Case Name: EARL A. WHITMORE, JR. and BARBARA A. WHITMORE vs. DEPARTMENT OF HIGHWAYS
Court: West Virginia Court of Claims
Jurisdiction: West Virginia
Decision Date: 1980-11-10
Citations: 13 Ct. Cl. 304
Docket Number: CC-80-181
Parties: EARL A. WHITMORE, JR. and BARBARA A. WHITMORE vs. DEPARTMENT OF HIGHWAYS
Judges: 
Reporter: Report of the West Virginia Court of Claims
Volume: 13
Pages: 304–305

Head Matter:
Opinion issued November 10, 1980
EARL A. WHITMORE, JR. and BARBARA A. WHITMORE vs. DEPARTMENT OF HIGHWAYS
(CC-80-181)
Nancy J. Aliff, Attorney at Law, for respondent.

Opinion:
WALLACE, JUDGE:
At 2:45 p.m. on March 6, 1980, claimant was operating his 1972 Chevrolet van on 5th Street Hill in Huntington, West Virginia, a road which is owned and maintained by the respondent. According to the claimant's testimony, there was a pothole on the right-hand side of his lane of travel. The van struck the hole, went out of control, and overturned. Introduced into evidence was an estimate from Larry Lite of Galigher Ford, Inc., which indicated that the value of the van on the day of the accident was $1,600.00. Claimant sold the salvage for $300.00, leaving a net loss of $1,300.00.
The State is neither an insurer nor a guarantor of the safety of motorists travelling upon its highways. Adkins v. Sims, 130 W.Va. 645, 46 S.E.2d 81 (1947). Furthermore, in the instant case, claimant stated that he was familiar with not only the road in question, but the pothole itself: "I knew it was there because I'd hit it before." To operate a motor vehicle in the face of visible hazards, such as defects in the road, of which a driver is aware, is to assume a known risk. This bars recovery. Swartzmiller v. Dept. of Highways, 10 Ct.Cl. 29 (1973). Accordingly, this claim must be denied.
Claim disallowed.