'There are a number of reasons for this increase': Rise in pothole claims pushes payouts over £1m for second year, says minister
There is an “upward trend” in driver compensation claims to the Stormont department responsible for maintaining roads, the Infrastructure Minister has said.
Sinn Fein’s Liz Kimmins said the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) has paid out more than £1 million in compensation for the past two years running.
In February, Ms Kimmins announced additional funding for road maintenance, on top of a £30 million package unveiled in late 2025, after nearly 50,000 defects were reported on roads across the region in the winter months.
Members of the public are entitled to make a claim for compensation online if they believe their vehicle has been damaged due to a road or street problem and the DfI is responsible.
Ms Kimmins told MLAs on Monday that there has been “an upward trend in expenditure on roads-related vehicle damage compensation”.
She said: “In the 2023/24 financial year, expenditure and vehicle damage compensation for the north was just under £1 million.
“During 24/25 and 25/26, vehicle damage compensation was just over £1 million.
“By comparison, the five-year average annual expenditure since 2021/22 is around £810,000 per year.
“There are a number of reasons for this increase, including rising repair costs, however, the primary driver is the corresponding upward trend in the number of claims being received by my department.
“Claims can increase due to external factors beyond our control, as we have said previously, including the severity of the weather conditions in recent years, increased traffic volumes and greater public awareness of their right to submit a claim, as many for many years, didn’t realise that they could.”
The minister highlighted that “historical under investment” had led to the deterioration of roads in Northern Ireland and claimed the additional funding amounting to £40 million “has gone some way to make long-term improvements”.
DUP MLA Diane Forsythe said a recurring cost of £1 million is “really an unsatisfactory position to find ourselves in”, and claimed that because “the actual damage is getting worse” the figure could be higher.
“You’ve got people with multiple wheels, with their suspension, with realignment and actually towing and recovery costs and things being refused, and a lot of backwards and forwards,” she said.
“I think the true cost of actually dealing with these claims is significantly more and would the minister undertake an assessment as to the full cost of the claims made and the processes and the cost to her department of them?”
Ms Kimmins replied: “As we develop the new strategy and implement it, we’re trying to recruit more staff, so that means that people can get to the repairs quicker and have a more responsive approach through the department, as well as looking at how we can secure additional funding to make sure that we are not in this position next year and try and build that resilience into the future.
“So that’s my priority at the minute, however, I’m happy to speak to officials to see if we can encapsulate what that impact is.
“But I would, at this point in time, want their focus to be on actually getting the work done that we need to do, so that we are reducing the number of claims in the future.”