Claim on the
motor policy
Consider the excess, policy terms and potential implications of a core motor claim.
A customer problem / A partner opportunity
Your customers
already face
this problem.
A careful driver can hit a pothole without warning and face vehicle damage, disruption and an unexpected repair bill. Pothole Protect gives distribution partners a way to offer dedicated protection.
You may not see it until it’s too late.
Move to look closer. Click to reveal.You may not see it until it’s too late.
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The human impact
Pothole damage.
A disrupted day.
A careful driver can hit a pothole through no fault of their own. The resulting damage can disrupt work, school runs and caring responsibilities, while adding an unexpected repair bill.
AA estimated average repair cost£350
per pothole incident in 2025.
A market estimate, not a policy benefit or payout.
The conventional customer journey
One pothole.
Three pain points.
Claim on the
Pursue the
highway authority
A route that can take time and evidence. Damage alone does not establish the authority’s liability.
Fund the repair
personally
Meet an unplanned motoring expense from the household budget.
Your customers already face this problem. Pothole Protect enables brokers, MGAs, affinity businesses, breakdown providers and other distributors to offer a dedicated response.
- 01 Eligible pothole damage
- 02 Repair and submit evidence
- 03 Eligible costs reimbursed
Customers pay for repairs first. Reimbursement follows an accepted claim, subject to policy terms, evidence, limits and excess.
Evidence of the customer problem.
Verified public sources · Reviewed 16 September 2026Pothole related AA callouts
AA callouts · UK · 2025
The AA · 15 January 2026Estimated annual repair cost
AA estimate · all UK drivers · 2025
The AA · 15 January 2026Local road repair backlog
England & Wales · ALARM 2026
AIA · ALARM 2026 · 17 March 2026Local roads with under 5 years’ structural life
England & Wales · ALARM 2026
AIA · ALARM 2026 · 17 March 2026Annual reports and estimates, not a live pothole count. Sources cover different populations and periods.
UK Pothole Monitor
How are the roads
where your
customers live?
Explore the published picture of local road condition and repair backlogs. Select an area to see the evidence.
UNITED KINGDOMALARM / 2026
Published dataOutside this dataset
London is shown as a marker. England figures exclude London.
Excluding London
England
10%
of the local road network rated red in the Road Condition Index
Green 58%Amber 32%Red 10%
Red means poor surface condition, likely to need maintenance within 12 months. It does not measure individual potholes.
Average backlog per authority£145.9m
AIA ALARM 2026 · pp. 13, 16 and 17 Published 17 March 2026 · Reporting year 2025/26
Sources, coverage & methodology +
ALARM surveyed local highway authorities from December 2025 to February 2026; 79% responded. Findings predominantly relate to 2025/26. PFI authorities are excluded. England figures exclude London. Backlog figures below are average costs per authority, not regional totals. Road Condition Index (RCI) measures surface condition and is different from remaining structural life.
Map adapted from geoBoundaries (Runfola et al., 2020) / Eurostat 2021 boundaries, under CC BY 4.0 . Data reviewed 16 September 2026. No individual authority rankings or live incident locations are presented.
A problem measured in years
The repair backlog
continues to grow.
Independent market evidence
A visible problem.
Evidence before assumption.
Public research demonstrates the scale and cost of pothole incidents. It supports the customer problem but does not, by itself, establish demand for a particular insurance product.
Questions for your customer proposition +
- How do customers currently fund unexpected vehicle repairs?
- Which cover limits and excess are meaningful to your audience?
- What is their appetite for optional cover at the proposed price?
- Can customers clearly understand the pay and claim process?
Product specific purchase intent and willingness to pay findings have not been supplied for this preview.
The AA · 15 January 2026
The cost behind the callouts.
2025 callout volumes and estimated vehicle repair costs, with the AA’s explanation of how it scales its estimate.
Read the research ↗AIA · 17 March 2026The view from the road network.
ALARM 2026 examines maintenance funding, road condition and the backlog reported by highway authorities.
Read the report ↗The partner case
Why offer Pothole Protect?
A relevant customer response.
Once the customer need is clear, Pothole Protect can complement your existing motor proposition and give your business a practical way to respond.
Customer relevance
An identifiable risk your motor customers already recognise.
Customer choice
An option to protect against eligible pothole repair costs.
Dedicated protection
Defined cover for a specific cause of vehicle damage.
A place alongside core motor
Another claims route for eligible repairs, subject to policy terms.
Customer value
A proposition to assess against your customers’ needs, circumstances and the cost of cover.
Differentiation and relationships
Potential to broaden your proposition and support perceived value and the customer relationship.
Customer and commercial outcomes depend on the proposition, customer needs and policy terms. No retention, underwriting or premium outcome is guaranteed.
The product
Look closer.
See what’s covered.
Pothole Protect is the mechanism that helps partners give customers another option. Explore the cover for eligible vehicle damage.
Up to£2,000in total during the period of insurance
Hover over a marker or select a component above.Illustrative locations
Cover for eligible damage
Tyres
Up to£200per tyre
Up to £200 per tyre, with a £600 aggregate limit during the period of insurance.
Subject to the overall £2,000 limit, terms, conditions, exclusions and the excess shown in the policy schedule.
Explore it for your customersUp to £2,000 in total during the period of insurance. Individual section limits, terms, conditions, exclusions and the schedule excess apply. Recovery and towing costs are excluded. This product does not replace core motor insurance and does not guarantee protection of no claims discounts or future motor premiums.
A broad motor audience
Different vehicles.
The same road problem.
Potential eligibility includes private and business cars, motorcycles, commercial vehicles and motorhomes up to 3.5 tonnes, declared taxis and certain courier use.
Understand the boundaries +
Vehicle use, underwriting acceptance and policy terms apply. Food delivery courier use, recovery and towing are excluded. Wear and tear and maintenance costs are not the purpose of this cover. Check the operative wording for the full exclusions.
The product complements core motor insurance; it does not replace it or guarantee protection of no claims discounts or future premiums.
Product documentsFlexible distribution
Fit the product around
your customer proposition.
For brokers, insurers, MGAs, affinity businesses, breakdown providers and other motor distributors.
Start with your customer profile, distribution approach and expected volumes.
Talk to us about offering Pothole ProtectA partner conversation
Explore Pothole Protect
for your
customers.
Talk to us about your customers, distribution approach and how dedicated pothole protection could fit your wider proposition.
Looking for cover for yourself?
Pothole Protect is distributed through participating insurance partners. Ask your broker about availability.
Already a policyholder? Claims helpContact us
The quickest way to reach us is on LinkedIn
Send us a message on LinkedIn and the team will come back to you to talk through your customers and how Pothole Protect could fit your proposition.
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