Claims cost £580,872 over past three years

LONDONDERRY'S reputation as claims capital of Northern Ireland has taken a further battering with citizens here claiming less compensation per capita for falls on local roads than a number of other districts across Northern Ireland.

Roads Service forked out a total of 580,872 in compensation for falls over the past three years - 195,941 in 2006/7, 223,983 in 2007/8 and 160,947 in 2008/9.

In Limavady claims cost Roads Service a total of 77,320 over the same period. The equivalent sum in Strabane was 86,034.

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Across Northern Ireland as a whole injury claims cost Roads Service almost 10million between 2006 and 2008.

The data gives lie to the myth that people in the North West have a tendency to be more creative in their approach to claims than those elsewhere in the province.

The cost of roads claims to the Department of Regional Development (DRD) was just over a fiver per person here over the past three years compared to a Northern Ireland average of closer to six pounds per head.

But the cost to the taxpayer of claims paid as a result of falls in Lisburn, Newtonabbey and Carrick, Belfast North and South and Omagh was proportionately higher than in the Maiden City.

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Roads Minister Conor Murphy revealed the figures in response to a question tabled at the Northern Ireland Assembly.

It follows a Sentinel report last month that over the past five years a total of 274 claims were registered in the Londonderry area against the local council. This gave a rate of claims per head of population of 398.

This was a lesser rate than in Belfast (1,482 claims; 181 per capita), Ards (237 claims; 327 per capita), Newtonabbey (227 claims; 364 per capita) and Craigavon (236 claims; 384 per capita).

Since 2004/5 there were 136 claims made against Derry City Council for damage to vehicles and 138 claims for personal injuries.

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The main reasons for the vehicle claims were driver error or 'alleged' negligence by council employees.

The majority of personal injury claims resulted from various types of falls, slips or trips on council property.

The population figures used to calculate the number of claims per capita in each Roads Service district and each council area were taken from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimates for 2008.