Teenage Driving: Parents’ Role to Mold Them into Responsible Drivers

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Immaturity and inexperience—these are just two of the underlying reasons why teenage drivers get involved in road accidents. This is due to the fact that teenagers, in nature, have that strong fondness for being adventurous, which involves taking risks. Doing so, however, doesn’t always yield favorable results.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), some 1,963 young drivers between the ages of 15 to 20 were killed in motor vehicle accidents in 2010. Meanwhile, more than 187,000 others were injured that same year.

Surely, immaturity and inexperience are the basic reasons for these injuries and deaths. However, these two can be understood more deeply by looking at some factors.

Basically, distracted driving—outside distractions and use of mobile phones while driving, night driving, and failure to wear seatbelts are three of the most common factors for the injuries and deaths within the said age group.

In fact, in 2010, some 368 young drivers between 15 to 19 years old who were killed in motor vehicle crashes were found out to be distracted at the time of the accidents. Nighttime accidents, meanwhile, occur to them between 9 p.m. to midnight. In addition, three of five 16- to 20-year-old passengers were killed because of failure to use the seatbelt.

The statistics alone only show that teenage driving is a growing concern. Fortunately, this alarming situation has been addressed through the graduated driver licensing systems (GDL) and the implementation of state laws that ban the use of cellphones while driving for teenagers.

Aside from these key improvements, parents should also play a role in reducing such incidents. As it is, teenagers tend to bend the rules when it comes to driving. As such, parents must do a better job in reminding them of the consequences of their actions.

Apart from that, they should also serve as their “guiding light,” especially if they’re still learning to drive. That way, the young drivers learn to prioritize safety behind the wheel and to prepare themselves well in certain emergency situations while on the road.

Incidentally, legal experts, such as a Los Angeles car accident attorney who closely monitors teenage drivers, remind all drivers to be responsible enough behind the wheel, regardless of age.

California Car Accident Statistics and Causes of Road Accidents

  

If numbers do not lie, California indeed is nearly synonymous with car accidents. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), in 2006, the State of California recorded the most number of traffic fatalities among U.S. states. Out of the 42,642 total deaths caused by car accidents, some 4,236 people were killed in California.

In a separate data, the NHTSA reported that in 2009, almost 4,000 people were killed in California due to road accidents.

Below is the ranking of California counties in terms of road accident fatalities in the year 2006:

1. Los Angeles County – 799 deaths
2. San Diego County – 303 deaths
3. Fresno County – 155 deaths
4. Sacramento County – 128 deaths
5. San Francisco – 42 deaths

Meanwhile, the following is the breakdown of California fatal car accidents by vehicle type in 2009:

•    Cars – 1,275 deaths
•    Sports utility vehicles (SUVs)/Pickup trucks – 622 deaths
•    Pedestrians – 563 deaths
•    Motorcycles – 383 deaths
•    Large trucks – 27 deaths

There are various reasons why road accidents are common in California. The following are some of the common causes of fatal California car accidents:

Intoxicated driving – It is estimated that every 525 minutes, a person gets killed in an alcohol-related road accident in California. In fact, according to the California Department of Motor Vehicle (DMV), in 2009 alone, about 950 people were killed in California alcohol-related road crashes.

Distracted driving – According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in the year 2009, more than 5,400 people were killed in road accidents caused by distracted drivers. It is estimated that more than 15 people are killed and more than 1,200 get injured in the United States each day due to distracted driving.

Drowsy driving – The NHTSA reports that approximately 100,000 car accidents happen every year due to drowsy drivers. Sleepy driving accounts for around 40,000 injuries and some 1,550 deaths every year.

Speeding – According to the DMV, about 28.4 percent of all fatal road accidents in the State of California in 2008 were caused by speeding or violation of speeding laws.

In this light, California drivers who do not want to be part of the unfortunate statistics should always put safety on a pedestal.

Also, Los Angeles motorists or pedestrians who get injured in a car mishap should promptly contact a Los Angeles car accident attorney in order to properly and timely claim for personal injury damages from the liable parties involved. Under the law, car accident victims have the right to claim for economic and non-economic damages from people who caused their injury and inconvenience.