As summer begins, remind your young drivers to practice safe driving. When it comes to driving, risky behavior is a huge danger and is especially common in teens. You may know about the common risk of texting and driving; however, there are many other things that you should take into consideration before letting your teen take the road on their own such as drinking, not wearing their seatbelt, and the distraction of their passengers.
Here's what you can do to protect your teen and prevent them from being a hazard to other drivers:
- teach them to be a defensive driver
- help them build their confidence/experience on the road
- make sure they wear their seatbelt at all times (whether they are in the drivers or passengers seat)
- ride in the car with your teen occasionally to make sure they maintain good habits while driving
- introduce new privileges gradually
- limit the number of passengers they can have in their car
It is also very important to consider whether or not your teen is mature enough to drive on their own. Keep in mind that not all teens mature at the same pace, and because of this you should carefully consider whether or not your child can drive responsibly on their own.