As a parent, you always want to do everything in your power to keep your children safe. However, as they grow up, they tend to engage in riskier behavior and this applies to driving a car. When you least expect it, you may receive the dreaded call informing you that they have been in a car accident. If and when this happens, besides keeping your cool, you should contact an auto accident lawyer to help you navigate the intricacies of the law and help you fight for the rights of your child.
Teen Drivers Put Many Road Users at Risk
Car accident statistics confirm that teenage drivers are responsible for some of the highest accident percentages of any age group. Studies conducted by the CDC reveal several important reasons why young drivers tend to be involved in car accidents so frequently. Here are some of them:
Lack of Experience
No matter how well a teen driver does in their driver’s course, there is no substitute for experience. In many instances, young drivers get into accidents simply because they lack the skills to identify and avoid road perils. They tend to either ignore or react later than other drivers when faced with a hazardous situation. Young people are much more prone to be involved in an accident during the first months immediately after they have learned how to drive. This risk decreases as they gain more experience.
Distracted Driving
This age group has the highest distraction-related fatalities in the country. This is mostly to blame because they tend to text and use their phones while driving. They might also engage in destructive behavior like drinking or using drugs while driving.
Driving With Friends
Teenagers are much more likely to ride with friends than any other age group. Some states have passed laws limiting the number of friends they can have in their cars at one time. Those with a learning permit can only drive with a licensed driver beside them.
Speeding
Teenagers like speed, and nothing incites them more to engage in speeding than being behind the wheel. This makes it difficult for them to stop before hitting a car ahead of them. Also, young drivers tend to drive too closely to other vehicles. This risk-taking conduct increases with young male drivers, particularly when they are trying to impress other teen males with them in the car.
Night and Weekend Driving
When their licenses no longer have any restrictions for driving at night, the risk of young people suffering fatal accidents increases considerably. Weekends also turn deadly, with most accidents and fatalities occurring on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.
Low Seat Belt Usage
Teenagers are the group with the lowest use of seat belts when compared to other adults. Although they may be responsible when they ride in a car with their parents or another adult, once they are in the car on their own or with friends, they seem to forget to buckle their seat belts.
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