Pothole Car Damage: Should You Claim on Insurance?
- PotholeExpert
- 5 days ago
- 7 min read
You hit a pothole, hear a bang, and now there's a buckled rim, a flat tyre, or a knock in the steering. The first question most drivers ask is simple: can I claim for pothole damage on my car insurance? The honest answer is "sometimes, and not always for what you'd expect." Here's how pothole damage insurance works in NZ, when claiming is actually worth it, and what your rights are if the insurer's own repair turns into a saga.
This is a fixer's-eye view from people who repair the road surface for property owners every week. We're not your insurer or a law firm, so treat this as general guidance and check your own policy for the specifics.
First, what kind of cover do you have?
Not every policy covers a pothole strike to your own car.
Comprehensive is the only cover that pays for damage to your own vehicle from a single-vehicle pothole hit.
Third party, and third party fire & theft, do not cover your own car's pothole damage. They only cover damage you cause to someone else's property.
So if you're on a third-party policy, there's no claim to make against your insurer for your own bent rim or cracked suspension, no matter how nasty the hole was.
A pothole strike is treated as an at-fault claim
Because there's no other driver to blame, insurers treat a pothole hit as a single-vehicle, at-fault event. In practice that means:
Your excess almost always applies.
Any no-claims bonus may be reduced or lost, where your insurer still uses one. (AA Insurance, for example, no longer offers a No Claims Bonus to new customers and prices on claims history instead.)
Watch out for the tyre exclusion
This trips a lot of people up. Many comprehensive policies exclude tyre-only damage such as punctures, cuts and bursts. So if the pothole only blew a tyre and did nothing else, your claim may be declined.
The picture changes if the same hit also bent the rim or damaged the suspension. Then the tyre can sometimes come in as part of an accepted claim, because it's no longer "tyre-only." Wording varies between insurers and even between policy versions, so read your own policy schedule or ask your insurer before you assume either way.
Should you even claim? Do the excess maths
For small damage, claiming can cost you more than it saves. A quick test:
Get a repair quote first. You need a real number, not a guess.
Compare it to your excess. If the repair is at or below your excess, there's usually no point claiming.
Factor in the flow-on costs. Even a repair modestly above your excess can work out worse once you account for a lost no-claims bonus or a higher renewal premium.
Excess amounts vary a lot by insurer, policy version and driver age (they're often higher for younger drivers), so there's no single magic figure. The point is to run the numbers on your policy before lodging anything.
What about claiming from the road authority instead?
This is the other path drivers ask about, usually phrased as "claiming pothole damage from council" or "car damaged by pothole, who is liable." It's a separate question from your insurance, and the bar is high.
A road-controlling authority is not automatically liable for pothole damage. To succeed, you generally have to prove the authority knew, or ought to have known, about that pothole and failed to fix it within a reasonable time. The burden of proof sits with you, the driver.
Success rates are low. NZTA Waka Kotahi paid only about 22 of more than 2,200 claims over roughly three years on state highways — around 1%, meaning roughly 99% of claims were declined. (That figure is NZTA state-highway data; Auckland Transport doesn't publish an equivalent rate.) Note too that the right authority depends on the road: state highways (the SH-numbered ones) are NZTA's responsibility, while local roads sit with your council or, in Auckland, Auckland Transport.
NZTA's own advice is to contact your insurer first, and the insurer may then pursue NZTA. If you're uninsured or your loss is under your excess, you can also lodge NZTA's online "Request compensation for vehicle damage" form directly.
If the insurer-arranged repair goes wrong, the CGA may help
Here's the part that doesn't get enough airtime, and it's where a recent case is genuinely useful.
NZ Herald (Open Justice) reported on a Rotorua man whose 2016 Mercedes hit a pothole on State Highway 36; as reported, the front-right wheel sheared off. The headline figure was a Disputes Tribunal order that AA Insurance pay him about $14,136. But read past the headline: this was not a win against the road authority, and it wasn't about claiming for the pothole itself. It was the owner versus his own insurer, over a managed repair that went badly wrong — as reported, the car was sent to Auckland against his instruction, deadlines were missed, it came back unsafe and failed a Warrant of Fitness, and premiums kept debiting after he'd cancelled.
