Hit a pothole in Ontario and damaged your tire, rim, or suspension? You can claim the repair cost from whoever owns the road — the municipality for city streets, or the province for numbered highways. Here is exactly how it works in Ontario.
10 days — Municipal Act, 2001, s. 44(10) — written notice to the municipal clerk within 10 days of the incident. Miss it and the municipality can refuse the claim outright. Send written notice first, gather paperwork second.
Municipal roads: how to claim
Claims against a city or town start with written notice to the municipal clerk’s or claims office describing when, where, and what happened. Follow with photos, the repair invoice or two quotes, and any proof the pothole existed before your incident — such as its RoadRot report history.
Provincial highways
Damage on a numbered provincial highway is claimed against the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (MTO), not the municipality. For 400-series and other provincially maintained highways, file a Damage Claim Report with MTO — the province applies the same 10-day submission window, with a 2-4 month processing time.
What the road authority will argue
Ontario municipalities lean on the Minimum Maintenance Standards (O. Reg. 239/02): a pothole is deemed "in repair" until it exceeds both a set surface area and 8 cm depth (600 cm² on the busiest roads), and once the city becomes aware it has 4 to 30 days to fix it depending on road class. If it repaired within that window — or never knew — the city has a complete defense. That makes prior reports decisive: the repair clock only starts when the city knew, and public reports prove exactly when that was.
If the claim is denied
Denial letters are often boilerplate. You can escalate to small claims court (limit $50,000 in Ontario) for a modest filing fee. Bring the same evidence: photos, invoices, the report history, and your notice correspondence.
Build your evidence
- Photograph the pothole and the damage the same day, with location context.
- Report the pothole on RoadRot and via the city’s 311 channel — a timestamped public record.
- Check for earlier reports at that location; they prove the authority knew.
- Send written notice within 10 days, keeping a copy.
- Attach invoices or two repair quotes and file with the road owner.
Check the pothole’s public history before you file — prior reports are your best evidence. Browse pothole reports across Ontario by city, or the national city directory.