Potholes are a “low priority” for Oldham Council

– Pothole policy puts Council at risk of being sued 

Liberal Democrat Councillors have slammed Oldham Council for deciding to take no action on many reported actionable potholes.

Oldham Council’s response to reported potholes now states that defects assessed as “low priority” will be monitored rather than repaired, despite the Local Authority having a duty of care to provide a reasonable safe highway on their adopted highway. If the council takes no action then they will not have what is called a “Section 58 defence”, and will therefore be unable to defend any claims for damages.

The time frames will vary depending on the level of danger but a local authority has a statutory obligation and the maximum usually are 28 days across other Local Authorities.

Parish Councillor Michael Powell said: “Given that a reported and actionable defect can deteriorate rapidly, there is then little defence when accidents occur as a result, and delaying repairs could mean a huge increase of claims against the council.”

A council can have a defence to escape liability if they prove that they have taken “reasonable care”.

Councillor Garth Harkness added: “We are opposed to leaving potholes that are liable for repairs. Proactive is better than reactive but when there is a problem, you can’t bury your head in the sand. The council have a duty to repair actionable defects. They need to get the basics right.”