The State of Potholes in the U.S.

In 2021, 10 percent of U.S. drivers had vehicle repairs due to pothole damage, according to an AAA survey.¹ That amounts to nearly 24 million drivers.²

The Northeast has the highest rate of pothole damage, according to recent data from Mavis Tire, which found that locations in the Northeast are seeing 60 percent more tire repairs per location than shops in the South and West.³ In the Northeast, over 10 percent of service visits are flat repairs — the highest percentage of any U.S. region.

AAA’s survey indicated that the average cost of repairing pothole damage is $600, and pothole damage cost drivers across the country a total of $26.5 billion in repairs in 2021. That comes out to around $1,115 per driver.

On Nov. 15, 2021, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) passed and became law in a bipartisan victory.⁴ Part of the act focuses on improving highways in poor condition, which includes potholes. The federal government appropriated $273.8 billion between 2022 and 2026 to fix these highways.

Here are some other interesting findings regarding the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which references data from 2020:

• There are 174,740 miles of highway in poor condition in the U.S., an average of 3,426 per state.
• Under the new infrastructure bill, the federal government is spending an average of $5.4 billion per state to repair these damages.
• The state with the highest number of highways in poor condition is Texas, which has 19,400 miles of highway in poor condition. As such, it is receiving the most federal aid for highway programs, $26.9 billion. That’s 80 percent higher than the national average.
• On average, drivers pay $571 a year as a result of damage caused by driving on roads in poor condition. Washington, D.C., has the highest cost at $1,100 a year, followed by Rhode Island at $845 a year — 48 and 32 percent higher than the national average respectively.

According to U.S. Department of Transportation data, the following states have the lowest and highest proportion of poorly maintained urban and rural roads.⁵ The condition of roads is measured by the international roughness index, which quantifies the roughness of the road surface.

This gives a better idea of how states are maintaining their roads proportionally to how much roadway they have — larger states like Texas and California have more miles of roadway in poor condition because they have more roads to begin with, but they are not on the list of states with the highest percentage of poorly maintained roads.

States with Best and Worst Urban Roads

States with Best and Worst Rural Roads

If you get pothole damage from driving on public roads, can you sue the government for the cost of your repairs? The answer depends on where the damage occurred, as well as various state regulations.

Generally speaking, suing the government for damages related to potholes is very challenging, as you’ll need to prove the government knew, or reasonably should have known, about the damage and failed to repair it.⁶

Even if you can sue the government for pothole damage, you’ll still want to file a claim with your insurance provider if your damage is severe and it’s covered under collision coverage, or pay for the repairs out of pocket. Filing a claim usually isn’t worth it for minor damage.

If you’re looking to pursue legal action against the local government, it’s best to seek legal advice.

Collision coverage usually includes pothole coverage, though it won’t cover the normal wear and tear of a car due to bad road conditions. In order for damage to be covered, it needs to be the result of a specific incident of colliding with a pothole.

It’s also worth noting that if you hit a pothole and you file a claim for the repair, your auto insurance costs may increase. Hitting a pothole is a single-vehicle accident, so car insurance companies consider it your fault. The only exception is when you hit a pothole because another car hit you. If the damage is minor, it may not be worth filing a claim.

Pothole damage is extremely common in the U.S., particularly in the colder regions, and can be costly. If you have full coverage insurance, pothole damage is generally covered under collision coverage, but it may not be worth filing a claim for minor damage, as you still need to pay a deductible, and your rates may increase as a result.

Our research was based on third-party sources from the following organizations, companies, and government agencies:

• AAA
• Congress.gov
• Federal Highway Administration/Department of Transportation
• Mavis Tire
• Nolo