03 Dec 2024Small businesses across the UK are counting the cost of pothole damage to their vehicles, according to new research from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB). The research almost half of small firms have been negatively impacted by potholes in the last 12 months. This includes damage caused to work vehicles, as well as occasions where business owners and staff were unable to reach customers, missed meetings and appointments, or being involved road accidents. Over a third of all small firms say pothole damage has cost them more than £100 in the last year while a quarter were forced to pay out more than £300. In addition, over 10% of small firms have suffered in excess of £500 worth of damage. Then FSB wants to see funds for repairing potholes ringfenced and a compensation claim form template introduced by local authorities. Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) Policy Chair, Tina McKenzie, said: 'Small businesses are currently under the cosh with increasing costs across the board. Having to pay out to fix costly damage from a vehicle or dealing with other disruption is the last thing they need. 'We were pleased that additional funds have been promised by the government at the Budget - we now need to see this plague of potholes being fixed rapidly and efficiently, resulting in a major improvement in our roads.'