,921 claims - of which 4,552 were for damage from potholes.
The figures are outlined in the table below:
2019/20 Pothole: 1,663 | Other defect: 289 | Total 1,952 2020/21 Pothole: 2,005 | Other defect: 268 | Total: 2,273 2021/22 Pothole: 1,802 | Other defect: 359 | Total: 2,161 2022/23 Pothole: 2,438 | Other defect: 346 | Total: 2,784 2023/24 Pothole: 4,552 | Other defect: 369 | Total: 4,921For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here and sign up to our daily newsletter here.
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