The number of drivers falling foul of potholes has risen 39% compared to a year ago, showing the further deterioration of the UK’s road surfaces.

The RAC was called out to 10,076 drivers who had fallen foul of potholes in the first three months of the year

RAC patrols were called out to more than 10,000 pothole-related breakdowns in the first quarter of 2023, up from 7,265 for the same period last year.

And the figure has more than doubled from the 4,915 seen in the fourth quarter of 2022.

The RAC has also reported a 14% spike in wheel changes compared to the same period last year; likely as a result of worsening roads from December’s extreme freezing conditions as well as punctures from objects such as nails and screws.

Drivers are now 1.6 times more likely to break down due to the repeated wear caused by potholes than they were 17 years ago, according to the company’s Pothole Index, which provides a long-term barometer of pothole callouts, dated back to 2006 and seasonally adjusted for weather.

Roads spokesman Simon Williams said the high number of pothole-related callouts – and the enormous increase compared to a year ago – was “nothing short of scandalous”.

“Drivers are telling us that the UK’s local roads are in a worse state than ever and it’s hard to disagree looking at some of the craters that litter so many of our carriageways.

“It’s not right that drivers who are struggling to make ends meet are having to fork out for new tyres, wheels, suspension springs and shock absorbers simply because our roads have been allowed to fall into such a dire state of repair.”

Councils are not obligated to pay compensation to drivers who have suffered damaged to their vehicles after hitting a pothole – and will only consider doing so if the pothole has been picked up in their routine inspections or reported by a member of the public.

And the RAC is urge everyone spotting pothole problems to report them via its website or to the local authority directly.

While the Spring Budget brought an extra £200m for pothole funding, the RAC has warned that it’s not enough and urged the Government to come up with a new way “to end the pothole plague once and for all”.

“One way could be to ringfence a proportion of fuel duty revenue for the maintenance, repair and improvement of our local roads, because as it stands the £28bn collected from drivers is currently just another form of general taxation.

“A change in funding strategy is massively overdue, not least as the lion’s share of car tax paid to the DVLA by England’s drivers goes to England’s major roads whereas we estimate the budget for local roads is only around a seventh of that – despite the fact there are seven times more miles of minor roads.

“Drivers contribute billions in tax every year and it is ridiculous that the roads remain in such an awful state.”

Pothole-related breakdowns – in numbers