Between 2007 and 2008 local authorities in England and Wales paid £53m in compensation to vehicle owners and £52.3m on fixing holes in the road.

The Local Government Association blamed Britain’s "compensation culture" for the increase in compensation claims.

The association also reported that the average cost of fixing a pothole is £56. The amount spent on compensation would have been enough to make 966,429 repairs to the estimated 3.5m holes in British roads. According to the association council staff have spent 40,801 days dealing with compensation claims, instead of providing council services.