Pothole damage claims may not be paid, Sudbury official says
'We find the majority of the time, the claims are not paid because our city crews have done a good job'
It is early days yet, but those pesky potholes are starting to appear in our roads and in Sudbury, and the forecast predicts a spring rush of claims to the city about damaged tires and broken springs.
Drivers zoom through the puddles unaware of the depth of the holes below that could throw their steering out of alignment, flatten a tire or bend a rim.
Pedestrian Suzanne Leclair said she has to duck to avoid the wave of slush as cars speed by.
“There’s potholes that cars are going to get lost in,” she said. “You could lose a tire … the front end could break. It’s dangerous.”
See a pothole? Report it
The co-ordinator of insurance and risk management for the City of Greater Sudbury said potholes are formed when there are frequent freezing and thawing cycles.
“We would expect that there would be more potholes this season than prior seasons,” Rob Walz said.
He said anyone who sees a pothole should call the city at 311 and report it so city crews can fix it.
As for those who believe their vehicle has been damaged by a pothole, Walz said they should visit the city website for a claim form, however, he said it’s not often the city is found to be in the wrong.
“We find the majority of the time, the claims are not paid because our city crews have done a good job and gone out and fixed it upon being notified of it,” he said.
Walz said insurance adjusters will determine whether the city responded quickly enough to fix the pothole, and make decisions about compensation from there.
He said last year, there were about 100 claims and that is considered quite a lot.
Walz added he doesn’t know how many claims were successful, but said it would be a fraction of that amount.