Potholes: AA advises drivers to avoid puddles to limit vehicle damage

A depressingly familiar sight to many drivers across parts of the UK

The AA is advising drivers to "avoid puddles" after a record month for breakdowns caused by potholes.

The motoring group has had over half a million call-outs for the year so far - a daily average of more than 1,500.

"Continuous poor weather" and recent storms such as Babet, Ciaran and Debi have contributed to poor road surfaces.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak pledged more than £8bn in funding last month to tackle what he called the "scourge of potholes".

RAC analysis of garage repair data estimates that drivers are paying an average of £440 if their car needs fixing after hitting a pothole for any damage more serious than a puncture.

Common vehicle problems caused include distorted wheels, damaged shock absorbers and broken suspension springs.

Potholes are often caused by water entering cracks in the road surface. The constant freezing and thawing of water in icy winter weather weakens the structure of the road and material eventually comes loose - causing the holes.

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Tony Rich of the AA said "continuous poor weather" and recent storms, such as Babet, Ciaran and Debi, were having a "two-fold effect on driving conditions".

He said: "What feels like relentless rainwater is covering and increasing the severity of potholes, while also holding back essential road repairs by rightly diverting roads maintenance crews to tackle fallen trees and flooded areas.

"Our advice to drivers and those on two wheels is to avoid puddles where safe to do so, but if there is no alternative other than to travel through, then reduce your speed and keep an increased distance from the vehicle in front."

The AA received 52,541 call-outs last month for vehicles damaged by road defects - a 12% increase on October last year.

It also beats the previous record set in the same month in 2017 by 389 call-outs.

Potholes can distort wheels, damage shock absorbers and break suspension springs

In October, the PM highlighted the reallocation of funding towards pothole repairs as part of plans to scrap part of the HS2 high-speed rail line and spend the savings on other projects.

Councils have said the cost of repairing local roads is around £14bn, roughly £6bn more than Mr Sunak announced.

Darren Rodwell of the Local Government Association said the new funding "will help with bringing more of our local road network up to scratch, including reinstating repairs for potholes that had been impacted by inflation."

In the longer term, he said the government should award council transport departments with five-yearly funding allocations "so they can develop resurfacing programmes and other highways improvements".

A Department for Transport spokesperson said: "We are already investing more than £5.5 billion into highways maintenance, and our recent Network North announcement delivers an additional £8.3 billion, the biggest-ever increase in funding for local road improvements, and enough to resurface up to 5,000 miles of roads."