Alison Smith, 48, was walking along Shore Road in Bonchurch, Isle of Wight, one day in November 2024 when her foot caught in a deep pothole and she fell forward. She tried to break the fall with her hand but landed face-first in another pothole, losing seven teeth.
The mother of four and grandmother of five was on her way to meet her daughter when the accident happened. At the time she was unable to move her face and feared she had fractured her cheek, so she visited A&E, where she had X-rays on her wrist.
Accident on Shore Road
Alison said the pothole was roughly two to three inches deep and more than a foot wide. "My foot got caught in the pothole and I fell forward using my hand to try and save me. My face went into another pothole which is why I lost so many teeth," she explained.
"It was horrendous. I was on the floor with blood everywhere trying to pick up my teeth. My daughter walked round because she heard me crying. I was just very shook up and slightly dizzy. I was very upset. It was sore for a good few weeks."
Life-changing after-effects
Nothing was broken, but Alison was in agony for weeks and still cannot use her hand. She has had physiotherapy but is unable to lift anything, which forced her to give up her café job. She also had to stop her charitable work, which had raised £400,000 for a food box initiative.
The part-time singer now has false teeth on the top and bottom of her mouth and has stopped performing with the two bands she was in. "It is now over a year later and it is still causing me to not be able to do the things that I used to do," she said.
"It impacted everything really. I am still now signed off sick because of the stress of everything. I still can't eat the things I used to eat. I had to relearn how to sing with these fake teeth. It did shake me up. It changed my confidence for a while. I did have to spend time going out in public and carrying on with my life with no teeth."
Compensation claim rejected
Island Roads has since filled the pothole and resurfaced the whole road, but Alison says she wants compensation. She maintains the road had been riddled with potholes for a long time and should have been repaired before her accident. "The road has been like that for many years. Lots of people have complained about that road. We were always careful and it was just unlucky that I happened to trip in it," she said.
"They have basically said that it is not their liability and there is nothing they will do. If it had been my mum or any other elderly person it could have caused death. I just think it is absolutely disgusting.
"I would like them to admit liability and I think I should be entitled to compensation for the amount of work I have lost and the fact that my hand doesn't work at all."
In response, an Island Roads spokesperson said: "We have every sympathy for Ms Smith and for the injuries she has sustained as a result of this incident.
"A claim relating to this matter was received, fully investigated and a formal response was issued to Ms Smith in April 2025. The road was inspected in October 2024 as part of its routine six-monthly inspection and in line with accepted industry practice.
"No defects were identified that met the threshold for intervention either at that time or during our investigation following the incident. However, having been brought to our attention, we arranged for the pothole referred to in the claim, along with another nearby pothole, to be repaired as part of our ongoing maintenance programme.
"Every claim is carefully considered on its individual merits, taking account of available evidence and the legal responsibilities of the highway authority and Island Roads as its service provider. Having completed our investigation, we concluded that we are unable to accept liability in this case. We appreciate the outcome will be disappointing for Ms Smith, but we have a responsibility to assess all claims consistently."
