Report a pothole
Help us maintain our roads and pavements by completing our online form.
If you are reporting a road problem that is likely to present an imminent threat to life, serious injury or serious damage to property, please call us on:
- Phone 01484 414700 9am-5pm; or
- Phone 01484 225646 out of hours
How to report a pothole
Fill in our simple online form.
You can also check if a pothole has already been reported and check the status of a repair.
Clock Completing this form takes around 5 minutes
Paperclip To complete this form you will need one of the following:
- The what3words location
- Streetname or postcode near the pothole
Providing as much detail as possible can help us locate the pothole quicker.
please include details such as:
- Is it outside, or between certain house numbers?
- Name of a business where it is located.
- The number of the streetlight it is near or between.
- Is it at a road junction or between multiple junctions?
Please also tell us:
- the number of potholes at the location.
- as much detail as you can about the damage.
You can also upload a photo or video of the pothole. The more detail you give the better.
You will need to show us on a map where the pothole is. You can do this by dropping a 'pin' on the location. The map also allows you to search by place name, road, postcode, or address. You can also click to receive updates on a pothole.
Using a touch screen
You can pinch your fingers together to zoom in and out; or use one finger to move the map.
On a desktop device
Use your mouse or keypad to click and drag to move around the map area.
To zoom, you can either use the mouse wheel; hold down the shift key and click and drag a box; or use the zoom button on the toolbar.
After you have reported it
You will receive emails with:
- confirmation of your report.
- an update with the report outcomes once an action has been taken.
If you make a request using your My Kirklees account a record of your report will be saved in your account history. If you don't already one, you can register for a My Kirklees Account.
Once we have all the information that we need we will check the pothole to see if we need to make any repairs and carry out a risk assessment.
The next steps will depend on the following information:
- location of the pothole.
- depth and size of the pothole.
- type of road and how busy it is.
- any potential risk to pedestrians and motorists.
If the pothole meets our emergency criteria, we aim to make a temporary repair to make it safe, within 24 hours. This may be followed up with a permanent repair, if required.
For permanent repairs
- We aim to repair larger defects within 7 days.
- All routine repairs will be done within 28 days, weather permitting.
Any potholes that don't require action will be scheduled for repair as part of our rolling planned maintenance programme.
Areas outside our responsibility
There are certain areas we aren't responsible for maintaining, these include:
- Private roads/unadopted roads - repairs should be carried out by the landowner or developer.
- Trunk roads, motorways, major roads - contact National Highways if the pothole is on a motorway or a road which they manage:
Other types of road damage
Our roads naturally wear over time as part of normal use. This can sometimes lead to surface erosion, cracking, and crazing.
In most cases, it is not a cause for concern and doesn't present an immediate risk to road users.
You can report areas of erosion, cracking or crazing using the report other road and highways problems form.
Why we cannot just resurface the road
Potholes form from general wear and tear of roads and made worse by the level of traffic and the effects of weather.
Unfortunately, resurfacing a road would not prevent potholes forming.
Each pothole is looked at on a case-by-case basis, with repairs carried out as required. To learn more about how we look after our roads, take a look at our Highways Asset Management Strategy.