Fed-up man fills pothole himself after near-miss

10 hours ago

Josh Sandiford,West Midlandsand

Ed James,BBC Radio WM

News image — Matt Hunton kneels next to the pothole he filled in on his street in Dudley

Matt Hunton A man in a high-visibility yellow vest and dark work clothes crouches on a residential road, holding a long-handled tamping tool in one hand and a smaller tool in the other. Behind him is a red brick wall with a grass verge above it, and loose gravel and debris are visible on the road surface. He has sunglasses pushed up on his head and a short beard, and is looking directly at the camera. — Matt Hunton kneels next to the pothole he filled in on his street in Dudley

A fed-up man who was nearly hit by a car swerving around a pothole outside his house decided to fill it in himself.

Matt Hunton, 52, from Dudley, said vehicles had been driving around the crater to avoid it, putting him and his own vehicles at risk.

After deciding he had "had enough", the maintenance operative used spare materials from a job he had been working on to fill it in.

"I was standing outside and a car nearly hit me coming round," he told BBC Radio WM. "I stomped it all down [and] it works like a treat now."

Mr Hunton explained he had been inspired by the Hollywood actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who made headlines for filling in a pothole near his home in Los Angeles in 2023.

He said he had been in touch with Dudley Council and his local MP about the condition of roads in his area.

"Fill the potholes first before you change all my bins," he added.

Matt Hunton Two deep holes filled with murky brown rainwater sit close together near the kerb of a residential road. The surrounding tarmac is broken and crumbling, with loose chunks of asphalt scattered around the edges. A street lamp is faintly reflected in the standing water. — The pothole before Matt Hunton decided to fill it in

In a blog post, Jeanine Borg, an associate at ARAG Law, said it was not advisable to fill in a pothole yourself.

She warned that unauthorised repairs could leave individuals personally liable if someone is injured or if damage is caused.

Earlier this month, Dudley Council said it had repaired more than 500 stretches of potholed road in 2026.

"Following some horrendous rainfall since the start of the year, we are getting about 150 reports per day from people concerned about potholes," said Simon Phipps, cabinet member for economy and infrastructure.

"This is a national issue that councils up and down the country are having to deal with, not just here in Dudley, but that hasn't stopped our team getting out there to carry out repairs.

"They are working in all weathers and even overnight to prioritise and repair the most dangerous potholes."

Matt Hunton A rough patch of concrete and aggregate sits in the middle of a residential road, contrasting with the darker tarmac around it. Cars are parked along the left side of the street, with a brick wall and pavement running along the right. The road surface is wet and shows signs of general wear and cracking. — The pothole outside Matt Hunton's home in Dudley after he filled it in himself

It comes after the condition of local roads was described as a "national disgrace" in a new report which found it would cost almost £2bn to clear the backlog of road repairs across the West Midlands.

The government said it had pledged £7.3bn to fix potholes and invest in long term measures to maintain roads.

During a visit to Birmingham, Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said the previous Conservative government had underinvested in the road network and "it is going to take time to fix".

"We've given extra money and we're also making sure councils spend that money wisely," she said.

Last month, West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker doubled funding to make £240m available across six councils for highways maintenance over five years from April 2027.