According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), teenage driver accidents are so common that they are now considered to be the leading cause of death among teenagers (boys and girls between the ages of 15 and 19).

In addition, males and females in this age bracket are responsible for 14 percent of all car accident-related fatalities, even though they only make up about seven percent of the driving population. Despite popular thought, boys are no more likely to crash or become involved in car accidents than girls.

Why are teenage driver accidents so common, and why are teenagers, more than older drivers, at particular risk for crashing and causing auto accidents, killing themselves or their passengers or other innocent victims? It’s because they’re risk takers, says Rose McMurray, the NHTSA associate administrator for traffic safety programs. They’re new drivers, inexperienced drivers, distracted and unfocused drivers, more aggressive drivers, hormonal drivers, and risk-taking drivers who can often assume they’re “invincible” or “immortal.” Most teen drivers involved in car crashes were either drinking (illegally), speeding, or both.

Of course, all teenagers (and everybody else, for that matter) must pass both a written and practical driving test before they can get their license to drive on their own, but the truth of the matter is that teenagers are often not experienced with many everyday driving situations. Such as traffic jams, high-traffic situations, highway driving, certain weather conditions (heavy rain, heavy snow, icy roads) before getting licensed, and are therefore unprepared for what to do and unsure how to respond when those situations do arrive in their early driving days, weeks, months, and even years.

Some experts believe that drivers education programs are somewhat at fault for the high incidence of teenage driver accidents. These programs tend to take the place of teens receiving personal, one-on-one training from a parent or other experienced, older adult who knows the teen, and the programs also tend to focus on teaching teens only the basics of road rules, how to drive, and what specifically they need to do to pass the driving test.

As a result, parents are under the mistaken impression that their teens come away from the driving program fully equipped and prepared to handle any and all driving situations. However, this is often not the case; in fact, many newly licensed teenage drivers are putting themselves, their passengers, and other drivers at huge risk simply by driving.

It’s even more upsetting to think that even if a teenager (whether it’s you, your daughter or son, or someone else you know) is a proven responsible driver, they could still suffer major injuries or even death just by getting into a car with an irresponsible or inexperienced teen driver. In fact, the more passengers a teenage driver has, the more likely it is for the driver to get into an accident.

Parents of teenagers who died in teenage driver accidents throughout the U.S. are working to find ways to keep teenagers safe while driving. State driving laws and requirements and driver testing laws have changed, graduated drivers licensing programs have been incorporated, and educational programs informing teens and their parents about the reality of teenage driver accidents and their associated injuries and fatalities are increasing in number.

Of course, teenage driver accidents still happen, and many families involved in car crashes or other auto accidents seek compensation or litigation. You may require the services of a law firm specializing in car accidents if you’re a teenager and were recently responsible for a car crash or other auto accident that may have injured or killed others involved, if you’re the parent, guardian, or close relative of a teenager either responsible for the crash or a victim of the crash, or if you were otherwise involved in the auto accident caused by a teenager (whether you were a passenger or in the other car).

Our law firm is a reputable and established company that specializes in all types of auto accidents, teenage driver accidents included. If you’re looking for the services of a lawyer because of a car crash or other auto accident that was the fault of the teenager (whether you’re the teenager, the teenager’s parent, or someone else involved in the accident), then contact us today for more information or a consultation.