Preventive Maintenance Wards Off Expensive Lawsuits

By Joanne Faryon / Investigative Reporter, KPBS Public Broadcasting

Published February 8, 2007 at 8:29 PM PST

This story was published more than 17 years ago.

Potholes and broken sidewalks are the bane of any city's maintenance budget, and even the city's legal department. Joanne Faryon explains how the city's crumbling infrastructure costs taxpayers millio

We've all seen them, maybe driven over them or even tripped on them. Potholes and broken sidewalks are the bane of any city's maintenance budget, and even the city's law department. Joanne Faryon explains how San Diego's crumbling infrastructure is costing city taxpayers millions in lawsuits. Replacing a water pipe before it breaks may be expensive, but it saves taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars in lawsuits in the long run. One broken water pipe can do a lot of damage to a street full of homes. One slip and fall on a sidewalk can cost thousands in hospital bills, and a pothole can bend an axle or smash an oil pan.

They all add up to lawsuits filed against the city.

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Greg Bych, Risk Mangement: These are taxpayer dollars whether it's a sidewalk or a tree root or a pothole or a water main, again, if the citizens don't have those tax dollars spent to fix those things then the citizens, through the functions we do in risk management, pay damages to people who have been harmed by those things.

Here's a look at some of the numbers. Last year, lawsuits and claims filed against the city cost $7.6 million. $750,000 was because of water main breaks, another $400,000 from slip and falls.

In 2005, lawsuits cost taxpayers $14.6 million, $560,000 from water main breaks, $570,000 in slip and falls.

The problem hasn't gone unnoticed by the mayor. In his State of the City address last month, he committed more than a billion dollars to fixing the city's crumbling infrastructure.

Jerry Sanders, San Diego Mayor: The cast iron pipe that broke last Friday morning at the intersection of A and 15th Avenue downtown was manufactured in 1895 and installed in 1905.

Not all lawsuits are the result of broken sidewalks or potholes. Many people sue the city and lose. One woman sued the city for more than $100,000 when she fell off a city step because she wasn't paying attention.

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Mia Severson Chief Deputy City Attorney: The city needed to try that case before a jury and when it did the jury returned a verdict giving plaintiff a verdict of $15,000.

There are currently more than 200 lawsuits filed against the city according to its website. It's difficult to predict how many will be successful, but officials say prevention may be the best way to save money in the long run.

Greg Bych: It's not to say that once in a while there won't be a broken pipe, but certainly in frequency, those things will go down.