LOCAL COUNCILS are paying out more in pothole compensation claims than they are spending on fixing cracks in roads, according to new research.
Officials complained that a compensation culture has been created by no-win, no-fee lawyers and said legislation needed tightening to prevent "spurious" claims.
Around £53 million was paid out to motorists in England and Wales last year, which could have been spent repairing an extra 946,429 potholes, or more than a quarter of the estimated 3.5 million holes in roads, said councils.
The Local Government Association (LGA), which represents more than 400 councils in England and Wales, estimated that staff also spent 40,801 days dealing with the claims.
In contrast, £52.3 million was spent on actually fixing the problem. Council leaders said they feared that the number of motorists making claims for damage was set to rise as the credit crunch bites.
LGA spokesman David Sparks said: "Potholes are the gaping sores in our road network and councils know how much motorists want to see the proverbial bandage being applied.
"Getting people safely from A to B is at the top of every council's agenda. These figures show the extent to which our efforts are being hampered by the compensation culture that exists nowadays.
"Since no-win, no-fee was introduced, almost all councils have seen an increase in compensation claims.
"Of course, where people have a legitimate claim, they're entitled to compensation, but there's a real fear that no-win, no-fee lawyers are clogging up the system with spurious claims from people just chancing their arm.
"Tightening the law would help put a stop to this."
