Cheshire East Council (26 009 905)
Category : Transport and highways > Highway repair and maintenance
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 16 Jul 2026
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: We will not investigate this complaint about a claim for damage to Mr X’s motor vehicle. Mr X has an alternative legal remedy, to pursue a claim of negligence through the courts.
The complaint
- Mr X complains the Council did not accept his claim for damages to his vehicle, caused by a pothole.
- Mr X also complains the Council failed to provide explanations or consider his complaint.
- Mr X says this caused distress and frustration.
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)
- Negligence claims and interpreting the law around civil liability are generally best decided by a court where the Council does not accept insurance liability. Only a court can decide whether the problem should have been dealt with by the Council before it caused damage to a person’s property, or if it is liable to pay damages for a person’s loss.
How I considered this complaint
- I considered information provided by the complainant.
- I considered the Ombudsman’s Assessment Code.
My assessment
- Mr X claimed for damages after his vehicle was damaged by a pothole. The Council refused to accept Mr X’s claim for damages.
- Mr X complained to the Council, but it refused the complaint. This was because the Council said the matter could be taken to court.
- As outlined in paragraph four, we will not usually investigate where a person can take the matter to court.
- It would be reasonable for Mr X to take this to court because only the court can decide if the Council was negligent and whether it should pay Mr X’s damages.
- As we will not investigate the substantive matters of the complaint, we will not investigate the Council’s communication or handling of the complaint because it is not proportionate to do so.
Final decision
- We will not investigate Mr X’s complaint because it is reasonable to expect him to seek a remedy through the courts.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman