According to Road Protect, a company that provides financial protection against road related incidents, pothole damage – even at a low speed – can cause tyre punctures, rim damage, and wheel alignment and suspension problems.
Responding to the growing number of incidents of pothole damage to vehicles, some insurance companies have begun highlighting the inclusion cover for pothole damages in their adverts.
However, agencies responsible for roads also offer recourse for vehicle damage as a result of road conditions.
Johannesburg Roads Agency managing director Skhumbuzo Macozoma said the agency offered recourse for motorists who’s vehicles had been damaged due to road conditions.
There was a process available for motorists to make claims for road related incidents, including pothole damage as a result of the recent heavy rains.
The claims form and information required to lodge a complaint are available on the agency’s website (https://www.jra.org.za/index.php/2013-11-05-10-56-47/customer-care).
However, Macozoma said this was in no way an avenue for motorists to abuse the system by lodging illegitimate claims.
He explained that claimants would have to provide evidence that the road agency infrastructure had caused the damage and was therefore responsible.
All claims would undergo an investigation and if a claim was found to be valid, it would be paid out.
But there was no definite timeframe in which claims would be paid out as the claims process was dependent on the length of the investigation.
Macozoma noted that in some areas cones and large yellow barricades were used to mark potholes, alerting drivers to the hazard.
However, he explained that such indicators could not be used to mark all potholes because the agency was not aware of the extent of all potholes and where they were situated.
He therefore urged the public to continue to report potholes and other road conditions on 086 056 2874 or hotline@jra.org.za or on Twitter @MyJra.
