I found myself among those I-5 drivers who received damage to my vehicle after driving through an Everett work zone during the late summer.

After entering the freeway over one of those 2-inch lane curbs and running over the supposedly swept-away debris, I heard a bang and my normally quiet-riding car began to sound like a street rod. I pulled off the road and found that a rock had bounced up and smashed my front exhaust. Lucky me! Instead of a small rock chip repair or even a cracked windshield replacement, I was out $2,000 for this repair. By the way, I also received a nice rock chip about a week prior.

As with the previous letter writers, I contacted the state Department of Transportation and was told that they would be happy to accept a report, but to have any hope of reimbursement, I would have to prove with “evidence” that the damage was caused by the construction debris.

My question is — how is it possible to prove that? Once again, the proverbial buck is being passed around, and no one is willing to take responsibility for the damage caused to our vehicles.

Scott Freshman