Motorists face another blow as bills for pothole damage hit

Struggling motorists have been left with an estimated £110 million bill for suspension, steering and wheel repairs this winter.

As many as 775,000 vehicles have needed mechanical work to steering and suspension and 400,000 required wheel alignment checks.

Halfords Autocentres, the UK’s leading independent car servicing, repair, tyre and MOT network, providing dealership quality work at affordable prices to over 600,000 customers every year, reports a sharp rise in demand for these type of repairs in recent months, at the same time pot holes have blighted Britain’s roads.

In the last week of December around 3 weeks after Arctic-like snowfalls and plunging temperatures, the independent garage chain experienced a 46% rise in wheel alignment jobs, compared to the same time last year.

Steering and suspension jobs also jumped sharply and in the first week of January, there were 25% more of these types of repairs than the year before.

Overall, Halfords Autocentres found from the beginning of November 2010 to the end of January 2011, there was an 18% rise in alignment jobs and a significant increase in steering and suspension related work.

Bill Duffy, Chief Operating Officer at Halfords Autocentres said: ”While it is impossible to say these problems were definitely caused by potholes, it does seem more than a coincidence that we are seeing more vehicles suffering damage to wheels, steering and suspension at a time when the quality of our roads is deteriorating. Certainly anecdotal evidence from customers indicates that potholes are the reason for this.

“As we come out of winter and with MOTs due, we are expecting to see many more cars with these sorts of problems.

“Motorists are having a hard time already with rising fuel costs, increased insurance payments and now more repair bills. Our customers are very angry with the situation and would like to see roads in better condition in return for all the road tax and fuel duty they pay.”