Blog

In the U.S., the leading cause of death for teens are car crashes. Teenagers die more often in car crashes than suicide and homicide combined, which puts new teen drivers as risk more than ever. Learning a few new things about teen driving can help you to make sure your child stays safe and reduce the number of car crashes by teenagers.

• The time that teens are most at risk of being in an accident is within the first year of earning their own license. This is an incredibly important time for parents to stay involved with their teen’s driving to make sure they are being responsible and safe.
• A teenager’s risk of getting in an accident is 3x higher than more drivers with more experience.
• The biggest factor in teen car crashes is inexperience; not that they are more reckless than drivers that are older. It takes time for teens to develop the knowledge and skills needed to navigate more difficult driving situations.
• A teen driver’s risk of getting in an accident quadruples when there are 3 or more teenage riders in the car.
• The majority of deadly nighttime crashes occur before midnight.
• Over half of teenagers that die in car accidents were found to not be wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash.
• Most states do not have driving laws or restrictions for teenagers that protect them from the most common risk of a crash.
• Teens learn how to drive by seeing how others drive. This means that you set the example for how your teen’s driving habits will develop, so being responsible and safe while you are driving is of the utmost importance as well. If you use your cell phone while you drive, tailgate people, speed, or have road rage, chances are your child will develop these habits as well.
• Even after your teen driver isn’t a teen anymore, the risk factors of being a young driver are still very high. Risks don’t start to radically decrease until they are at least 25. The risk may be the highest in the beginning, but that does not mean you should stop talking to your kids about being safe while they drive. This is especially important after your child turns 21, because drinking and driving is something your child should be educated on as well.

Keeping your child safe as they learn how to drive and gain more responsibility is very important, and having you as a parent be educated as much as possible can help your kids stay safe.

Please contact us to discuss how Boster, Kobayashi and Associates can expertly handle your case.