THE worst road for potholes in the whole of Hampshire has been revealed as nearly 195,000 potholes were reported to councils in the South East just last year.

Research by Confused.com found that councils in the region have been forced to pay out £987,000 in compensation for damaged vehicles.

The website found that there was a 56 per cent increase in the number of potholes being reported since 2020.

And the worst street for potholes in Hampshire is Berrydown Lane, in Overton. The country road was reported 279 times to Hampshire County Council.

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The worst road for potholes in the whole of the South East was Jevington Road, in Eastbourne, which was reported to East Sussex County Council 689 times in 2023.

Motor expert, Louise Thomas at Confused.com, said: "Although the harsh winter months are almost behind us, potholes are still proving problematic for drivers.

"There’s no denying that the UK has a pothole problem, and the government has dedicated more funding as a result. But for some drivers this isn’t enough. Especially if they live in high risk areas, where wet and colder weather means problems are more likely to arise. 

“If you see a pothole while driving, it’s important to report it to the local council straight away. Even if it didn’t damage your car, you could help protect other drivers who might come into contact with it at a later date. Potholes can cause damage to vehicles, so the sooner it’s fixed, the safer road users will be."

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The South East was found to be the worst region in the whole of the UK, with almost 200,000 pothole reports made by drivers in 2023. The South West had more than 173,000 reports and Scotland had more than 123,000.

There were nearly one million pothole reports made by UK drivers in 2023, a 24 per cent increase since 2020.

Further research of 2,000 UK drivers showed that more than half (58 per cent) think UK roads have never been worse for pothole damage.

Last year, the Government recognised the influx of potholes creating dangerous scenarios for many UK drivers and as a result announced a £200m pot of money for councils in England during the 2023 Spring Budget to repair roads.