Man says teen daughter billed nearly $3,000 for guardrail that killed her
LOUDON, Tenn. -- A Loudon County man says his teenage daughter was billed nearly $3,000 for a guardrail that killed her in a wreck four months ago.
CBS affiliate WVLT reports that the Tennessee Department of Transportation says the bill was a mistake, and Steven Eimers’ family doesn’t have to pay to replace the guardrail.
“They had the audacity to send us a bill in her name for $3,000 for killing her,” Eimers said.
TDOT spokesman Mark Nagi apologized for what he says was a processing error. He says another letter is being sent to the family.
“That was a mistake,” said Nagi. “It never should have happened. We’ll take measures to make sure that never happens again.”
The Tennessee Highway Patrol said Eimers’ 17-year-old daughter, Hannah, was killed Nov. 1 when her car left interstate 75 near Niota, traveled into the median and hit the end of the guardrail with the driver’s door. The highway patrol said the guardrail impaled the vehicle and hit the teen in the head and chest.
“TDOT knew this was dangerous and that it wasn’t performing well,” Steven Eimers said. “They should have removed it, but their policy was to leave it on the road, playing Russian roulette with people’s lives.”