There’s a new bill on its way to Florida’s House and Senate that is designed to keep parents in the know regarding their teen driver’s habits on our roadways, according to NBC2. With parents overlooking teen driving habits, officials feel these young drivers will be more conscious of their driving habits. Under the bill, parents can sign up to receive notifications regarding their teens’ driving habits, including tickets, warnings and car accidents in Wellington and elsewhere.
“I think it’s a great idea, I think the more info you know about your children, the better,” says a South Florida parent.
Our Wellington teen car accident lawyers understand that parents could choose to sign up for the new program, if it passes the House and the Senate, and could receive text messages and e-mail alerts directly from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Parents would know when their teen driver got a speeding ticket, another traffic violation, got into a traffic accident or if their license had been suspended. Many officials think that this program will get teen drivers to pay more attention to their habits behind the wheel.
Parents would no longer receive these notifications once their teen driver turns 18. The bill is sponsored by Senator Greg Evers (R-Baker) and Representative Richard L. Steinberg (D-Miami Beach).
As we are in the thick of the holiday season, we’re seeing more visitors and residents out on our roadways. Millions are expected to make Florida their holiday destination. With this increase in traffic volume, our risks for car accidents will increase significantly. This is the ideal time for parents to sit down with the young drivers in their lives and talk about the importance of safe driving during this time of year. These young drivers possess much less driving experience than older drivers and are less able to handle the danger that accompanies holiday traffic.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is here to offer parents with a few safe driving tips to discuss with their young drivers before the new year.
Teen Safe Driving Tips:
-Be sure to offer your teen plenty of supervised practice driving time on a variety of road and traffic conditions so that they’re better equipped to hand real-life driving.
-Make sure your teen drivers always wears a seat belt. Seat belts may be one of the best measures to help prevent injury in the event of an accident.
-Limit the amount of time they spend driving at night. Teen’s risks for an accident increase significantly during this time. Consider enacting a curfew.
-Restrict the number of passengers that they can have in the vehicle at one time because the more passengers in a vehicle, the greater the risk for an accident.
-Although teens aren’t old enough to drink legally, the sad truth is that many of our young ones drink and drive. Talk with your teen about the risks and consequences that are associated with drunk driving.
If you or the teen driver in your life has been injured in a car accident in Wellington or elsewhere in South Florida, contact Freeman, Mallard, Gonzalez & Sharp to discuss your rights. Call us for a free consultation at 1-800-529-2368.
Additional Resources:
New bill alerts parents to teen driving habits, by Joelle Parks, NBC2
More Blog Entries:
HEARTS Networking Asking Victims of Teen Car Accidents in Lauderhill and Elsewhere to Raise Awareness, South Florida Injury Lawyers Blog, December 16, 2011
MADD and the NFL Team Up to Prevent Drunk Driving-Related Teen Car Accidents in Hollywood and Elsewhere, South Florida Injury Lawyers Blog, December 9, 2011