If an LA pothole damages your car, chances are the city won't reimburse you

Caleb Collins hit a huge pothole during a storm last winter. 

“I thought the tire exploded. I didn’t know what happened. I didn’t know if the axle split in half or the wheel fell off or something, because it was a pretty significant impact,” he said.

The pothole blew two tires on Collins’ car. He thought the city should reimburse him the $340 it cost to replace them. 

“I believe they should be financially responsible for the damage because we are taxpayers and we’re paying for the maintenance of the roads,” he said.

But that’s not how it works.

According to state law, the city has to know about the pothole and then it’s allowed “sufficient time” to fix it. The definition of sufficient is unclear. But the city did tell us it tries to repair potholes within three days. 

The city eventually reimbursed Collins for his tires. But he’s one of the lucky few.

The I-Team learned: chances are slim the city accepts responsibility and pays a pothole claim. Last year, 5,913 drivers filed a pothole claim, but the city paid just 130 of them, or 2%. The year before, the city paid 22% of pothole claims. 

We asked the city attorney why it paid so few claims last year. A spokesperson said claims aren’t always paid or denied in the same year they’re filed. 

Filing a pothole claim:

• Take pictures of the damage to your car and the pothole
• Keep receipts of all repair bills
• File a claim here