Hundreds of pothole claims made every year in Colorado are rarely paid out
Interstate 70 east of Denver is a road well-traveled.
Roger Bland who lives in Byers took that interstate this summer to get to an appointment near Denver.
"I was on my way there and there was an alert from my phone that said there was a car pulled over to the side," he said.
He moved over a lane and dash camera video from his car shows when he did, he hit a giant pothole in the middle of the interstate in Colorado.
"I actually blew out two of my tires. It was pretty scary, but it actually happened so quickly that all I could really do was hold my wheel and continue moving the direction I was moving and not swerve off," Bland said.
He snapped photos of the damage to his tires, his car and the multiple other vehicles also on the side of the road in the same area.
"It looked like it came from a repair that had already been done," Bland said.
It caused thousands of dollars in damage, and he thought that with the evidence he had the state would be responsible for it. He was wrong.
"As long as someone didn't report it before it happened to you, it's your problem," Bland says he was told after his claim -- and an appeal -- was denied by the state.
The governmental immunity act outlines what the state could be liable for, while it does include "a dangerous condition of a public highway, road or street."
Doug Platt, a spokesman for the Colorado Office of Risk Management, the agency responsible for reviewing all claims against the state, says there's more to it than that.
"It's not just enough that there's a pothole in the highway but the state has to be negligent in responding to that pothole," Platt said.
Last year, 999 claims were made related to damage caused by the roadway and nine were paid out.
So far this year, 500 claims have been made and only two have been paid out.
Platt says in both cases this year, investigators found CDOT had notice of the pothole but took more than 30 days to repair it, which they determined was not reasonable.
"Reasonableness is subjective. What's reasonable on a summer day in Denver is different during a snowstorm over Berthoud Pass in the winter," Platt said. "We look at each and every claim closely because it's important to individuals that do experience damage."
In Bland's case, the investigation found no reports had been made prior to his accident, meaning he will foot the bill entirely.
He says he's fortunate he has a low deductible on his insurance, but believes there's a bigger lesson to share from his experience.
"If you don't report it the next person that is affected by that it may not help you specifically, but it does help people around you. That's the biggest thing we have to help each other ... because the state isn't going to necessarily help us with these things," he added.
To report a pothole on a Colorado interstate or highway (not a city or local road), You can call one of the following CDOT Customer Service Hotline numbers:
• Denver Metro/Central Colorado (Region 1): 303-759-2368
• Southeastern Colorado (Region 2): 719-562-5568
• Northwestern Colorado (Region 3): 970-243-2368
• Northeastern Colorado (Region 4): 970-350-2368
• Southwestern Colorado (Region 5): 970-385-1423
Here you can find the form to file a claim, but it must be mailed in or delivered in person: osc.colorado.gov/sorm/liability-claims/submit-a-new-claim
