Parents with teens out of school for the summer and driving for the first time might feel that they have their work cut out for them attempting to ensure safety. To lend a helping hand, some critical safety advice has been put together by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, and we’d like to relate that information to you.
Perhaps the best way to instill a sense of driving safety in your teen is to lay out some ground rules. By going online, you should be able to find a standard driving contract. The NAIC offers one such contract. Having a teen affix his or her signature to this kind of agreement teaches them that any failure to follow the rules contained therein is grounds for the vehicle being taken away.
The contract you agree to could have rules pertaining to how late the teen is able to drive. An estimated 2 in 5 teenage fatalities on the road occur from 9 pm to 6 am. You should also explain to your teens that they’re not to carry more than one or two passengers. The more people in a vehicle, the higher the potential for distraction and showoff behaviors at the wheel.
Distractions posed by cellphone should also not be tolerated. Explain to your teens the danger and ask them to pipe up if they’re a passenger and a driver insists on texting or otherwise refusing to focus on the road.