7,000 Miles of Resurfacing: What the Pothole Pledge Means for Drivers

Every driver knows the sound. That sharp thud, the lurch of the steering wheel, and the sinking feeling as you wonder whether it was the tyre, the wheel or the suspension. Now the government says it has heard the thud too, and is promising to do something on a very large scale.

According to Auto Express, around 7,000 miles of road are due to be resurfaced amid what has been called a "national pothole embarrassment". The headline figure is big, but what does it change for your car, your wallet and your rights if a pothole gets the better of you? Here is a closer look.

What has been announced

The core facts from the report are straightforward. The government says resurfacing works in 2026 will be up 10% compared with 2025, and it has announced an additional £220 million to tackle potholes.

It helps to understand what "resurfacing" means, because it is not the same as filling holes. Pothole repair is reactive, usually a quick patch applied once a defect appears. Resurfacing replaces the top layer of the road across a stretch, which is slower and costlier but tends to last longer. A road that is resurfaced properly should, in theory, generate fewer potholes for years afterwards.

Two caveats are worth keeping in mind:

• Highways are devolved. Road maintenance in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland is handled by different bodies, so check which authorities a given announcement covers before assuming it affects your commute.
• Delivery sits with local authorities. Most roads are maintained by the local highway authority, with National Highways responsible for motorways and major A roads in England. Whether your street is on the list depends on local decisions, not just the national headline.

Why it matters

A 10% rise in resurfacing is welcome, but the context matters. Seven thousand miles is a meaningful chunk of work, yet it is still a small fraction of a local road network that runs to well over 100,000 miles. A rise of 10% on the previous year suggests progress, not a reset.

Our earlier coverage of the pothole repair backlog and council backlogs, funding and fines explains why money alone does not solve the problem. Councils juggle competing demands, and resurfacing programmes take time to plan, procure and deliver. Extra cash announced now often reaches the road surface months later.

There is also the human cost. Potholes are a nuisance for car drivers, but they are far more dangerous for cyclists and motorcyclists, where a sudden dip can mean a fall rather than a bill. And for anyone running a car on a budget, a pothole strike can turn into a surprising repair cost: bent alloys, burst tyres, damaged shock absorbers, knocked-out tracking or cracked exhaust components.

Finally, resurfacing is itself disruptive. Expect temporary traffic lights, lane closures, diversions and, importantly for this blog, parking restrictions. We will come back to that below.

The legal angle: who is responsible for a pothole?

If a pothole damages your vehicle, the legal framework is fairly well established in England and Wales, even if making it work in practice can be frustrating.

The duty to maintain. Under section 41 of the Highways Act 1980, a highway authority has a duty to maintain the highway that is maintainable at public expense. That duty is the starting point for most pothole claims.

The statutory defence. Section 58 of the same Act gives an authority a defence if it can show it took such care as was reasonable in the circumstances to make sure the road was not dangerous. Courts can consider factors such as:

• the character of the road and the traffic using it
• the standard of maintenance appropriate for that type of road
• the state of repair a reasonable person would expect
• whether the authority knew, or should reasonably have known, about the defect
• whether warning notices were displayed

In practice, this is why authorities often defend claims by pointing to their inspection regimes. Many councils follow a risk-based approach based on national good-practice guidance for highway maintenance, and many set an "intervention level" for defects, with a depth of roughly 40mm often cited. That level is a matter of local policy, not a legal line, and it varies. A pothole shallower than a council's trigger can still cause damage, but it may make a claim harder.

Which body do you claim against? This depends on the road. Local roads are generally the responsibility of the council, motorways and major A roads in England fall to National Highways, and London's red routes belong to Transport for London. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own legislation and bodies, so the Highways Act position above does not apply directly there.

Time limits. Limitation periods apply. As a general guide, personal injury claims normally have a three-year limit, while claims for damage to property usually have a longer one. These are general rules and exceptions exist, so anyone with a real claim should check the position promptly.

