Summer is here, school is out, and relaxation is at its peak. For teens across the country, now is the perfect opportunity to use that fresh, new driver’s license and enjoy all the freedoms that summer has to offer.
However, this is no time to remain carefree behind the wheel. Each year, fatal teen accident rates increase during the time between Memorial Day and Labor Day, for which the period is now dubbed as the notorious “100 Deadliest Days of Summer.”
Fatal Teen Accident Statistics
During the summer, an average of 260 teens are killed in car crashes each month, a 26% increase compared to other months of the year. Teens also have the highest crash rate of any age group, and these numbers do not even take into consideration the number of other people injured or killed in teen accidents.
Teens are more likely to engage in negligent or reckless driving behaviors. Combine that with the fact that teens simply have fewer driving skills, less experience behind the wheel, and limited decision-making abilities and you have a recipe for disaster.
A few of the most common risk factors for teen drivers include:
Drunk Driving
Distracting Driving
Speeding
Keeping Your Teen Drivers Safe
It’s easy to solely think about the dangers that teens themselves face when participating in dangerous or reckless driving behaviors. However, teens also have the highest rates of fatal accidents involving passengers, pedestrians, and occupants of other vehicles.
With that said, teen driver safety impacts everyone. In order to keep our roads and teens safe this summer, we urge parents to set an example of safe driving and enforce safe driving practices for young drivers. Here are a few ways to do this:
Set driving curfews so teens are not driving at night
Limit or eliminate passengers within their vehicles
Have them commit to putting their phones away while driving
Make seatbelt use a top priority
If your teen is involved in an accident this summer, it’s imperative to seek out effective legal representation to protect your family’s rights. When it comes to car accident liability, you want to ensure that someone is looking out for your best interests and will leave no stone unturned when investigating the cause of the accident.
Contact the Law Offices of Vic Feazell at (254) 938-6885 to get started on your case.