What factors Contribute to Most Teen Driving Accidents?

The teen driving accidents caused at the age of 16 are more than those within 18-19 years. The crash rate per mile is one and a half times high for the 16-year-olds compared to the 18 and 19-year-old. There are plenty of significant factors that contribute to such accidents.

Besides, some latest news suggests that most of the teen drivers have been involved in the crash. In recent years, 31% of the fatal accidents among teenagers are due to speeding. Around 8% of the casualties are within the age of 16 and 20.

This article will reflect the factors that contribute to teen driving accidents.

Fatal car accidents have become one of the primary reasons causing death among teenagers in the United States. According to the findings of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the average 16-year-old faces fatal consequences from car accidents every day. The outcome usually becomes a heavy thing to bear for the lives of the families or everyone involved.

When the teenager causes a severe vehicle crash, it also leads to additional legal issues at that time. There are cases of injuries faced by teenagers as well as other pedestrians on the way. Motor vehicle crashes can usually be curbed with proper advice, knowledge, experience, and training.

Inexperience

Teens usually lack experience in driving and are not well equipped for recognizing and reacting to dangerous situations. This circumstance leads to the crash risk in particular and makes them vulnerable to face accidents in the first months. Sometimes earning a license also doesn’t make one an experienced driver. Good driving technique development becomes mandatory enough for the young driver so that he or she can avoid mistakes during the learning stages.

Not fastening seat belts

Seat belts are the utmost solution for significantly reducing the risk of severe fatal car accident injuries. Usually, teenagers start endangering themselves and others by ignoring the precautionary measures. According to the survey 2013, most high school students have been vulnerable to accidents due to lack of proper seat belt fastening. The teenagers also report the lowest rate of proper seat belt usage compared to the people from other age groups.

Alcohol and drugs

Driving under the influence of alcohol and drug use turns out to be deadly for even experienced drivers. When it comes to teenagers, they are more vulnerable to engage in dangerous behaviors. A quarter of the total number of teens has been reported of driving with drinking habits. Besides, the lack of experience with intoxication has always been one of the major reasons for motor vehicle accidents among teenagers.

There is also a considerable amount of teenagers who have been reported driving under the influence of hallucinogens, psychedelics, or other forms of drugs. Researchers have found that although more teenagers are found driving under the influence of cannabis and similar drugs. In fact, it is more of a significant problem than driving under the influence of alcohol. People who smoke under the influence of cannabis have four times the risk of crashing than people who have never driven under the influence of cannabis.

Distracted driving

Something necessary under the influence of eating and driving, consuming intoxicating products, drug use, alcohol, playing music, riding with friends, contribute to distracted driving and accidents. Other than the above, the most common thing that distracts drivers is talking and texting on mobile phones while driving. And younger people are more likely to make such mistakes.

All the above-mentioned distractions reduce the performance of the driver leading to severe injuries due to crashes. It further affects the cognitive and behavioral association of young drivers.

Improper speed management

Teenagers are more likely to speed when compared to older drivers. Men are more vulnerable to losing control of the speeding vehicle than women in the same age group. Young teenage men are involved in fatal crashes and likely to be caught speeding at the time of the crash.

Recklessness

Recklessness comes when teenagers start driving with other teen passengers. Young drivers riding with friends in the passenger seat are vulnerable to the influence of drugs or alcohol and engaging in other activities to the peer pressure. Sometimes, the drivers enter into the uncomfortable zone, which also happens due to their friends’ impression.

Social and peer group pressure can be very misleading and lead to fatal accidents on the road. Peer groups can affect a person’s driving both directly or indirectly, or intentionally or inadvertently. Teenagers usually believe that driving riskily can make their peers like them more. Whereas, teenagers who focus on the fact that their friends are not comfortable with them driving in such a manner tend to drive more securely.

Improper vehicle handling

For working through the physical maneuverability of the day-to-day driving motor, coordination of the hands, eyes, and feet is essential. However, teenagers are not fully mature and do not possess the required skills for proper driving. So, overestimation of the driving skills and technology and operating system of the vehicle turns out to be disastrous for them.

Fatigue

Driving while fatigue appears to be a very common thing among teenagers. Teenagers seem to be strongly affected by this behavior due to their irregular sleep patterns. A study found that even though younger people were less likely to drive while sleepy than older people, they were also less likely to pull over and take some rest when needed. The lack of rest in between leads to crashes and other sorts of mild or severe driving accidents. Teenagers involved in driving while fatigue is known to be involved in more number of fatal crashes that include two or more vehicles.

Final Verdict

The young drivers are responsible for the accidents that otherwise could be preventable. However, parents or legal guardians usually fail to remind teenagers regarding the development of safe driving skills. There comes a necessity of hiring lawyers from Arashlaw.com who can save you at the times you have suffered serious car accident injuries. The consultation with the most knowledgeable car accident injury attorneys will give you the required assistant sentence of paperwork, insurance assessment, and defense.