Pothole victims unlikely to collect damages
There is an increase in drivers filing pothole damage claims with the city but those drivers are unlikely to receive money, a spokeswoman said Friday.
The city’s risk management department investigates claims and decides whether to pay them, but the department’s Victoria McCollum said the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act protects municipalities from liability in most cases.
“Honestly, we pay very few of them,” she said. “Most of the time, the first notice we have is when someone has hit the pothole and filed the claim.”
There have been more than 80 pothole damage claims filed since Jan. 1, compared to 73 at the same time last year.
Among the filers is Brandon Robertson of Security-Widefield. A wheel of his car was damaged by a pothole impact two months ago. He said the city informed him by letter that it wasn’t liable for his damage.
“They told me they’re not liable if they didn’t have prior knowledge of a pothole location or didn’t try to repair a pothole within a reasonable amount of time,” Robertson said. “But what’s reasonable? There needs to be some sort of transparency to show what crews are doing and what they aren’t doing.”
McCollum said the city’s streets division keeps a log of known pothole locations and supplies risk management with that information when claims are made.
Robertson said he’s considering taking the city to small claims court, but McCollum said the court has no jurisdiction in Immunity Act cases.
Ashley Youchoff of Colorado Springs said she hasn’t decided whether to file a claim. She said her and her boyfriend’s vehicles have had pothole damage, and the bigger issue is repairing the many potholes.
“Where’s my tax money going?” she asked. “I’d like the city to tell people when potholes in certain areas will be filled, and we’re not left wondering.”
Several drivers who contacted KRDO NewsChannel 13 said most of their damage has been to tires, wheels, steering and alignment, with the average repair bill around $250.
“Colorado Springs has the worst roads I’ve ever seen,” said Sylvia Watkins, who had pothole damage to her car.”
Scotty Martinez, another car owner with pothole damage, agreed.
“A lot of people don’t have money to fix their cars,” he said. “It’s a real dent in their paycheck.”
The streets division previously has stressed the importance of reporting potholes promptly because they’re filled based on how soon they’re reported and how bad they are.
To file a pothole damage claim in the city, call 719-385-5960.
To report a pothole in the city, call 719-385-7623 or visit http://www.springsgov.com/citizenreq/.
