KIRKLEES council is refusing to pay out after one car was written off and another damaged by a giant pothole.

The cars were damaged by a hole on Moor Lane in Netherthong within two days of each other.

The pothole measured a whopping 36 inches by 18 inches and was around eight inches deep.

Kirklees Council filled in the hole a day after the motorists complained, but now say they are not legally required to pay for damage caused.

Len Radcliffe, who lives near to Moor Lane, had his Ford Fiesta car written off when his wife Gladys hit the pothole on February 25.

Mr Radcliffe, 62, said: “I didn’t think anything about it when my wife first told me, because there are so many potholes.

“But the whole car just collapsed, the suspension went and it crumpled.

“It has left us with no car.

“The car had to be scrapped, it couldn’t be repaired.”

Mrs Radcliffe, 48, was injured as a result of the incident and is having physiotherapy on a back injury caused when she hit the hole.

As Mr Radcliffe investigated, he met a fellow motorist whose car had been written off by the same pothole just two days after.

John Chappell had his car damaged after driving over the pothole on February 27.

Mr Chappell, of Moor Lane, said: “My car went over a pothole and it damaged the front wheels.

“I have had to pay £500 for the wheels, but the suspension and steering isn’t right and needs checking.

“But the council are not going to recompense me for the damage because they say they were not negligent.

“I don’t know how they can say that when this same pothole has damaged my car and another in the space of a few days.

“They were very quick to fill it in, I can’t criticise them for that, but this is not an isolated incident.

“It seems they are washing their hands of the problem altogether.”

In a letter to Mr Chappell, Kirklees Council said they were of the opinion that the accident “did not occur due to negligence on the part of the council”.

A Highways spokeswoman said: “Civil Law determines whether a claim against the council for damage to a vehicle which hits a pothole is accepted or declined.

“Kirklees Council’s inspection system complies with its obligations under the Highways Act and meets the Department of Transport’s Code of Good Practice for Highway Maintenance, which permits varying frequencies of inspection based on categories of roads and footpaths.

“A pothole can be dangerous at the time an incident takes place, but if it was not dangerous at the time of the last statutory inspection, and the council has not yet been made aware of the danger, then there is no legal responsibility on the part of the council for damage or injury.”

Potholes can be reported using a form on the council’s website or by ringing 0800 731 8765.