A 30-year-old man who sought financial compensation from Oak Harbor after his car was damaged by a huge pothole will not get paid.

On Feb. 8, the city’s insurance company, Washington Cities Insurance Authority, sent a letter to 30-year-old Ryan Elvebak informing him that his claim for $589 had been denied for several reasons.

According to the letter, potholes form quickly and unexpectedly and case law provides that “a municipality is liable for a dangerous condition which it did not create only if it has notice of the condition and reasonable opportunity to correct it.”

“The city did not receive notice of the pothole you encountered until after your incident had already occurred and, therefore, had no opportunity to make the repair prior to your incident,” the letter said.

Elvebak submitted his claim on Jan. 30 to pay for damages to his Lexus after driving over what he described as “an abnormally large pothole” on SW Fort Nugent Avenue between Quincy Street and Ridgeway Drive.

The amount Elvebak asked for was the same amount he was charged by an automotive tire repair shop to fix the damages.

It alleged the incident happened at about 9:45 p.m. on Jan. 22. Elvebak was driving home and hit the pothole in an unlit section of roadway. When he returned the next day, he found it had already been filled and the road fixed, the claim said.

According to the insurance authority’s letter, several potholes in that area were discovered Jan. 23 and were repaired the same day. Because city workers responded to the hazard “in a timely fashion once it had notice,” Elvebak’s claim was denied.