Cornwall Council (26 001 051)
Category : Transport and highways > Highway repair and maintenance
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 04 May 2026
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s rejection of a claim for damage to a vehicle caused by a highway pothole. It was reasonable for Mrs X to seek a remedy in the courts once liability was denied by the Council.
The complaint
- Mr X complained about the Council rejecting her claim for damage to her car caused by a pothole in the highway. She says the Council should compensate her for the damage due to its negligence.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone could take the matter to court. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to go to court. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(c), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant and the Council.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mrs X says the Council has refused to compensate her for damage to her car caused by a pothole in the highway. She made a claim against the Council’s insurance but this was rejected when the Council deployed a statutory defence under s. 58 of the highways Act 1980. This allows the Council to deny claims where the defect in the highway had not been previously identified or reported.
- The legislation from which we take our powers also places some restrictions on what we may investigate. One of these concerns negligence claims about damage to property or personal injury. The Ombudsman cannot determine liability claims for negligence. These are legal claims which may only be determined by insurers or the courts. In this case the Council’s insurers have denied liability and directed Mrs X to the small claims courts which is the body best placed to consider legal claims for damages.
Final decision
- We will not investigate this complaint about the Council’s rejection of a claim for damage to a vehicle caused by a highway pothole. It was reasonable for Mrs X to seek a remedy in the courts once liability was denied by the Council
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman