Most of us do not know that April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month. It’s a perfect time for families to focus on one of life’s most important milestones: teaching teens how to drive safely. Learning to drive is highly exciting for your teen, but they must understand the heightened risks that come with driving. Teen drivers are at a significantly higher risk of crashes, making parental guidance and proactive safety measures essential. For families who value both peace of mind and protection, understanding these risks—and how to mitigate them—can make all the difference in keeping your teen safe behind the wheel.
Teens have a higher crash and fatality rate than adult drivers. Distracted driving is the leading threat of these accidents. The most common distractions are smartphones, passengers, and navigation systems. There are eight known “danger zones” for teen drivers: lack of experience, night driving, multiple passengers, distractions, speeding, reckless driving, impairment, or drowsy driving.
Teens mirror what they observe. It is up to parents to avoid phone use, speeding, or any form of distracted driving. When you have a teen learning to drive, every time you drive with them is now an opportunity to model good habits.
Gradually expose your kids to different conditions. Start incorporating night driving, highways, and even bad weather days. You want your kids to feel prepared in any of these situations before they’ve ever driven alone.
You want to have honest conversations about fears, mistakes, and peer pressure; you don’t want your kids not to tell you something that puts them in danger.
Some families find it useful to set clear expectations from the get-go. Things like passenger limits, curfews, and phone use rules are all important. Define consequences and accountability–this is not about controlling their behavior but guiding and building trust.
Seeking professional instruction reinforces safe habits and helps build confidence. It’s an opportunity to learn about the consequences and safety hazards that come along with driving.
Whenever a teen is driving with more passengers, they are automatically at a higher distraction rate. It is best to limit the number of people they can drive.
Try phasing privileges rather than allowing full freedom immediately. Start with stricter rules and lay out goals to gain more independence once they have more experience, and you have built more trust in their confidence as a driver.
Getting a vehicle with a high safety rating should be the top priority. It’s also smart to get a vehicle with Advanced Driver Assistance systems. You may want to avoid high-performance vehicles for new drivers and stick with a more basic model.
Use technology to help track driving behavior. There are now apps and in-car systems that monitor driving and can help reinforce accountability and trust.
If you have teen drivers in your household, reach out to Cross Private Client today to learn more about your insurance coverage options.
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This article is for general informational purposes only and is not to be relied upon or used for any particular purpose. Cross Insurance shall not be held responsible in any way for, and specifically disclaims any liability arising out of or in any way connected to, reliance on or use of any of the information contained in this article. The information contained or referenced in this article is not intended to constitute and should not be considered legal, insurance, accounting or other professional advice, nor shall it serve as a substitute for the recipient obtaining such advice. The views expressed in this article are that of its author and do not necessarily represent the views of Cross Financial Corp. and its subsidiaries and affiliates (“Cross Insurance”) or Cross Insurance’s management or shareholders.