Road Maintenance

In reply to Mr BELL (Mount Gambier) (9 September 2021).

The Hon. C.L. WINGARD (Gibson—Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing): I have been advised:

Motorists will need to consider their insurance options. In relation to any liability of the state government for vehicle damage I am advised by the Department for Infrastructure and Transport that pursuant to section 42 of the Civil Liability Act 1936 a road authority is not liable for the failure to maintain a road.

However, as part of the conditions of contractual agreements with DIT maintenance contractors, the contractor is responsible for conducting scheduled fortnightly maintenance inspections of all main arterial roads that fall under the care, control and management of the Commissioner of Highways. The contractor is also contractually responsible to attend to reports of pothole or other defects on the road, within the contractual timeframes, from being made aware of the hazard, to make the site safe.

The contractor is only liable if it has failed in its contractual responsibilities to DIT, and a claims process is available to an individual if it can establish that this has occurred. In practice, this means that a person must be able to show that the contractor has failed to act on the knowledge of a specific road hazard (within the relevant stipulated time frame) prior to the person receiving damages as a result of that road hazard.

I am advised that DIT monitors the contractors’ performance to ensure they meet their responsibilities.