If the amount is modest, a claim might sit in the small claims track in England and Wales, but if you are injured, or the damage is significant, it is sensible to take independent advice from a solicitor or a consumer advice service such as Citizens Advice.

What drivers should know: practical steps

None of this is legal advice, but here is how the process commonly works, and what tends to help.

1. Report the pothole straight away

Use the government's online "report a pothole" service via GOV.UK, which directs you to the correct authority, or use your council's own reporting tool. A report does two useful things: it can get the defect fixed, and it creates a record that the authority knew about the problem. Both can matter if someone else is later damaged or injured.

2. Gather evidence while it is fresh

If it is safe to do so (never stop on a live carriageway or put yourself at risk), try to record:

• photographs of the pothole with something for scale, such as a coin or a tape measure
• wider shots showing the location, road name and any nearby landmarks
• the date, time and weather
• photographs of the damage to your vehicle
• dashcam footage, if you have it
• any witnesses

A depth measurement is the single most useful detail, because it is often the first thing an authority asks about.

3. Get the damage assessed before repairing

Ask a garage for a written report or quote, and keep the damaged parts if possible. Keep every invoice and receipt. If your tyre is damaged, remember that a tyre with a bulge or cut can be a safety problem and may make the vehicle unroadworthy. Driving with a dangerous tyre can lead to penalty points and fines under the Construction and Use Regulations, so do not carry on driving just to preserve evidence.

4. Choose how to claim

You can usually write to the highway authority with your evidence, or claim through your own motor insurer. Using your own insurance may mean paying an excess and could affect your no-claims discount, so many drivers try the authority first when the damage is modest. Be prepared for a request for details of the defect and an argument that the authority had a reasonable inspection system. A refusal is not always the end, but it is a signal to weigh up whether the cost and effort of continuing is proportionate.

5. Prepare for the resurfacing itself: parking restrictions

This is the part that catches drivers out. Resurfacing often needs parked cars removed, so councils may suspend bays or introduce temporary no-parking restrictions with signs placed in advance. If you park on the street, look for temporary notices on lamp posts and in the bay, and note the dates and times. A car left in a suspended bay or restricted area can attract a Penalty Charge Notice or even be removed.

If you do get caught out, see our guides on street cleaning suspensions, rules and PCNs and suspended bay compensation and how to claim. Temporary restrictions generally have to be properly signed to be enforceable, so evidence of the signage (or its absence) at the time can matter if you decide to challenge a charge.

6. Look after the car in the meantime

Whatever the government does, plenty of rough roads will remain for a while. Check tyre pressures regularly, since underinflated tyres are more vulnerable to impact damage, and keep a sensible distance from the vehicle in front so you can see surface defects early. If you notice pulling, vibration or a knocking noise after a hit, get it checked rather than waiting for the next MOT.

Looking ahead

The latest announcement is a step in the right direction, but it should be read with a dose of realism. A 10% rise in resurfacing and an extra £220 million are meaningful, yet the scale of the network, and the number of authorities that need to deliver, mean improvement is likely to be uneven. Some areas may see smooth new tarmac quickly. Others will wait.

Drivers can reasonably expect three things:

• More roadworks in the short term. Resurfacing means disruption before it means improvement. Plan journeys, and watch for temporary parking restrictions on your street.
• Continued scrutiny of councils. Reporting defects and keeping evidence helps create the paper trail that holds authorities to account.
• Ongoing debate about how to fund roads. Our coverage of road funding and why local potholes may wait shows the argument is not going away.

Ultimately, the best measure of success will not be the mileage in a press release. It will be whether the thud under your wheel becomes rarer. Until it does, the most useful thing a driver can do is report what they see, document what they suffer, and know where the responsibility lies.

This article provides general information about UK motoring and highways rules and is not legal advice. If you have suffered injury or significant vehicle damage, consider speaking to a solicitor or Citizens Advice, and check the official GOV.UK guidance for your area.