Shapps pledges to fine firms that create potholes

In a crackdown by the Transport Secretary, water companies and broadband providers will be slapped with hundreds of thousands of pounds in fines for botched works that leave potholes.

Grant Shapps is targeting utility companies with a new inspections unit to address "the plague of potholes" on roads. The Department for Transport said firms that dig up roads to fix drains or install fibre broadband have failed to return them to a minimum standard on almost one in 10 occasions.

Officials did not disclose the worst offenders, claiming it was "commercially sensitive information". However they suggested one company had failed inspections after roadworks were finished 63 per cent of the time.

Currently, highway authorities check less than a third of roads after they are dug up, but new rules will mean up to 100 per cent of works will be inspected. The figures being discussed suggests a national operator with 20,000 works in progress could pay up to £1 million in penalties.

Mr Shapps said the "plague of potholes is the menace of our roads" and he intends to protect drivers "from unfair repair costs". Potholes can also be deadly for cyclists. President of AA, Edmund King, said: "The perilous potholes cause expensive damage to tyres, wheels and suspension of vehicles, but can be killers for those on two wheels."

E&K Solicitors
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