Southampton City Council has had to pay out five figures in compensation since 2020 as a result of pedestrian accident claims lodged against the authority.

Some 262 claims for pedestrian accidents have been put against the council in the last five years, with 180 of these citing either potholes, depressions in the road or issues with pavements or slabs as the culprit.

A total of £16,142 was paid out by the council to claimants, and out of the 200-plus claims, 256 said that personal injury was caused.

This only included money paid out by the council - money paid out by highways partner Balfour Beatty was not disclosed due to "commercial sensitivity".

Southampton City Council told the Echo that it has its own team assigned to dealing with dangers to pedestrians, always fixing defects within 24 hours if deemed an emergency.

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The data was obtained through a Freedom of Information request submitted by Accident Claims advice, who says that a local council has a "duty of care" to ensure public space are maintained safely.

In 2023/24, £12,840 was paid out by the council as three cases were settled with compensation.

Since 2020, 55 claims have been lodged against "street furniture", which includes benches, flower stands, bus shelters, public art and signs.

Of the 262 pedestrian accident claims against Southampton City Council, 14 were settled with compensation.

Speaking to the Echo, Councillor Eamonn Keogh, cabinet member for environment and transport, said that the council's highways partner, Balfour Beatty Living places, has teams dedicated to finding and repairing potholes.

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The ward member for Peartree noted that over 4,200 potholes were repaired last year.

Cllr Keogh said: "We also encourage residents to report potholes and pavement defects via our website.

"Whether the defects are found by our teams or reported to us by residents we will visit the site to make an assessment of the size, depth and potential risk of the defect and add it to our programme for repairs.

"If a defect is assessed as an emergency, we will make a temporary repair within 24 hours and programme a permanent repair at a later date.”