Teaching your teenage children how to drive is a rite of passage for both the parents and their children. It can be a nerve-wracking experience, especially given the fact that motor vehicle crashes remain the primary cause of death for adolescents. Luckily, this week is National Teen Driver Safety Week, and this year’s theme is supporting parents in teaching their teens to drive safely, reports azfamily.com.
The nationally-celebrated week was established in 2007 to raise awareness about the high amount of teen driving fatalities. Teens are reportedly involved in three times as many fatal crashes as other drivers.
AAA Arizona offers the following advice for parents with driving-age children:
- Develop a driving contract with your teen, which includes punishments for breaking the rules;
- Consider prohibiting passengers in their cars until they're more experienced drivers;
- Limit night driving;
- Commit at least 50 hours of supervised driving practice with your teen; and
- Be a good role model for your young driver, which means put away the cell phone!
Along with learning the rules of the road, parents should also remind their teen drivers about the dangers of underage drinking and driving. Arizona has a strict zero-tolerance rule, which means driving with any alcohol in your body can lead to a DUI charge.
An underage DUI is punishable by 2 years of probation, high fines, and the installation of an ignition interlock device. In addition, possessing open containers of alcohol in your car can result in a misdemeanor charge and a heavy fine.
Reinforcing teen driver safety habits, including prohibiting underage drinking, now may prevent tragedy from occurring in the future. Talk to your teen today about good driving; what better time will there be than during National Teen Driver Safety Week?
- Find a Phoenix DUI Attorney (FindLaw)
- Get Behind National Teen Driver Safety Week (teendriversource.org)
- Arizona DUI Laws (FindLaw)
- City of El Mirage: Underage Drinking and Driving Suspect Hits House (The Phoenix DUI Blog)
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