We know what you’re thinking… Surely that title can’t be, right? Well, unfortunately, it is according to data recovered from Kwik Fit’s PIT (Pothole Impact Tracker).
Although average mileage for the majority of drivers was down by 42% in 2020, pothole damage repairs continued to rise from £1.249 billion to £1.267 billion. That’s a rise of £18 million compared to the previous year!
How Many Pothole Damage Vehicle Repairs Were There?
The PIT report shows that on average, drivers hit 11 potholes per month, with 10.2 million of those needing repairs as a result. It’s no surprise that most of the repairs were for damaged tyres with 4.2 million drivers needing these replaced. 3 million needed to repair their suspension, 2.8 million had buckled or cracked wheels with close to 2 million rounds of broken steering.
The RAC also kept a record and their data shows that 4,694 drivers broke down due to pothole damage. This works out to 52 drivers every day. That’s equal to a three-fold increase since the last quarter of 2020, the largest increase that the RAC have ever seen. If we compare the first quarter of 2021 with the same period of 2020, we can see a huge 37% increase in pothole-related breakdowns. Remember that the beginning of 2021 was spent in lockdown so this figure should have been much lower than in 2020.
What Is The Average Repair Cost for Pothole Damage?
You can expect repairs to cost you around £127.20 which is about 11% up on the previous year. The price increase isn’t because more drivers have needed repairs, but instead because average repair costs have increased.
At CCM, we see wheels upon wheels coming in for pothole damage mainly with cracked or buckled alloys. We can get your cracked or buckled wheel fixed within the hour and for less than £100! We’ve invested £1000’s to ensure that our wheel experts have the best tools available.
Why Are Potholes on The Rise?
We all know that 2020 was a difficult year, and local councils and governments had more pressing issues to deal with. However, this decision has taken its toll on our roads. Come winter the incredibly cold weather only exasperated the issue. The main reason for this is that it’s easier and cheaper for councils to temporarily ‘fix’ the potholes, instead of addressing the underlying major surface defects of the roads.
What Do Drivers Think?
A shocking 48% of us believe that our local roads and highways are in a worse condition than they were a year ago, with only 12% saying they had improved.
If you’re like us and suffer from roads plagued with potholes, you can see our Pothole 101 Guide to help you learn how to claim on your insurance or council for repairs, why we have potholes, how to avoid them and much more.