Case Name: MARY TATE vs. DEPARTMENT OF HIGHWAYS
Court: West Virginia Court of Claims
Jurisdiction: West Virginia
Decision Date: 1980-10-06
Citations: 13 Ct. Cl. 259
Docket Number: CC-80-153
Parties: MARY TATE vs. DEPARTMENT OF HIGHWAYS
Judges: 
Reporter: Report of the West Virginia Court of Claims
Volume: 13
Pages: 259–260

Head Matter:
Opinion issued October 6, 1980
MARY TATE vs. DEPARTMENT OF HIGHWAYS
(CC-80-153)
Nancy J. Aliff, Attorney at Law, for respondent.

Opinion:
RULEY, JUDGE:
At 6:00 a.m. on March 5, 1980, the claimant was driving a 1973 Chevrolet automobile across the Patrick Street Bridge in Charleston toward South Charleston when she struck a pothole, damaging a tire. The claimant seeks to recover damages in the sum of $52.28.
The State is neither the insurer nor the guarantor of the safety of motorists traveling on its highways. Adkins v. Sims, 130 W.Va. 645, 46 S.E.2d 81 (1947). The respondent cannot be held liable for damages caused by collisions with potholes unless the claimant proves that the respondent had actual or constructive knowledge of the existence of the pothole and a reasonable amount of time to take suitable corrective action. Davis v. Dept. of Highways, 11 Ct.Cl. 150 (1977). Since the claimant did not meet that burden of proof, this claim must be denied.
Claim disallowed.