You can, and it has a name: patrimonial liability
Article 32 of Ley 40/2015 gives a right to compensation from public authorities for any injury to property or rights caused by the normal or abnormal working of public services, except force majeure or harm the law requires you to bear.
The harm must be real, measurable in money and individual. A fall with an injury, days off work, broken glasses or physiotherapy qualify. A fright does not.
Paving and maintaining public roads is a compulsory service of every Spanish council, so a broken pavement falls squarely within that service.
The deadline: one year, and for injuries it starts on recovery
The right to claim expires one year after the event. For physical or psychological harm, though, the year runs from recovery or from when the extent of after-effects is established, not from the day of the fall.
That is no reason to wait: evidence at the scene is gone within days. What can wait is the final figure, not the documentation.
What is always argued: whether the defect was avoidable
The council’s usual defence is that the pedestrian should have seen it. Each case is judged on its own, and what counts is the usual list: the defect’s size and depth, whether it was visible, the lighting, whether it was on a crossing or an unavoidable path, and whether the council already knew about it.
That last point is the one people forget. A defect reported weeks earlier and left unrepaired is very hard to present as unforeseeable.
The evidence, the same day
- Photos of the defect with something for scale (a foot, a coin, a key) and wider photos showing where it is
- Exact location: coordinates or a pin on a map, not just the street
- If it was dark, photos of the lighting at that hour
- Names and phone numbers of witnesses
- If the local police or an ambulance came, ask for the report number
- The A&E report and every later medical report
- Receipts: pharmacy, physio, transport, anything broken
How to file
In writing, through the council’s registry, ideally its e-office: what happened, where and when, the link between the defect and the injury, and a valuation of the harm, even a provisional one. Attach everything above.
Check first who owns the street or the item. Manhole covers usually belong to the water, gas or telecoms company, and a road through town may belong to another authority. A misdirected claim gets passed on, but time is lost.
If there is no answer
Six months after the procedure starts with no express decision, the claim can be treated as refused, which opens the way to the administrative courts. The authority remains obliged to decide.
Why an earlier public report changes things
The best proof a defect was known is a report dated before the fall. On CleanSpot every report sits on a public map with photo, date and coordinates, and neighbours can confirm it.
If you see a lifted paving stone on your street, reporting it today can prevent someone else’s fall, and if it happens anyway, it records that the council had the chance to fix it.
Sources
How long do I have to claim?
One year. For injuries it runs from recovery or from when after-effects are established, not from the day of the fall.
Do I need a lawyer?
Not for the claim to the council. If it later goes to court, usually yes.
What if the council never replies?
After six months without an answer you can treat it as refused and appeal. The council is still obliged to decide.
Does it help that the defect had already been reported?
A great deal. A report dated before the fall helps show the defect existed and was known. That is why it pays to report defects as soon as you see them.