*Cover image: Encik Tekateki, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (pothole on Jalan Cyber 1A, Senai, Johor)*
The thud, then the steering pulls, then the tyre-pressure warning. With the northeast monsoon now under way, potholes open up faster than they get patched. If one has just cost you a rim, there are two separate jobs: get the hole reported so it is fixed, and get your money back from whoever was supposed to maintain the road. This guide covers both.
First: who owns the road?
This decides who you claim from, and it is the step most people get wrong.
- Federal roads, usually numbered trunk roads between towns: the Public Works Department (JKR) under the Works Ministry (KKR).
- State roads: the state government's road agency or state JKR.
- Town and residential roads: the local council. The Local Government Department keeps a list of every local authority with contact details.
- Tolled expressways: the concessionaire that runs it. Lembaga Lebuhraya Malaysia publishes the operators.
If you are not sure, report it anyway. The next step routes it.
Step 1: report the pothole
The Works Ministry's MyJalan app (on Google Play, the App Store and AppGallery) lets you drop a pin, pick a complaint type and attach photos. KKR's MyJalan page has the official links. You can also email pro@kkr.gov.my.
KKR told The Star in February 2025 that complaints about roads it does not manage are passed on to the road's owner, and that it has a service level of 24 hours to cover or temporarily treat a pothole after receiving a complete complaint. Out of 28,559 MyJalan complaints, 8,487 concerned KKR's own roads, and 39.61% of those were potholes.
Report it even if you are only claiming from your insurer. A dated complaint is evidence that the hole existed and when the authority knew about it.
Step 2: collect evidence on the spot
Only do this where it is safe to stop. Hazard lights on.
- Close-up of the pothole with something next to it for scale, such as a shoe or water bottle.
- Wide shot showing the location: a signboard, landmark or lamp-post number.
- Dashcam footage of the impact, saved before it loops over.
- Damage photos of the tyre, rim and any bodywork.
- Time, date and lighting conditions. Night and rain matter, as the case below shows.
- Witness names and numbers, if anyone stopped.
Step 3: police report and workshop paperwork
Lodge a police report. For single-vehicle accidents on the North-South Expressway with no injuries and no damage to anyone else or to public property, Bukit Aman's traffic department started a pilot on 1 September 2025 allowing the report to be filed online through PDRM e-Reporting, according to paultan.org. Check whether it still applies; otherwise go to the nearest station.
Then get an itemised invoice from the workshop and keep the towing receipt. If a matching rim is no longer sold, ask the workshop to say so in writing.
Step 4: submit the claim
Write to the road owner with your photos, police report, invoices, the MyJalan reference and your bank details. Many councils pass claims to their insurer, which will make an offer.
A worked example. In September 2020, Fahrurrazi Hamid hit a pothole at night on Jalan Sungai Long near Kajang. The council's insurer offered RM1,430, covering one tyre and one wheel. The Tribunal for Consumer Claims told him it had no jurisdiction, so he filed in the Kajang magistrates' small claims court and represented himself. In 2022 the magistrate found the Kajang Municipal Council fully liable, said no reasonable driver could be expected to spot the hole at night, and accepted that he needed a full set of matching wheels. The award was RM2,980: four wheels RM1,800, one tyre RM800, camber adjustment RM180 and towing RM200.
The lesson is not that every claim succeeds. You have to show the road was not properly maintained and that the hole caused the damage. But a lowball first offer is not the end of it. Our small claims court guide covers the RM5,000 limit and the RM20 filing fee.
Should you just use your car insurance?
You can claim own damage under a comprehensive policy, but a single-vehicle pothole claim normally costs you your NCD at renewal and may carry an excess. For one tyre and rim, that is often worth more than the repair. It makes sense when damage is serious or the road owner refuses outright. Our car accident claim guide explains how NCD is affected.
Don't let it sit
Section 2(a) of the Public Authorities Protection Act 1948 sets a three-year limit for suits against public authorities. If the council rejects you or goes quiet, decide well before then.
*Sources: The Star, 19 February 2025 (KKR statement and complaint figures); paultan.org, 26 September 2022 (Kajang small claims judgment, via FMT) and 28 August 2025 (PDRM e-Reporting pilot); KKR, Local Government Department and Lembaga Lebuhraya Malaysia websites, read 7 November 2026. This is general information, not legal advice.*
