A POOLE man cannot claim compensation for damage caused to his car by a pothole – because the council planned to repair it.

James Fletcher from Lytchett Matravers was driving in Merley Park Road when his car hit a gap in the surface, which he says was so big that it punctured his car tyre.

James said that he was unaware of the pothole as the road was flooded from the bad weather at the time of the incident on January 20, 2014.

He said: “I decided to use the back roads to avoid the traffic and get home on my way back from Canford School, when I hit this pothole and it burst the tyre.”

He contacted Borough of Poole council about the incident, who referred him to their insurance providers, Zurich.

He said it took them two months to give a final response, which said that the council could not be held liable for the £35 for damage to his tyre.

In the letter sent to Mr Fletcher, seen by Daily Echo, it states that the council received a report of an issue in the area, and two repairs were arranged.

One temporary repair was carried out within two hours of the complaint being made, while a second permanent repair had been arranged but had not yet been carried out.

Mr Fletcher went on to say: “What they are saying is that if the council is aware of any defect on the road, they can refute all responsibility.

“It’s a huge mess.”

“The council did everything they could to absolve themselves.”

Gordon Lelean, Insurance Manager, Borough of Poole, said: “We can confirm that the council had received a claim in relation to vehicle damage caused by a pothole.

“The matter was referred to our insurance company and, after a full investigation, our insurers concluded that the council was not liable and therefore did not uphold the claim.”