National Teen Driver Safety Week Back for 12th Year
October 20 through 26 has been designated as National Teen Driver Safety Week. This is the 12th year that this effort has been made to draw attention to teen driving. It is meant to raise awareness in order to reduce the number of teenage injuries and fatalities from road accidents. It is hoped that parents around California will take this opportunity to talk to their teens about staying safe on the streets, roads, and highways. Surveys have shown that parents who set driving rules for their teenagers and enforce them strictly can make a difference.
What Are the Biggest Dangers Teen Drivers Face?
Teens exhibit many of the same types of negligent actions that older motorists do concerning driver safety. However, lack of experience driving means that teenagers may be unaware of the consequences of their actions. When parents have a serious talk with their teenagers about those actions and potential consequences, it may help keep their young ones safer. The California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS), as well as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, offer valuable tips for parents and other adults with teen drivers in the household, which can help them explain the consequences of making bad and dangerous decisions while driving. The OTS reports that:
- Between 2015 and 2016, the number of fatalities of teenage drivers in California due to traffic accidents increased by 12.3 percent from 98 to 110.
- Between 2015 and 2016, the number of motor vehicle fatalities of teens 16-19 went up 2.7 percent from 219 to 225.
Incidence of Motor Vehicle Accidents Across the United States
Crashes in motor vehicles are the number one cause of death in teenagers between the ages of 15 and 18. During 2017, teen drivers in this age group were involved in crashes that killed an estimated 2,247 people. Another 93,000 teenagers were injured in traffic accidents. These high numbers demonstrate the risks that teens face when behind the wheel of a motor vehicle or riding along as passengers and the need for driver safety.
Tips on Reducing the Risk of an Accident
Parents may prefer a formal agreement on driver safety rules with their teens that is written down or agree informally that they will avoid actions that may put them in danger. Some suggestions on areas to cover in your talks are:
- Insist that everyone in the vehicle wears a seat belt. When parents wear their seat belts, their kids are more likely to wear one also.
- In California, a teen with a BAC level of 0.01 percent is considered impaired if they are driving. This is an important topic for parents to address.
- Distractions cause accidents. Texting or talking on a cell phone or other distractions are even more dangerous for inexperienced drivers. Insisting that the cell phone be turned off while a teen is driving helps.
- Stress the dangers of speeding. Experienced drivers can lose control of their vehicle while speeding. In addition, it’s against the law. Don’t speed yourself. This sets a good example.
- Limit how many passengers your teen can take along. It has been shown by government studies that the number of passengers makes a difference in the number of teen accidents. In California, a 16-year-old may not have passengers under 20 for the first year, unless someone at least 25-years-old is riding along.
- Help teens practice night driving. Teens need to have experience driving at night to increase their skills. However, these outings should be supervised by a parent or other adult.
What an Attorney Can Do for You
If you are in an accident with a drunk driver, your attorney will champion your right to be compensated for your injuries and other damages. At our firm, we have helped many individuals and their families deal with this challenging time. Once we are on board, we send our investigative team to the accident site to determine how and why the crash occurred. We secure evidence against the at-fault driver by interviewing witnesses, obtaining traffic surveillance videos that capture the crash and look for inaccuracies present on police records. We then turn this data over to our legal team, who use it to build a strong case.
Sacramento Auto Accident Lawyer
I’m Ed Smith, a Sacramento auto accident lawyer. I have free and friendly advice to offer you if you were injured by a negligent driver. Phone me at (916) 921-6400 or toll-free at (800) 404-5400. You can also contact me by completing the online form.
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Since 1982, I’ve helped Northern Californians get compensation in areas that include wrongful deaths, traumatic injuries, and all types of traffic collisions.
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