Teen Driving Safety: Tips for Parents

Learning to drive is a big milestone for teens and a major responsibility for their parents. Teen drivers face high risks on the road due to inexperience, distractions, and impulsive decision-making. Car crashes are the leading cause of death among U.S. teens, with an estimated 8 teen deaths each day in 2020.

In Missouri, 76 fatal and 3,999 injury crashes involved teen drivers between 16 and 18 in 2022. These numbers highlight the value of engaged parenting in supporting safer teen driving habits.

Get practical tips for helping your teen make better choices behind the wheel in Missouri.

Understanding Teen Driving Risks

With limited driving experience, teens may struggle in situations like merging in heavy traffic or responding to sudden lane changes. This inexperience often leaves them unprepared for unexpected challenges on the road, especially in busy cities like St. Louis.

Distractions, like phones, food, or friends in the car, add to these risks. Per mile driven, teens between 16 and 17 face a 44% increase in crash risk when they have just one passenger under 21 in the vehicle.

Impulsiveness is also an issue, with teens often engaging in risky behaviors, such as speeding or not using seat belts. In 2022, 50% of teen drivers who died in U.S. car accidents were not buckled up, and nearly 33% of fatal incidents involved a speeding teen driver.

Teaching Your Teens Responsible Driving Habits

As a parent, setting clear rules and staying involved helps teens avoid risky behaviors. Try these tips to keep your teen safe on the road:

• Set Clear Expectations: Have open conversations with your teen about safe driving, covering basics like speed limits, phone-free driving, seatbelt use, and curfews. Explain why each rule matters for safety and responsibility. Revisit these expectations regularly to reinforce their importance.
• Follow Missouri’s GDL Laws: Review Missouri’s Graduated Driver Licensing rules together, going over each limit, like passenger restrictions and curfews. Enforce these guidelines to help your teen stay compliant, building safe habits as they gain experience.
• Provide Supervised Practice: Drive together often to help them gain confidence in varied situations, from heavy traffic to night driving. Encourage questions, give constructive feedback, and let them practice handling challenges, like merging or dealing with aggressive drivers.
• Establish Rules and Consequences: Outline specific driving rules, such as no phone use and limiting passengers. Set realistic consequences for breaking the rules, like restricted driving privileges, to reinforce safe habits.
• Model Good Behavior: Lead by example to show that safe driving isn’t just for teens. Follow traffic laws, put your phone away, and stay calm in challenging driving situations. Your actions set a standard they’re more likely to follow.

Encourage Open Communication and Ongoing Education

It’s important to openly communicate with your teen driver to keep them engaged with thinking about safety. Parents may feel they’re repeating themselves or worry about resistance, but honest conversations help teens see why safety matters.

Approach discussions in a way that invites dialogue rather than lecturing. For instance, start with, “I know you’re a great driver, but distractions can happen. How do you think we can handle that?” or “What would you do if you received a text while driving?” Asking these questions helps your teen think through specific situations and plan ahead.

Ongoing education helps teens build practical driving skills. Enroll your teen in driver education courses focused on defensive driving. These programs offer safe environments to practice emergency maneuvers and driving in bad weather, which can be hard to teach during regular practice.

The Role of Technology in Teen Driving

New technologies offer support for teen drivers, from in-car safety systems to apps promoting safer habits. Implement the following technologies and make sure your teen is familiar with how they work: 

• Forward Collision Warning: Introduce your teen to this feature by explaining how it alerts them to obstacles ahead, helping prevent rear-end collisions. Encourage them to respond promptly when the alert sounds.
• Blind-Spot Monitoring: Point out how this feature lights up or beeps when another vehicle enters a blind spot. Remind your teen to use this as a secondary check for lane changes and to check the mirrors as well.
• Parental Monitoring Tools: Consider setting up vehicle-based tools, like Ford’s MyKey, which allow parents to set speed and volume limits.
• Phone Apps for Safe Driving: Encourage safer habits by using apps like Life360, which tracks speed and braking, and DriveSmart, which silences notifications over 10 mph. These apps offer practical support for building responsible driving habits.

Protect Your Family’s Future

Guiding teens to drive responsibly is a lasting investment in their safety. Unfortunately, accidents can still happen, even if your teen drives cautiously. If your teen is involved in a collision, speak with our qualified St. Louis car accident attorneys at Cofman Townsley.

Our team can represent your family’s interests, gather evidence, and negotiate with insurers. With our skilled representation, you can pursue fair compensation from the driver who caused the crash. Contact us for a free consultation, and let us protect your family’s rights after a collision.