Teens Are 23x More Likely To Be Severely Injured When Engaging In This Behavior

October 19, 2021
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This week we are spending time talking about teen safety during #TeenDriverSafetyWeek and one of the things that is critical to keep our kids from getting into a New Haven auto accident is educating them on the behaviors that can get them seriously injured when they are behind the wheel.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) teen drivers are 23 times more likely to get into a crash when they are texting while driving.  When a teen takes her/his eye off the road to look down at a text or respond to a text message even for just a split second it can be like driving with your eyes closed for the length of a football field and can result in a serious accident.

Texting isn’t the only problem either.  Teens are 6x more likely to get into a serious crash if they are dialing their phone.

Distracted driving presents and increasingly more dangerous risk to teens while they are driving.  The good news is that there are some things we can do to help teens avoid doing this risky behavior.

  1. Model good behavior.  Believe it or not, teens are still looking to their parents about how to behave, especially behind the wheel.  If you are texting while you are driving, not only is that dangerous behavior for you but it is also giving your teen permission to do it as well.
  2. Sign a contract with your teen that if she/he is going to be driving they must stow their cellphone in either the center console or the glove box out of reach
  3. Along with stowing their cellphones your teen should also silence them.  Even the simple dinging that a phone makes when a text message arrives can be enough to distract the driver.

Keeping teen drivers safe can be a challenge.  They are the least experienced drivers among us and they often give in to peer pressure to do things they know they are not supposed to do.  As a parent you can work with your teen to insure that they are taking the proper safety precautions to avoid a New Haven auto accident and then it is incumbent on your teen to continue to practice safety to keep your trust and be allowed to drive regularly.

If you or a loved one were injured in an accident you may need to speak with an attorney.  Our experienced attorneys can speak with you about your case and work with you to protect your long-term interests.