City of Regina pays $21K in pothole claims since 2012

REGINA – Pothole season is here, and it has already taken two victims so far this week.

“It sounded like I had hit a deer,” said Ryan Dusselier in front of a sinkhole he estimates to be about six feet in length.

The roadway blemish is on south lane of the 1900 block of Grant Road in Whitmore Park. Dusselier accidentally drove into it Monday night.

“As you can see here, it’s a busy street with oncoming traffic. You can’t drive down the middle anymore,” he said.

He said he’s now on the hook for at least $500 to replace and fix the tires and rims. There is potentially up to $1,200 more worth of damage.

Potholes are formed after water seeps in and collects; subsequent freezing pushes the pavement up.

“Damage caused by a pothole would be covered under your insurance,” said Kelley Brinkworth, manager of media relations at SGI. “But, because it is a single-vehicle incident, you would be responsible for your deductibles.”

Another option is to submit a claim to the municipality responsible for the roads the car was damaged on.

Data provided by the City of Regina shows its received 256 claims and paid 26 of those for a total of $21201.11 since 2012.

“If we knew that the danger existed and didn’t do anything about this, then we would be liable,” said Les Malawski, Roadways and Transportation Acting Director

City crews started filling potholes last week.

Road problems will always be an issue given Regina’s underground layer of clay, added Malawski.

“If the pothole is big and creates serious hazards, that is fixed first and usually within 24 hours,” he said.

Dusselier said he has filed a claim with the city and hopes to get reimbursed for the damage to his car.

“Ignoring the problems, as we can see here, is not going to make it better. These issues, especially in street repair, need to be addressed and need to be addressed now,” he said.