If your car is damaged due to a road defect such as a pothole, perhaps the city has to pay for the repairs. You may also be able to open a claim with your own car insurance.
Liability of road owner
Step 1: determine the owner of the read
The owner of the road could be liable for potholes, uneven sidewalks, or other road defects. The first step in asserting liability, is to determine who owns the road. If the road or sidewalk is owned by a city or state, there are limits to the kind of damage and the amounts you can recover.
Step 2: establish liability
The mere fact a car got damaged while walking or driving on a road does not make the owner of the road liable to the damage. The key to liability is whether a road is defective. A city that fulfills its obligations to maintain a road to reasonably safe and convenient conditions, is not liable. You therefore need to show that the city has been negligent. We cover liability in our article on M.G.L. 84, § 15, and an exception for dedicated ways in our page on M.G.L. 84, § 23.
Step 3: provide notice
It is important to provide notice to the owner of the road within 30 days, as otherwise you can no longer make a claim. The requirements of the notice are covered in M.G.L. 84 § 18 and M.G.L. 84 § 19. When in the slightest doubt, send notice to all public parties who may be liable.
Notice is not required if you make a claim against a private party, for example when the road is privately owned, or if a private party created the road defect (Fisher v. Cushing, 134 Mass. 374, 1883; Miller v. Edison, 283 Mass. 517, 1933; Meyer v. Veolia Energy N. Am., 482 Mass. 208, 2019).
Exception for state owned roads
When your vehicle is damaged on a state highway, you cannot make a claim against the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, since their liability is limited to personal injury. Personal injury is covered with a limit of $4,000 per injured person. This limitation follows from M.G.L. 81, § 18.
Exception for city owned roads
The liability of a city in Massachusetts is limited to $5,000 per person (M.G.L. 84, § 15).
Filing an insurance claim
An alternative to claiming damage from the road owner, is to file a claim with your own insurance. Hitting a pothole is considered a collision. In Massachusetts, it is not mandatory to insure your own vehicle against collision damage. You may therefore not be insured for this type of damage. Even if you carry collision coverage, there is often a deductible, and filing a claim may increase your future premiums.
Deductibles for collision coverage
Progressive: $300 – $1500