I had a bit of bad luck at 4am on Sunday morning.

Whilst traveling on the M1 after picking my brother up from the airport I hit a jockey wheel that was in the middle of the centre lane. This pretty much destroyed my sump and has caused some other underside damage that was hard to see in the pitch black.

Everyone was fine which is the good news.

When it happened I pulled straight over onto the shoulder and noticed that there was another car behind me with their hazards on. After a quick chat it is clear that they have hit the same object which has caused the other car to suffer a puncture.

We both called the police and they sent out the highways agency to clear whatever had caused the accidents from off the road.

Now I know that this will be a fault claim, but I am wondering if there could be any action taken against the highways agency as I am getting a fair few people saying that I should be trying this option.

I think that this would be a waste of my time, does anyone think otherwise?

Unless they knew the object was there and did not take reasonable steps to remove it, which is highly unlikely or indeed impossible to prove I think you have no grounds for claim. You could always ask your insurance co to put you on to their claims people who deal with uninsured losses but I think winning would be wishful thnking only.

Or to put it more succinctly WTF should the state pay for your misfortune, that is why you have insurance.

I don't like those Highways wallies in their big spazzy 4x4's driving badly and causing traffic jams, so yeah try and claim against them!

It's their job to keep the road clear after all. That's what you pay your road tax for, and income tax, and council tax, tax tax tax

I had the opportunity to honk and shake a fist at one of those guys a while back, after they cut me up without looking on the M27. Morons.

Or to put it more succinctly WTF should the state pay for your misfortune, that is why you have insurance.

That's the attitude I had been taking. I have had quite a few people saying the same thing though, just wanted to know if there was any fact behind what I am being told.

Because you already have insurance you would not be able to go 'no win, no fee' in any case, of course a solicitor will do as instructed but will cost you a fortune, and IF there is any claim against against anyone then your insurance/ legal cover would fight for it in anycase to save paying out.

Even in this claim riddled society that we are becoming I fail to comprehend how anyone could try and blame the wombles for not moving something that may have only been in the road for a few seconds :confused: You may as well try and claim from every driver on the road at the time who as passed the obstruction and not bothered removing it.

:iagree: - If it had been a pothole you might have had a case, but in this case your claim is against the owner (and possibly driver) of the vehicle it fell off, not the HA.

Settled then, thanks.

I did think it was pointless, now I'm convinced