Helping Your Teenage Driver Stay Safe on the Road

A tough time for most parents is when their teenager gets behind the wheel of a car. You're happy to see them reach this milestone but afraid about what might happen when they're out on their own. As parents, we want to protect our kids from everything, from monsters under the bed to bad air quality. While you can't protect them at all times forever, there are a few things you can do to help. Below are a few suggestions for how you can help keep your teen driver safe while they're on the road.

Give Them Emergency Contact Information

An easy way to start is by giving your kids a list of emergency contact information. These days many of us store important phone numbers in our cell phones and don't bother to memorize them. However, if you get stuck on the side of the road and your phone battery dies, you may have no idea who to call when you borrow a stranger's phone. This is where a written out list of numbers can help.

On the list, start by including your phone number along with that of any other family members. Your teenager likely knows how to dial 9-1-1, so you can skip that one, but maybe include the non-emergency number for your local police precinct. After that, add a phone number for roadside assistance. This might include the number of the assistance hotline provided by your car insurance company, a separate third-party assistance company like AAA, or even just the number of a nearby towing service.

Finally, you might want to add the number of a car accident lawyer. According to the Chopin Law Firm, a New Orleans car accident lawyer, "Working with an attorney is often an essential part of a car accident aftermath, whether you were at fault or not." A good attorney can help ensure that you receive ample payment from your insurance provider and help settle any claims against other negligent drivers.

Stock Their Vehicle with Emergency Supplies

The next thing you can do is give your teenager some basic emergency supplies to store inside their vehicle. You never know where you might find yourself stranded and in need of some supplies to help you get through the situation. For example, you might get a flat tire at night, at which point a flashlight would certainly help you change the tire. Or your teenager might get into an accident and need some items to help them bandage up a scrape until they can see a medical professional. There are many emergency supply lists you can find online, but a few items to start with include a flashlight, first aid kit, water bottles, basic tools, and some road flares.

Get a Vehicle with the Latest Safety Technology

Modern cars often come packed with safety technology designed to protect you while driving. If you're helping your teenager get their first vehicle, you should help them find one that has plenty of the latest safety technologies. For example, some vehicles can monitor your blind spot for you while you drive, while others can parallel park for you. There are even some vehicles with teen-driver modes, where the settings of the vehicle change when your teenager is driving. Browse through a list of the safest vehicles on the road and convince your teen to get one of them.

Teach Them Proper Driving Habits

As a parent, perhaps the best thing you can do to help your teenager stay safe on the road is to teach them how to drive properly. Your kids are going to pick up habits from you, even if you don't realize it. They'll learn how to drive not only from what you tell them but also from what you demonstrate while driving. This means it's not enough to tell your child to come to a complete stop at a stop sign, you must also do it yourself. Whenever you're in the car with your teenager, practice safe driving habits and provide advice on how they can improve. The more you do this now, the safer they'll be when they're driving without you.

Remind Them to Take Care of Their Car

Finally, make sure your kids take proper care of their car. Teenagers are often forgetful and may ignore basic maintenance tasks for their vehicles. If this happens, their vehicle is more likely to break down while they're driving and may even cause an accident. It's a good idea to find out when your teenager's vehicle needs to go in for service maintenance, then add this to your personal calendar. As the date approaches, you can remind your child until they get it done. Hopefully, with enough reminding of the importance of car maintenance, they'll develop a habit of doing it themselves going forward.