National Teen Driver Safety Week takes place during the third week of October. Organizations such as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) use the event to help teenagers learn strong driving habits. Since Las Vegas has more car accidents than many other U.S. cities, ER Injury Attorneys hopes to contribute to National Teen Driver Safety Week by offering the following tips. Our Las Vegas personal injury lawyers hope that you’ll share these tips with the teen drivers in your life.
Related: Youth Traffic Safety Month: 6 Important Things to Know
5 Safety Tips For National Teen Driver Safety Week
The majority of car accidents are preventable through proper safety habits. Although it’s never too late to learn, learning how to drive safely as a teen can help you stay safe on the road for a lifetime. Over the years, our Las Vegas car accident lawyers have learned simple tips that can greatly increase teen driver safety. Here is what we recommend:
- Your Safety Is the Highest Priority: When you ask a young driver what their number-one priority is while driving, most will get the answer wrong. Some will say that getting to their destination quickly is most important, while others will emphasize being courteous to other motorists. The most important lesson for young drivers to learn is that their priority should be keeping themselves and their passengers safe. Similar to the adage of how you can’t truly take care of anyone else unless you first take care of yourself, you can’t help other motorists stay safe unless you’re keeping yourself safe first.
- Teaching Doesn’t Stop at Driver’s Ed: Although driver’s education classes are a fantastic way for young drivers to learn the basics of driving and Nevada driving laws, there’s much more for teen drivers to learn. Driver’s education does not, nor is it meant to, teach any of the knowledge you’ve accumulated over decades of driving. This is especially true if you’ve been driving in Las Vegas, Henderson, or Summerlin for a long time. Take some time to teach the teen drivers in your life any of the tips and tricks you’ve learned over the years, especially ones that pertain to safety.
- Learn About Distracted Driving Issues: One of the fastest-growing causes of car accidents in the last decade is distracted driving. This might be more difficult for parents and guardians to understand, since they did not grow up with mobile phones like today’s teen drivers did. With that in mind, it’s important for adults to learn about the different types of distracted driving so that they can teach teens about focus. Be sure to stress the importance of keeping your eyes on the road and your hands on the steering wheel when you talk to your teens during National Teen Driver Safety Week.
- Make Sure Teens Understand How Deadly DUIs Can Be: With its reputation as a party town, Las Vegas sees its fair share of people driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. It’s important to make sure that your teens understand how deadly this can be. Driving a vehicle that weighs thousands of pounds and can travel at high speeds is a tremendous responsibility. Doing so while drunk or high is tremendously irresponsible, and can lead to catastrophic injuries or wrongful death.
- Be a Good Driving Role Model: Many parents and guardians often dismiss their bad habits with the saying, “Do as I say, not as I do.” This is a huge mistake when trying to help your teen drivers become safe drivers. Teens learn by observing the people in their lives and mimicking their behavior, sometimes consciously and sometimes unconsciously. As an adult, it’s your responsibility to make sure you always buckle up, never speed excessively, and always follow traffic laws while your teens are in the passenger seat. They will observe your good driving habits and integrate them into their own driving style.
Contact a Nevada Car Accident Lawyer
The Nevada car accident lawyers at ER Injury Attorneys hope that you use these National Teen Driver Safety Week tips to help your teens become safer drivers. Please share them with the teenagers in your life, as well as any friends and family with teens. The more time we spend with our kids teaching the importance of driving safety, the safer all of us will be.
Unfortunately, accidents can happen no matter how safe you or your teens are driving. Should you get into an accident caused by the negligence or recklessness of another party then contact ER Injury Attorneys for immediate assistance. Our knowledgeable and experienced lawyers represent accident victims throughout Nevada, including Clark and Nye County, Las Vegas, Henderson, Summerlin, Boulder City, Laughlin, and Pahrump. Call us today for a free, no obligation consultation at 702-878-7878 or connect with us online through LiveChat or encrypted contact contact form.
Remember, when you work with ER Injury Attorneys, you can be assured of receiving top-notch legal representation coupled with a commitment to treat you with the compassion and respect that you deserve. Best of all, our firm works on a contingency basis, so you don’t pay us a cent unless money has been won on your behalf. To make sure that you get the money that you deserve for your car accident, contact us today.