Footpath claims cost €3.2 million in Tipperary over three years
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Footpath accidents cost council over €3.2 million over three years
Claims arising from trips, slips and accidents on footpaths have cost more than €3.2 million in Tipperary over the past three years, according to figures shared by Tipperary County Council.
The data shows that 113 footpath and slip/trip claims lodged between 2023 and 2025 had a combined value of €3,294,670.
In contrast, pothole claims, while far more numerous, accounted for a fraction of the overall cost.
The figures, supplied by the council following a request for information, reveal that a total of 604 claims with a value of €7.73 million were recorded between 2023 and 2025. A further 56 claims worth €414,137 have been recorded so far in 2026.
The total number of claims fell from 222 in 2023 to 182 in 2025. However, the overall value of claims increased significantly last year, rising to more than €3 million despite the reduction in claim numbers.
Footpath and slip/trip incidents represented some of the most expensive claims faced by the local authority's insurer.
In 2023, 41 such claims had a combined value of €1.63 million. The following year, 28 claims were valued at just over €503,000. In 2025, the number of claims rose to 44, with a total value of €1.16 million.
Across the three-year period, these incidents accounted for almost 43% of the total value of all claims despite making up less than one fifth of claim numbers.
Pothole-related claims told a very different story.
A total of 281 pothole claims were recorded between 2023 and 2025, including 119 in 2023, 99 in 2024 and 63 in 2025.
However, the total value of those claims came to just €50,105 over the three years.
The figures mean pothole claims accounted for almost half of all claims recorded during the period, but less than 1% of the total value paid out.
While pothole claims often attract public attention because of the damage they can cause to vehicles, the figures suggest that accidents involving pedestrians on footpaths present a far greater financial risk. Although far less common, footpath and slip/trip claims accounted for a disproportionate share of overall claim costs during the period examined.
The council stressed that the claims are not paid directly by Tipperary County Council. Instead, they are handled through the council's insurer, Irish Public Bodies.