Advice on pot hole damage

[skinnyman9000 0]

Right then, here is the story.

 

Was driving to work this morning, on autopilot as every day, when i hit a bloody massive pot hole! It was that bad i thought i'd ran over a small child. I got out the car to see a huge hole in the road, it must have been a good 6"+ at the deepest point. It was dark but i could see that my splitter has been ripped off. Not bothered as this is knackered anyway. So i carried on to work as it was too dark to see anything. Then i headed back to the pot hole on my lunch break to take photos incase any damage had been caused. I got there to find bollards around the pot hole and it had been half arsed filled in with gravel, so i couldnt get any photos.

 

So i got home tonight and whipped off the wheels to find this:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As you can see hitting the pot hole has completely fucked my wheels.

 

Now here i have several issues. Can i claim without pictures of the pot hole? And if i can, how do i go about valuing a set of discontinued alloys that were bought 2nd hand? And if i cannot claim, how do i gain justice for the fact that ive effectively wrote off a set of alloys by something that was totally 110% not my fault?

[Wullie 1]

Not that it will be any consolation, I had a similar event and got nowhere. My wife hit the pothole but didn't think anything of it and it was a couple of weeks later I discovered the damage. A local alloy wheel repair place straightened the wheel for £35.

 

Currently where I live there are more potholes and speed bumps than there are flat bits of road.

[Critical_Mass 10]

Skinnyman, is it you on ED38 also?

 

I hit a pothole a years ago which caused identical damage to my wheel. Forunately i managed to take a pic of the hole before they'd filled it in. Its worth still getting some pics and making a claim anyway. They may deal with it despite it being filled in. If its only been filled in with gravel, it means its a temporary fix - you maybe in luck.

 

Again when i claimed, i had to purchase a new wheel and provide an invoice to the council. They then refunded me.

 

So much for just the splitter being ripped off :(

 

Good luck fella!

[dubbed_up_daz 0]

if its anything like Scotland you can only claim from a previously reported hole,you must also provide photo evidence

 

Your wheels look easy fixable though but its still really annoying when it happens

[moneypit23 0]

Claim for the spoiler as well.

[Philuk 0]

i hit a massive one last night not doing that speed. the outside edge of the schmidts looks ok and it doesnt wobble but the car seems to of sunk on the drivers side now :(. gonn check it all out in the morrow!

[skinnyman9000 0]

Skinnyman, is it you on ED38 also?

 

I hit a pothole a years ago which caused identical damage to my wheel. Forunately i managed to take a pic of the hole before they'd filled it in. Its worth still getting some pics and making a claim anyway. They may deal with it despite it being filled in. If its only been filled in with gravel, it means its a temporary fix - you maybe in luck.

 

Again when i claimed, i had to purchase a new wheel and provide an invoice to the council. They then refunded me.

 

So much for just the splitter being ripped off :(

 

Good luck fella!

 

 

Yes thats me on E38 too, i posted the photos on there after certain users comments.

 

Its a massive pain in the ass thats not needed at the minute tbh, but there you go i guess. I should be able to get them repaired for around £80, then camber and tracking on top. Definitely pursuing this i think.

[Critical_Mass 10]

See what you mean about the comments on ED38 (im super_fish on there). But then, we are talking about the forum that gloats about smashing their sumps, ripping off splitters etc - as stated by someone in the ED38 thread.

[Ben-B 0]

In the last two years, potholes have cost me about £300 in wheels... I've never got very far with getting my money back, cos different councils have different rules... both sets I've just sold "as seen with photos of damage" but for nowhere near what they cost new.

 

Next time I hit a pothole and damage an alloy, which I'm sure is inevitable, what I would really like to do is get someone who works for the council, and use their head to hammer out the dent in the wheel, then it'd be perfect!

[MonkeyVR6 0]

I don't know where you live mate, but Cambridgeshire County Council (last time we had to claim for this) even had a specific form for it! New alloy and low profile tyre...cheers ez.

 

D.

[Toad 0]

Next time I hit a pothole and damage an alloy, which I'm sure is inevitable, what I would really like to do is get someone who works for the council, and use their head to hammer out the dent in the wheel, then it'd be perfect!

 

Next time you're in the South get in touch, you're more than welcome to have a crack.

[colinstubbs 0]

Next time I hit a pothole and damage an alloy, which I'm sure is inevitable, what I would really like to do is get someone who works for the council, and use their head to hammer out the dent in the wheel, then it'd be perfect!

 

Next time you're in the South get in touch, you're more than welcome to have a crack.

 

 

 

 

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: I work for Greenspaces in Medway - nowt to do with the roads but bring it on!! :camp:

[Alex_G60_Fanatic 0]

BTW buddy.. I had a similar episode with my Polo when I hit a pot hole and monkeyed my BBS solitudes... well gutted, they bent the rear and completely Split the front. HOWEVER... I got in touch with a company in Glenrothes (near where I live in Scotland) called "Magma Fabrication" who managed to not only re-weld the wheel but also rebalance them too. Did the business and cost about £50 a wheel.

 

Just a thought

[dr_mat 0]

The councils aren't stupid, and it's not their fault that there's a hole in the road any more than it's yours for not seeing it, at least not until someone reports it at which point they should repair it.

Road users also have a responsibility to let the council know if there's holes in the road. Once it's reported the onus is on the council to repair it in a "reasonable time". They generally won't pay up about holes they weren't aware of before the incident, as is true for trips and falls on pavements with loose/dangerous flagstones.

[hombre_paulo 0]

Anyone else seen the state of the A35 just outside Christchurch recently? Its like an off-road course. You simply cant avoid the potholes there are that many.

