Report a pothole

If you think the issue is an emergency please call us on 0345 60 80 193.

If it is not an emergency you can report a pothole easily online.

We will need details of the location and size of the pothole.

Report online

We prioritise road repair based on a number of factors including the depth, size and location of the pothole on the road; the volume of traffic; and the speed of the road.

We repair the most dangerous potholes first:

In the road

  • Greater than 10cm deep and at least 30cm wide in all directions: We will make it safe within 2 hours.
  • Between 6 and 9.9cm deep and at least 30cm wide in all directions. We will make it safe or repair it within 5 days.
  • Between 4cm and 5.9cm deep and at least 30cm in all directions: We will make it safe or repair it within 28 days.

In the footway or cycleway

  • Greater than 4cm deep and at least 20cm wide in all directions: We will make it safe within 2 hours.
  • Between 3cm and 4cm deep and at least 20cm wide in all directions. We will make it safe or repair it within 5 days.
  • Between 2cm and 3cm deep and at least 20cm in all directions: We will make it safe or repair it within 28 days.

Potholes that are not considered to be causing a hazard are recorded and used to help decide which roads to prioritise for large scale repairs.

Supporting an asset management approach

The Council is committed to having the best road condition for the investment available, and supports an asset management based approach for the maintenance of the highway network. This means that East Sussex Highways follows the nationally adopted Highway Asset Management Policy, Strategy and Plans which looks at the overall condition of the network from further decline.

We also have to consider what is the best use of our resources, as it is more cost effective to invest some of our funding in preventative maintenance and larger scale road repairs that reduce the chance of potholes occurring in the first place. This is why we do not always repair some of the smaller potholes on a road whilst we are there repairing the larger ones.

You can find out more about the council's asset management policies and strategies here.