by Alan Quick

A LOCAL person recently found that an old pair of jeans had been used to fill a pothole at Salmonhutch, near Crediton.

Obviously not to be advised as a temporary filling for potholes, it should be noted that NFU Mutual, the UK’s leading rural insurer, is urging motorists to take extra care as prolonged harsh weather and limited highway maintenance programmes are taking their toll on countryside routes.

The insurer has raised concerns about suggestions that some rural roads in a bad state of repair could be closed altogether due to a lack of funding.

“People who live and work in rural areas already face huge problems with poorly maintained roads, a higher risk of accidents and a lack of gritting during the winter months,” warns Ian Flower, Motor Insurance Specialist at NFU Mutual.

“The deteriorating state of rural roads has been exacerbated by the recent, prolonged freezes. Further flooding also poses an additional hazard as many deep potholes are disguised.”

Figures from NFU Mutual reveal a 48 per cent increase in the number of pothole claims from 2015 to 2017, with the total value of claims almost doubling over the same period.

The insurer’s figures form only part of the picture as many motorists might seek recompense directly from the local authority, whilst others might weather the costs themselves rather than claim on their car insurance.

“There is a double impact on a rural business, as not only might they have to replace an expensive piece of equipment but there can also be up to a fortnight’s downtime waiting for parts, which adds even more misery to their situation,” explained Mr Flower.

Earlier this year the Local Government Association (LGA) called for the Government to tackle the disparity between national and local roads.

LGA analysis revealed £1 million will be spent per mile on strategic road networks such as motorways, opposed to £21,000 per mile for local roads, from 2015-2020.

Many rural councils are under increased pressure to deal with road maintenance.

There are also concerns that deteriorating rural roads will make access for the emergency services harder and response times longer, potentially putting rural lives at risk. Government statistics for England report that fire and rescue service incident response times in predominantly rural areas is 10 minutes, 37 seconds: an increase of 31 seconds since 2011/12. This compares with a response time of seven minutes and 43 seconds in urban areas.

Jeremy Atkins, Senior Agent for NFU Mutual in Devon, added: “The rural road network is essential for rural businesses and gives people in rural communities vital access to schools, healthcare and other services. In short, they are the arteries of the countryside and if they are unusable it will have serious implications.

“Other rural road users such as cyclists and horse riders are also at risk as they may need to take sudden avoiding action when they encounter a pothole or may ride, unsuspecting, into deep potholes which are filled with rainwater.”

Potholes in Devon can be reported at: https://new.devon.gov.uk/roadsandtransport/report-a-problem/ .