 

The annoying thing is that the Council are clearly aware as they have considerately put up a sign! "Caution : Uneven Road Surface"

 

F****G FIX IT THEN!

[Big'G' 0]

The councils aren't stupid, and it's not their fault that there's a hole in the road any more than it's yours for not seeing it, at least not until someone reports it at which point they should repair it.

Road users also have a responsibility to let the council know if there's holes in the road. Once it's reported the onus is on the council to repair it in a "reasonable time". They generally won't pay up about holes they weren't aware of before the incident, as is true for trips and falls on pavements with loose/dangerous flagstones.

 

 

 

That's a fair point but up here in the highlands (inverness) there seems to be council vans everywhere, bin men are out every day on EVERY road, why they aren't forwarding pot-hole info back to the council roads dept. is shocking to say the least. We have pavement sweepers, kerbside recycling, and all other department vans and trucks using the same bloody bad road surfaces we all pay good money for the privilage to use. Sure i understand that the roads after some really bad icey conditions are a bit worse for wear but come on, it's not the 1st bad winter we've had to deal with.

[dr_mat 0]

It's true that the councils should be smarter about using the whole of their resources to monitor the roads. Good idea, why don't you send it in?

[Big'G' 0]

Hmmmmm don't see why not, we pay their wages, may as well tell them how to do their job.

 

Yes we should all do that!

[Ben-B 0]

Next time you're in the South get in touch, you're more than welcome to have a crack.

 

I was meaning more the management on the road repairs side who were fully aware of the pothole yet hadn't marked it out properly or fixed it, and then still refused to compensate me for damage

 

 

The councils aren't stupid, and it's not their fault that there's a hole in the road any more than it's yours for not seeing it, at least not until someone reports it at which point they should repair it.

Road users also have a responsibility to let the council know if there's holes in the road. Once it's reported the onus is on the council to repair it in a "reasonable time". They generally won't pay up about holes they weren't aware of before the incident, as is true for trips and falls on pavements with loose/dangerous flagstones.

 

Once they are aware of it though, they should repair it within reasonable time, or at the very least mark the pothole out so roadusers can see it, particularly on a 70mph dual carriageway when it's about the size of a dinner plate and 3 inches deep... it's like driving into a curb at 70mph

[i que 0]

It's true that the councils should be smarter about using the whole of their resources to monitor the roads. Good idea, why don't you send it in?

They aint interested mate dont know wot ther like down your way but councils in central scotland dont give a jott.Take this for example cpl weeks ago during the big freeze i kind of wanted 2 get out my house after 3 days, so i rang 2 c if a plough could come an lift the 3 ft of snow frm the streets arnd here, there answer was( we can only do main rds and priority areas hospitals etc)ok fair enough i said so i struggled out and went 2 the shops which is just beside my local council,guess wot was clearing the snow from the council car parks yup the :censored: plough with the driver drinking tea and eating sarnies no one was even at work in the building. Thats wot u hav 2 deal with arnd here,as far as the roads go they dont even repair them right they dont hav time clue or the money(after scamming most of it for bird houses-holidays for themselfs etc .They r a law unto themselfs and need there arses kicked its going to get worse 2 thanx to the new gov, we hav roads not out of place in a 3rd world country...

[skinnyman9000 0]

Well ive taken some photos of the pot hole (crater) on my lunch today.

 

Its 2M long, 0.5M wide and 15cm deep, and that depth is at the edge AFTER its been partially filled with gravel, so im pretty sure you'd be looking at 8"+ prior to it getting filled. Now i know i hit it at 7am, and they'd partially filled it and barricaded it off by noon, but at that size im sure it must have been reported prior to this, there's no way a 2M long crater magically appears overnight, my guess it had been getting worse for a long time.

 

Well, ive got all the evidence i need so im going to put in a claim and see if i get anywhere. Im not holding out much hope tbh. I dont even want the tracking/alignment paid for, i just want the wheels repaired.

[dr_mat 0]

Actually appearing overnight is probably exactly what it did! Given the scale of it it sounds rather likely to be subsidence rather than frost damage.

[skinnyman9000 0]

Right then chaps, update on the cards.

 

I finally got around to taking the wheels in for a repair quote. I tried 3 places. The first 2 said they were damaged beyond repair as the dent protrudes across the full width of the wheel. I then went to the last place and the chap said he'd give it a go, but couldnt guarantee it would work. (Also had a very good chat with him as he owned and wrote off a VR6 storm last year!!). He's quoted £240 to get them repaired. The money is kinda irrelevant as it looks like the council are willing to pay out.

 

I now have 2 options. Do i:

A) Get the money, put some in myself, and get all 4 refurbed back to new

B) Tell the council they cant be repaired, and seek compensation to replace them with something similar?

 

To be honest im thinking of selling them, so this decision is more based around money than saving the wheels. I can get the other 2 wheels refurbed for an extra £60 per wheel. So its going to cost £360 all in, would it be worth spending this money to then sell them on? Or would i be better off keeping the council money and selling them as needing repair?

 

Im at a loss now tbh.

[Critical_Mass 10]

Personally id get compo so you can get another set. Like the bloke said, he'd give it a go but cant guarantee anything. If the wheels arent a rare set then i'd look towards getting some more.

[skinnyman9000 0]

They are rare, very rare I'd say, but I'm not sure theyre desirable. I actually got them off here very cheap because no one else wanted them! So even they could be repaired I'd have to sell them for at least £360 to make it worth while.

 

I've been told to select a "similar set" if they can't be repaired, but that in itself is rather difficult, especially seeing as how I don't want another set. Wonder if it's worth explaining I wanted to sell them for £xxx and then claim that in compo?