outrageous defence
"To my bitter experience I discovered local authorities have the cunning defence of malfeasence which permits them to avoid any responsibility for damage caused by the deplorable state of many roads around the country."
Ash, Dun Laoghaire Rathdown Co. Council paid for the replacment of the wheel rim on my BMW bike after I hit a huge pothole in Dundrum. I took a photo of the hole, the damage to the wheel rim and reported the incident to the local Garda Station as, had I lost complete control of the bike, I could have been killed or seriously injured.
It took quite a few letters, but they eventually paid.