The Department for Transport has promised swift action following a shocking report looking at UK potholes.

Potholes caused misery in 2023 on a scale that has not been seen in years, five to be exact. 

The AA estimates they may have cost UK drivers as much as £500m in repairs.

Scientists warn climate change will worsen the problem as more wet weather and temperature extremes give extra battering to the surfaces we drive on.

Almost 630,000 potholes were reported to councils in England, Scotland and Wales between January and November 2023, a five-year high, according to local government data compiled by campaign group Round Our Way following a Freedom of Information request.

Data was only available from 115 out of 208 councils approached, meaning the total number of reported potholes is likely to be much higher.

"Potholes are the bane of many of our lives and put drivers, cyclists and even pedestrians at risk of serious injury," Roger Harding, director of Round Our Way, told the BBC.

"The weather extremes that climate change brings are sadly creating many more of them at a time when cuts mean repairs are already not keeping up."

A spokesman for the Local Government Association said councils shared the concerns of all road users with the state of our roads and were doing all they could to tackle what they said was a £14bn backlog of road repairs.

He also called for more regular and consistent funding.

The AA believes the total figure for across the entire country could be as high as £500m

A Department for Transport spokesperson said: "We're taking decisive action to fix potholes and resurface roads by investing an extra £8.3bn of redirected HS2 funding, the biggest ever funding increase for local road improvements and enough to resurface over 5,000 miles of roads across the country."

The AA said it dealt with 631,852 pothole-related incidents related to tyres, wheels, steering, and suspension last year - another five-year high according to the organisation.

With an average repair cost for a pothole accident being £250, the AA estimates they cost its customers around £160m in total last year.

Potholes don't just affect drivers of motor vehicles, but also other road users, with cyclists being particularly vulnerable to accidents.