Stirling Council shells out almost £95,000 to drivers for vehicle damage caused by potholes

Stirling Council has forked out almost £95,000 to motorists whose vehicles have been damaged by the region’s pock-marked roads over the last five years.

The figures were obtained by the Scottish Liberal Democrats via a Freedom of Information request to all 32 of Scotland’s councils.

They show the cost of damage to cars caused by potholes for each year from 2019 to April 2024.

In Stirling, 2021/22 saw the largest dent in the council’s coffers, costing £58,515 from the public purse.

The 2019/20 financial year saw £24,325 spent. However, the last financial year, 2023/24 saw just £3.095.02 paid out. The total paid out from 2019 to April this year was £94,732.

Stirling Council regularly publishes its insurance claim statistics on its website. The latest figures, correct as of November 11, show that the council has so far received 53 claims this financial year, with none of those settled at the time of publication.

In the Wee County, a total of less than £4,000 was spent over the same period. It racked up a bill of £3,046, with the highest expense coming in 2022/23 when it shelled out £1,321.

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In Stirling, the number of potholes recorded dropped by more than half last year. Just 632 potholes were reported to the local authority – down from 1,502 the year previously.

In Clackmannanshire, that figure jumped by more than 100. It saw 505 reports in 2023/24, compared to 404 a year before.

A Stirling Council spokesperson said: “We have worked hard in this area to reduce costs to Stirling Council taxpayers, with compensation notably reduced from previous years to around £3,000 in 2023/24.

“Each claim the council receives is considered on an individual basis and goes through the appropriate channels, with liability assessed in accordance with appropriate legislation.

“Stirling Council has responsibility for maintaining more than 1000km of roads, with more than £4.5million allocated to road and footway infrastructure in the 2022/23 financial year.

“We would ask members of the public who spot a road defect to report it via our website.”

In January 2023, we told how fewer than 11 per cent of claims to the council were successful in the prior three years.

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Since 2020, the council had received 157 claims for expenses incurred as a result of damaged vehicles on the region’s crumbling roads.

Of the number of claims received since then, just 17 were successful, with a total of £4,369.75 paid out from the public purse.