Summer time is generally a laid back time for everyone. Full of vacations and group activities, many people choose the summer time to enjoy themselves. Parents; however, should be aware that summer time is the season when most teen auto accidents occur. As usual it means that while everyone else gets to enjoy themselves, parents need to stay at the top of their game to help ensure the safety of their teenage drivers over the summer.
According to the American Automobile Association, seven of the 10 most deadly days for teenage drivers and passengers occur over the summer. Most fatal teenage car accidents occur during the months of June, July and August. To put the danger in perspective, over 7,300 teenage drivers and passengers died in highway accidents between Memorial Day and Labor Day during the five year period of 2005 to 2009. When broken down between different times of the year, the monthly average of teenage deaths related to car accidents is higher in the summer. On average 422 teens die in car accidents each month during the summer. Around 363 teens die in car accidents on average during the other months of the year.
The general cause of the higher rate of teen accident deaths is attributed to the greater amount of freedom that teens experience during the summer. Teens no longer have school obligations and also have less adult supervision. Therefore teens have a greater chance to ride around unencumbered with friends.
In order to reduce the risk of car accidents, parents should remain as involved over summer. Parents can continue to help teens with driving skills even after they earned their license by completing practice drives. Parents can also restrict teen driving trips to trips that have a purpose. The tactic can reduce aimless teenage car trips. Parents can also restrict driving at night. Finally, parents can restrict the number of passengers teens drive with. Many states have graduated licensing laws that outline the number of passengers teenage drivers can have. Parents should help enforce the restrictions and can add their own.
Source: MercuryNews, “Summer can be dangerous time for teen drivers, AAA reports,”6/10/11