Despite the festivities that Memorial Day has brought upon friends and families, there are still plenty of things to remember before continuing with summer activities. Aimed at teenagers eager to get on the road, as well as their parents, the American Automobile Association has sent out a warning reminding them that the next 100 days are statistically the most dangerous for them. This is mainly because, with summer here, there are more young drivers eager to get on the road and enjoy their vacation.
Fox 59 reported that the 100 days following the holiday are when car accidents involving teenage drivers tend to spike up. In the last five years alone, 1,022 individuals have died from crashes, on average, that somehow involve teen drivers. This number is 16% higher than the average number of deaths throughout the rest of the year.
AAA states that distractions are the biggest cause of the accidents. For their research, AAA has looked into the footage of numerous dashcams. The company has found out some very unnerving information from the recorded videos.
It was noted by WTOP that in more than 2,000 cases involving younger drivers between the years of 2007 to 2012, 15% of the accidents occurred because the drivers were talking to passengers, 12% were talking or texting with their cellular phones and 11% were looking for something within their own vehicles.
These accidents are, of course, avoidable. In fact, better habits are all it takes to steer clear of them. AAA challenges parents to speak to their teenagers in order for them to understand the possible consequences of their seemingly harmless actions. As advised by AAA, concerned parents should follow the succeeding steps:
1. Have conversations with their kids to discuss the dangers of distracted driving - provide the numbers
2. Discuss family rules about driving - set boundaries about car use, implement consequences
3. Teach by example - follow the same rules imposed on the teenagers of the house
