Drivers in Scotland and northern England suffer most from potholes according to a survey of nearly 23,000 members of the AA.

It says 44% of Scottish drivers have had their vehicle damaged by a road defect in the last two years, with 35% of motorists in the North West and 34% in the North East having been affected by a pothole.

Across the UK a third of drivers had suffered vehicle damage from a pothole the survey added. Motorists in the East of England and Northern Ireland came off only slightly better.

The motoring group’s insurance arm also reported that pothole related claims had more than doubled in January compared with the same month last year.

Patrolman Andy Smith said roads in rural areas posed the greatest pothole risk. “In many areas it is like being on an Alpine mountain pass; you’re often in first gear traversing huge craters.”

AA President Edmund King added: “The fact that one third of our members have had their car damaged by potholes is a damning indictment of the state of our roads – they are a national embarrassment.”

Elsewhere the city of Nottingham’s two universities have published academic research into the best means of repairing potholes. They say that hot mix asphalt is the most appropriate method for a repair, rather than cold mix. And they say that application of a coat of bitumen emulsion between two layers of asphalt greatly improves a patch repair’s resistance to further cracks.

(Photo: Asphalt Industry Alliance)

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