My teenage daughter received her driver's license a few weeks ago. Letting my little girl go out and drive on her own has caused me quite a bit of stress and fear. However, after doing several things and being proactive in her driving, I have successfully been able to squelch most of my uneasiness.
Driving statistics show that a teen driver is four times more likely to be in a car accident than an adult. They make many mistakes, such as:
Distracted Driving-Talking and texting on their cell phones while driving, having friends in the car with them that cause them to pay more attention to their friends than the road, eating while driving, etc. The use of cell phones in cars has had such a huge impact causing accidents that, earlier this month, the NTSB issued a recommendation to ban the usage of all cell phones by drivers.Speeding-Almost 1/3 of all fatal crashes involving teens were speed related. Teenagers do not have enough experience driving to know how their speed affects slowing and stopping time.
Risk Taking-Teens are more likely to take risks when driving such as: running red lights and stop signs, speeding in school zones, not checking blind spots, etc. They have the "I am invincible" mentality.
Driving Under the Influence- Teens who drink are unlikely to call their parents to come get them and drive them home for fear of punishment. They think they can handle themselves, and being drunk makes them feel even more invincible.
Car Overcrowding-Teen drivers are known to try to get as many of their friends as they can into their cars. This leads to more distracted driving, plus the added influence of peer pressure causing the driver to feel the need to "show off".
Fatigue- When our teens drive tired,their reaction times are
slower and they risk falling asleep at the wheel.
Here is the good news. There are ways to help your teen driver be safe on the road.
Track Your Teen- Install a GPS logging or real time tracking device in their car. These units allow parents to have a" bird's eye" view on what their teen is doing while in their car. They also make teens more aware of their actions, making them think twice before doing something reckless while driving.Education- Make your teen take an online driver safety course. Show them pictures of crash scenes involving teen drivers. Print up articles for them on the statistics about teen drivers.
Cell Phones- It is very important for you to make sure your teen driver turns off their cell phone before leaving. I will even call my daughter's cell phone, while she is on the road, to make sure that it is off.
Conntract- Have them sign a teen driver contract. There are many of them that can be downloaded online. You can modify these contracts to suit you and your teen's needs. If they break the contract, there should be a predetermined consequence. The ideas above are only some of the ways to protect your teen driver from accidents and reckless driving.
Hopefully this has been an insightful article for parents of new teen drivers, and will help you with some of the uneasiness you have when they leave the house in their cars.
My name is Jennifer Katz, and I am the mother of a new teen driver. I created my website, http://www.teendrivertracking.com/, with the hope of being able to educate other parents of teen drivers on how to keep their teens safe. I would also love to hear from parents about their experiences with their teen drivers, and what they do to keep their teens safe.
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