How to help your teen become a safe driver

Let’s face it: teenagers and driving don’t always mix well. In fact, the risk of motor vehicle crashes is higher among teenagers ages 16 to 19 than among any other age group. Teens are also more likely than older drivers to make critical decision errors that can lead to serious crashes, and they’re more likely to get distracted by texting or talking on their phone while driving. Worse yet, about seven teens die in the U.S. each day from motor vehicle crashes, and car crashes are the leading cause of death for teens (15-18 years old) in the U.S.

But as a parent you can take steps to make your teenager safer when they’re behind the wheel.

Choose a safe car. Don’t put your child in the cheapest car possible. Your teenager should be driving a vehicle that has advanced safety features, including forward collision warning (FCW), automatic emergency braking (AEB), pedestrian detection (PD), lane departure warning (LDW), and blind spot warning (BSW). These active safety features can help your teenage driver avoid or mitigate a crash in a wide range of situations, such as changing lanes into an unseen car in a blind spot or approaching another car too quickly.

Need help narrowing down your options? Consumer Reports and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety recently compiled a list of the best used vehicles for teen drivers based on safety, reliability, and affordability.

Stress the importance of defense driving. Let your teenager know that they should be continually scanning for potential hazards—vehicles, bicyclists, and pedestrians. Consider encouraging them to take a defense driving course through an organization like the National Safety Council or AAA.

Enroll your teen in a driver’s ed course. Electric Insurance offers a discount if a driver on your car insurance policy who is under age 21 completes a state-approved driver’s education course. Another reason to enroll your teen in a driver’s ed class: Young drivers who don’t complete a driver's education course are 75% more likely to get a traffic ticket, 24% more likely to be involved in a fatal or injury accident, and 16% more likely to have an accident.

Use phone settings to reduce distractions. Both iPhones^® and Androids™ have do-not-disturb settings that, when enabled on your teen’s phone, can silence all notifications—calls, texts, and social media alerts—while they’re driving. This article explains how to turn on do-not-disturb modes on iPhones and Androids.

Sign a parent-teen driving agreement. It’s important to establish ground rules for your teenager’s driving behavior, such as limits on the number of passengers and restricted driving times or locations—and consequences for breaking these rules. This can all be laid out in a parent-teen driver agreement that states your family’s rules of the road. For accountability, have your child sign the agreement; you should also sign the form, with a provision where you promise to drive safely yourself.

Be a good role model. Your child can glean a lot from watching you as a drive-+-*r, so it’s important to be a good role model and follow safe driving practices while you’re behind the wheel with your teen in the passenger seat.

Discuss the dangers of drug and alcohol use. Driving while under the influence of drugs or alcohol significantly increases the risk of car crashes, since substances and alcohol can impair a driver’s coordination, judgment, and reaction times. Emphasize that to your teenager—and let them know they can call you if such a situation arises.

Curb costs. Adding a teen driver to your auto insurance policy increases the cost of your plan. But there are opportunities to save without compromising the quality of your coverage. See the sidebar for more details.

Take the Risk Coach™ Approach

A 2022 survey found that 96% of survey respondents misunderstood at least one important feature of their auto coverage. More than half misunderstood several. We want better than that for our clients. When you work with our Risk Coaches, you’ll work with a licensed insurance professional who’ll help you get the right coverage at the best price. 

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Use the chat feature on this page, or call us for a no-cost, no-obligation-to-buy, coverage needs assessment. Our Risk Coaches are ready to help you review your car insurance policy and fill any gaps in coverage before the holidays begin. They’re available at 800.342.5342  Monday through Friday, from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. ET.

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