Braintree drivers have voiced their anger at the number of potholes plaguing the district.

Single mum-of-two Dawn Reading was recently left £60 out of pocket after a pothole in Meadowside, Braintree, caused two coil springs to break on her car.

Miss Reading, of nearby Bailey Bridge Road, said: “There was a pothole they kept filling up.
“My car failed the MOT because of a broken coil and that’s when they found the second broken coil."

 

The county council’s own highways chief has even admitted he failed to win compensation from the authority after hitting a pothole in Little Totham.

Rodney Bass took over responsibility for highways, including tackling the county’s 13,705 potholes, in May.

But he was forced to fork out about £250 in repairs after the exhaust clamp broke off his Jaguar XK convertible three years ago.

Under current rules, compensation can be paid if the council knows about a road defect and it has been classed as severe but not repaired.


A county council spokesman said: “All compensation claims received by Essex County Council are investigated fully and damages paid if the council are liable as the Highways Authority."