They can be wide, deep and expensive – potholes. But is there anything drivers can do if their vehicles are damaged by one?

Every day the City of Barrie sends three or four crews out to fill potholes. Each crew goes through about two tonnes of cold patch – which is a mixture of small stones and tar.

“It’s a temporary fix, gravity holds the coal patch in place but it usually lasts only a week,” says Dave Friary with the City of Barrie.

Unfortunately the $1,000 to $3,000 dame to Rob Whiting’s car is permanent – damage that includes two destroyed rims, a head light and more.

“I have a low bumper – it hit the road and pothole and it broke the clips right off and cracked my bumper.”

Whiting damaged his car on February 24th when he hit a pothole on McKay Road in Barrie and as of now cannot afford to fix his car. The City of Barrie did coal patch the road soon after but the pothole is back.

Municipalities are obligated to fix potholes and Barrie and Innsifil use the same time frame for repairs as outlined by the province.

“When we become aware of a situation we have a range of four to sixty days to do so – depending on the class of the road,” says Wayne Young from the Town of Innisfil.

Drivers can make a claim against the Municipality where the damage occurred but they must provide it within a 10 day period, photo of the pothole, damage to the car, repair bill and proof the pothole was previously reported.

“There’s a potential claims form that has to be filled out with our legal department and each one of those is fully investigated. It takes about 30 to 60 days to do an investigation,” says Michelle Newton from the Town of Innisfil.

And some claims payout, over the last 5 years the City of Orillia had six claims and paid out $2,400 – the City of Barrie had two payments for a total of $2,400.

The City of Barrie told Whiting that in his situation the city had met the minimum standards required but if he says if it happens again he’ll be ready.

“Yeah, if I had the opportunity to do so – I would definitely take action.”

If your car suffers damage as a result of a pothole – chances are you’re going to invest time, effort, and money to get it repaired. But if you’re willing to invest time and effort to hold the municipality accountable – you could have some money come back your way.