The legal hook was the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993. When an insurer arranges or manages your repair, the insurer is itself supplying a service, and that service must be carried out with reasonable care and skill. Crucially, this guarantee overrides contrary terms in the policy for ordinary consumers, and the insurer stays on the hook even though an independent repairer does the physical work.
So if your insurer-arranged pothole repair is botched, the takeaways are:
The CGA guarantee of reasonable care and skill applies to the repair service, regardless of what the policy fine print says.
The first remedy for a fixable problem is a free fix within a reasonable time — the CGA is not a blanket "refund on demand." You can usually only walk away with your money back if the failure can't be fixed, or is serious enough to count as a failure of a substantial character.
The Disputes Tribunal is the low-cost, lawyer-free route. Its limit rose to $60,000 on 24 January 2026 (many older guides still say $30,000). Filing fees are tiered by claim size, and a Referee decides; orders are binding. Keep in mind Tribunal decisions are not binding precedent — outcomes turn on the facts.
Build your evidence either way
Whether you claim on insurance or pursue the road authority, the same evidence helps:
Dated photos of the pothole (with something for scale) and the damage.
The exact location, plus date and time.
A repair quote or invoice.
Your insurance details, including the excess.
Critically, evidence the pothole was reported before your incident — a reference number proves the authority had knowledge.
To report a hazard: NZTA's 24-hour line is 0800 44 44 49 for state highways; Auckland Transport is 09 355 3553 for urgent local-road issues. Reporting creates the dated record that a later claim can lean on.
Where Rapidpatch fits
We're the people who actually fix the asphalt. If you own or manage a property — a car park, forecourt, motel or shared driveway — and a pothole is putting vehicles (and your liability exposure) at risk, that's our lane. We handle pothole repair and car park repairs across Auckland, with a 48-hour turnaround on most jobs. Send us photos and you'll get a free photo-quote back fast.
Frequently asked questions
Can I claim for pothole damage on my car insurance in NZ?
Only if you have comprehensive cover — third party, and third party fire & theft, do not cover damage to your own car from a pothole. Even with comprehensive, it's treated as a single-vehicle at-fault claim, so your excess applies and your no-claims bonus may be affected. Get a repair quote first and compare it to your excess before claiming.
Can I claim for tyre damage from a pothole?
Often not on its own. Many comprehensive policies exclude tyre-only damage such as punctures, cuts and bursts. If the same hit also bent the rim or damaged the suspension, the tyre can sometimes come in as part of an accepted claim. Wording varies by insurer and policy version, so check your own policy.
Can I claim pothole damage from the council or NZTA?
You can lodge a claim, but liability is never automatic. You generally have to prove the road authority knew or should have known about the pothole and failed to fix it in a reasonable time, and the burden is on you. Success rates are low — NZTA paid only around 1% of state-highway claims over a recent three-year period. State highways are NZTA's responsibility; local roads sit with your council or Auckland Transport.
What can I do if my insurer's repair is done badly?
When an insurer arranges or manages your repair, it is supplying a service that must be carried out with reasonable care and skill under the Consumer Guarantees Act, and that guarantee overrides contrary policy terms. The first remedy is usually a free fix within a reasonable time. If that fails, the Disputes Tribunal is a low-cost, lawyer-free route, with a limit of $60,000 as of 24 January 2026.
Is it worth claiming for a small pothole repair?
Often not. If the repair cost is at or below your excess, claiming generally isn't worthwhile, and even a bit above it can cost more once a lost no-claims bonus or higher premium is factored in. Always get a repair quote first, then compare it against your excess on your specific policy.
How do I report a pothole, and why does it matter?
Call NZTA on 0800 44 44 49 for state highways or Auckland Transport on 09 355 3553 for urgent local-road issues. Reporting creates a dated record with a reference number. If you later make a claim, that record is key evidence that the authority had knowledge of the hazard.
Related guides
This article is general information, not legal or insurance advice. Your outcome depends on your own policy wording and circumstances. For your situation, check your policy and talk to your insurer, NZTA Waka Kotahi or Auckland Transport for road claims, the Citizens Advice Bureau, or the Disputes Tribunal.
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