Cost of pothole damage to vehicles estimated at £1.48bn

The repair bill from pothole damage to vehicles hit £1.48 billion last year, according to new research from Kwik Fit.

Its annual PIT Report (Pothole Impact Tracker) reveals that the cost of repairs for pothole damage in 2023 represented a 61% increase in the six years since 2018, when the annual cost was £915 million.

However, Kwik Fit figures suggest that last year’s bill was down on the £1.67bn reported by the company in 2022. 

Between 2018-2024, £9.5bn has been spent on vehicle repairs caused by pothole damage.

Over the past year, vehicles suffering pothole damage faced an average repair bill of £120, with costs exceeding £300 for 660,000 cars.

For cars needing repairs after hitting a pothole, the most commonly damaged components were tyres (51% of cases), wheels (34%) and suspension (27%).

One in eight (12%) pothole damage repairs included bodywork, 10% involved steering components, while 8% saw exhaust damage.

Kwik Fit’s research also found that in almost half (45%) of cases, the damage caused by hitting a pothole was not immediately apparent.

One quarter (26%) of drivers suffering damage said that they identified the problem themselves when they checked the car in the days following the impact.

However, nearly one in five (19%) say the damage was only identified when they took their car to a garage and had it checked by a professional. 

Kwik Fit has found that some 60% of drivers say they have hit at least one pothole a week, up from 57% a year ago. 

In a related finding, 54% of drivers say the road surfaces in their area have deteriorated over the past twelve months, up from 48% in 2023. 

Only 10% say they have improved, down from an already meagre 15% this time last year.

Roger Griggs, communications director at Kwik Fit, said: “The worsening condition of our roads is a long-term issue, as shown by Kwik Fit’s annual PIT report over recent years. 

“We know that council budgets are ever more stretched, but poor road surfaces hit the UK in the pocket through the damage they do to the nation’s vehicles.

“Potholes are not just an issue because of the cost to drivers, they present a risk to people’s safety.”

Kwik Fit’s analysis comes after the RAC reported that it had attended almost 8,000 (7,904) breakdowns in the first quarter of 2024 due to bad road surfaces, up 53% on the last three months of 2023.

Over the past year, pothole-related breakdowns are up by 10%, with the RAC attending 27,205 breakdowns, 2,299 more than the 24,906 incidents it attended the previous year.

Compared to 2006, when the RAC first began tracking these faults, drivers are now nearly twice as likely to experience pothole damage.