AN UNEMPLOYED MOTHER of two and her husband are hopping mad over the damage to their car caused by a large pothole along a major City street.
Danielle Payne, 37, of Wavell Avenue, Black Rock, St Michael, said she was heading from her residence to Lakes Folly, The City, last Thursday evening, when the front left wheel dropped in the deep hole and the car came to a stop outside Facey Commodity on Fontabelle.
The incident, which occurred just before 5 p.m., left Payne and her passengers – her children and a neighbour – shocked.
Payne recalled that she turned off the engine, exited the vehicle, opened the bonnet, assessed the situation and called her husband immediately. She said she was forced to make other arrangements for her neighbour to get home.
The woman said her husband discovered upon inspection that transmission fluid was leaking into the road and two engine mounts and the wheel arm were broken.
She appealed to Minister of Transport and Works Michael Lashley to help vehicle owners whose investments were damaged by poor road conditions.
“Get these potholes fixed, because at the end of the day, you have to pay road tax,” she said.
“Why are we paying road tax and you can’t drive on a proper road? Every time you’re driving on the road you have to be slowing down [and] dodging potholes. It’s either dodge the pothole or drop in it.”
Payne’s husband, Ryan, a general worker at the Ministry of Transport and Works, estimated the damage to his vehicle would exceed $1 000, and the unexpected expense would hit the family hard. He said he wanted to be compensated.
When Minister of Transport and Works Michael Lashley was contacted yesterday for information on the process of claiming damages, he directed the query to the ministry’s Legal Office. That department directed the call to the Complaints Department, which directed the SUNDAY SUN to the Dispatch Section, where the call was not answered. (JJS)
