The Realities of Young Drivers

A distracted teen driver #selfie #yolo

The fact is, it's costly to add a young driver, even when nothing else has changed on the policy. Risk impacts premium, and young drivers are risky. This may be surprising to parents, so here are a few reasons to help explain why.

Inexperience:

Leading cause of teen crashes

Three most commons errors due to experience:

Lack of scanning the roadway

Driving too fast for conditions

Distraction by something inside/outside vehicle

Distractions:

• Texting and talking on the phone (even hands free!)

• Other distractions aren't high-tech: eating, reaching for something, putting on make up or checking out pretty scenery

Speeding:

• Not just driving faster than the posted limit

• Includes driving too fast in poor conditions

• Teens don’t yet know how to adjust when traffic is moving faster or slower than the posted speed limit

• Results in following too closely or unsafe passing

Impaired driving:

• Often caused by alcohol

• All 50 states have zero tolerance laws for underage drinking and driving

• Driving without sleep can be like driving drunk

• Teens need, but rarely get, eight to ten hours of sleep. Getting only six increases crash risk and being awake 18 hours is like having a blood alcohol content of .10 percent - that's higher than the legal limit for adults!