Teen Safe Driving

Educate YOUR teenage driver on road safety, driving rules, facts and statistics and the dangers of texting while driving!

Parents: Your Role

The State of New York has set laws for young drivers. Parents need to determine their own family rules in addition to the state laws. Make sure both sets of rules are clear from the start.

Enforce a passenger limit - According to New York State DMV, Teen drivers under the age of 18 that hold a junior learner permit or junior driver license, must be accompanied by a licensed adult that is a minimum of 21 years of age.

Enforce safety belt use for your teen and all passengers - New York State DMV also states that NY’s Seatbelt Law requires that all drivers & passengers riding in the front seat wear a safety belt. In addition, every occupant, regardless of age or seating position, of a motor vehicle being operated by the holder of a Class-DJ Learner Permit, a Limited Class-DJ, or Class-DJ Driver License must be restrained by a safety restraint. All passengers under 16, no matter where they sit in the vehicle must be wearing safety belts or use an appropriate child safety restraint system, if not, the DRIVER will be issued a ticket for ALL violations. That can get pretty expensive!

Consider setting an earlier driving curfew - especially for the first six months. Set clear expectations, and ensure your teen obeys the state laws.

101 Days of Summer: Get the Facts!

According to Youth Traffic Safety Statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration:

• Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for teens in the U.S.
• Nationally in 2006, 4,842 teen passenger vehicle occupants, ages 16 to 20, were killed in motor vehicle crashes, and 58 percent (2,813) were unrestrained at the time of the fatal crash.
• According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), teenage drivers and passengers are among those least likely to wear their safety belts.
• While all teens are at a high-risk of experiencing a fatal crash, according to NHTSA, young males, pickup truck drivers and passengers, as well as people living in rural areas are also among those least likely to buckle up.
• During 2006, a teen died in a traffic crash an average of once every hour on weekends and nearly once every two hours during the week.

New York Teen Accident Numbers!

A recent Newsday story stated that in New York State, 236 teens died in traffic accidents and another 236 individuals were killed by cars driven by teens in 2007 alone.

The NYS DMV states that 32% of all fatalities in the years 2004 through 2006 occurred in crashes that involved younger drivers.

Click here to read more!

Additional Information

NY Teen Driving Safety Booklet for Parents Drive with care!

MADD - The Power of Parents MADD has created a powerful new web resource where parents can find research-proven strategies for preventing underage drinking at home and in their community.

Teen Driving – That’s Mayhem We're not saying every kid is texting and driving. We're just saying if you are, it's dumb. And you should stop.

More Tools from Allstate

Allstate Teen Drivers: Play the games – become a better driver! CLICK HERE!

Parent-Teen Driver Contract from Allstate: Download, print and use this important tool! CLICK HERE!