Colin Eaton & Anor v Cheshire East Council

Facts

The claimants own The Cottage, a house on The Green in Wrenbury, Cheshire. The Green is a highway maintainable at public expense, and Cheshire East Council is the highway authority for it. The claimants had lived there for many years without problems. From around 2012 until late 2024, however, water running off The Green repeatedly flooded their front driveway and garden, though not the house itself. The claimants complained many times. The council investigated and carried out some drain clearance, but the flooding did not stop until the drain and gullies were jetted in November 2024. The council's case was that it had taken reasonable steps and had limited resources to deal with flood risk across a large area. It has 104,000 gullies and many properties at risk. The claimants sued in private nuisance in the County Court at Chester. Mr Recorder Shaw tried the claim on 17–19 September 2025. He found that the council's response had been almost entirely reactive and that it had not made out its defence under section 58 of the Highways Act 1980 or any other defence. He awarded £42,500: £25,000 for diminution in value and £8,750 to each claimant for loss of amenity. The council appealed against both liability and quantum. Its grounds included procedural unfairness, and Bright J granted permission on the papers.