A man has been ordered to pay Rochdale Borough Council £18,000 after a court found he lied about sustaining an injury after hitting a pothole on his bike.
Phillip Harkins, 42, whose address was given in court as Lily Lane, Platt Bridge, Wigan, was seeking up to £20,000 in compensation from the council after he claimed to have fractured his collarbone after he came off his bike in Summit Street, Heywood, after hitting a pothole in May 2020.
Following initial investigations, the council told Mr Harkins they would be defending the claim, so he took them to court, where District Judge Haisley determined that Mr Harkins had acted in a fundamentally dishonest way. As well as throwing out his claim, the Judge ordered Mr Harkins to pay the council’s legal fees, which amounted to just over £18,000.
During the hearing at the Manchester Civil Justice Centre on 7 October 2025, the court heard that Mr Harkins had indeed fractured his collarbone, but it was likely due to him performing ‘bunny hops’ on his bike, rather than hitting a pothole.
The court heard Mr Harkins' timeline of events did not add up, with the Judge finding that he could not have been in Summit Street at the time he claimed to be. In addition, a friend he was cycling with at the time of the alleged incident also gave a different account of the day, with a different timeline, when questioned independently.
Crucially, Mr Harkins had also told 2 different medical professionals at Bury’s Fairfield Hospital that he had sustained his injury while bunny hopping on his bike.
Councillor Carol Wardle, cabinet member for finance, said:
“We investigate all compensation claims because any money paid out is ultimately coming from the taxpayer and so we have a responsibility to ensure that public money isn’t wasted.
“Mr Harkins has paid a high price for trying to pull a fast one with what was essentially a totally fabricated claim. I hope this finding deters anyone who may be tempted to make similarly fantastical claims in the future.”