Council Advice - Pothole

[Carl-H]

I was out on my Gilera DNA 50 last night and whilst riding along a local road, I hit a pothole (Very sunken drain) which caused my exhaust bracket bolts to snap and break. This meant the exhaust fell down causing it to blow immediately which makes an awful noise on a two stroke if before the expansion chamber. I pulled over to the edge of the road and felt (with my glove still on) where the exhaust was blowing. I was not too far from home so I decided to try and get there. The bike felt really slow and I don't think I went over 15mph because I didn't want to damage anything. I arrived home and jumped off to check the bike over. Thats when I notice the 3-4mm grove all the way around my 8 day old £50 tyre. Luckily its not as deep as the tread and the bike still feels OK. I have changed the exhaust for a replacement after market exhaust which I had as a spare.

So will the council pay for a new exhaust and tyre (£400+ fitting). If so, what would you say the best way to go about it is? I need to take a photo as soon as possible but then do I phone or send a letter? Can I still claim as it was a manhole cover. It was right in the middle of the road (where I have been taught to ride) and I did not have time to try and avoid it.

Thanks in advance and sorry for such a long post.

[Biker's Nemesis]

Something similar happened to me in 2000, I took photos of the hole with a ruler, showing the with of the hole, and believe it or not, a tin of beans in the hole to give some perspective of the depth.

I also took the bike to a dealers to get an estimate, which I sent to the council, along with the photos, and a letter explaining what had happened.

Luckily for me there was a police officer waiting opposite who saw what happened, and gave me his number. Oh, I'd only had the bike 10 minutes.

[Carl-H]

I've got the price of fitting a new exhaust and tyre fitted. There is no other damage to the bike whatsoever. My mates dad is a mechanic and will be giving me a quote soon. I don't have a whiteness though as I just pulled over at the edge of the road as if it was my house.

[jezzaaa]

I've heard of this kind of thing before...and I've heard that one the councils concerned did eventually pay out...but that the other one didn't. And that the one that did pay had to be levered into it with a huge amount of correspondence and threats before finally giving in. You should go for it...but be prepared for a long fight with an initial denial of responsibility. Frankly, how they can deny responsibility is beyond me...but they do try.

Best of luck.
J.