How to Keep Your Teenager Safe While Driving

Your teenager has just got their licence and they are keen to start driving the family car. Before you let your teen drive your car, there are some points you need to know in order to make it safe for them and to minimise any possibility of an accident.



Be careful with what type of car you let your teenager drive. Convertibles and jeeps in the hands of a teen are accidents waiting to happen. They should instead learn to drive in safer cars that aren’t likely to roll over in an accident. Check the vehicle’s safety and rollover ratings to make sure your car will be safe enough for them to drive.



Give your teenager lots of supervised practice before they drive by themselves. Take them to a large empty space such as an open car park where they can practice driving safely. Also ask them to practice emergency stops and reversing, and gradually take them out in poor weather conditions so you can coach them on how to drive during heavy rain or fog.



Make sure they wear their safety belt and that they understand why it is important to wear it. Teenage drivers have been shown to be far less likely to wear a seatbelt than adult drivers. If you want your teenager to wear their safety belt be a good role model and make sure you wear yours. You could even buy them a fashionable safety belt cover to make it even more enticing to buckle up. Another way to get them to wear their safety belt is to show them a graphic safety video of a person being thrown through the windshield during a crash.

Don’t let them drive on a motorway straight away. It is hard enough to control a car as an inexperienced driver at lower speeds, let alone on a motorway. New drivers need time to gain experience before being allowed to drive on the motorway.



Don’t let your teen drive with friends too soon – friends are a distraction. They can build up to inviting a friend in their car. It’s also extremely important to teach them about other possible distractions: changing a CD or sending a text message whilst driving. They should learn that if they want to change a CD, or reply to a text message, they should pull over when they can safely do so. It is a good idea to encourage them to drive without music while they are still learning – some teens become overconfident too soon, and don’t realise that music can be a great distraction.



Restrict driving to daylight hours as driving at night has the danger of poor visibility. Teens can also be less responsible driving at night as that is when they are often driving for recreational purposes and it is also the time when most fatal crashes involving young people occur.



Finally, make sure they understand that drinking and driving is not an option. Alcohol is known to alter judgement and driving skills – and it doesn’t have to be in large amounts. So make it a rule in your household and amongst your teen’s friends that there is a zero tolerance of alcohol and drugs while driving and explain why.



If you put this information into practice, you should be able to feel confident that your teen will be safer out driving and more aware of the hazards. Accidents do happen, and can happen to us at any age, but with the right advice from you, they should have a much lower chance of having an accident.