A long way to smooth roads

ALMOST 9,000 insurance claims have been made against local authorities since 2005 on foot of pothole damage to vehicles with councils forking out €1.2 million to successful claimants.

However, given the large volume of claims, the average payout is in the region of just €135.

Surprisingly, Laois County Council comes top of the list in terms of the most money paid out because of insurance claims taken against the council, having paid out €202,252 on the back of 119 claims since 2005.