National Teen Driver Safety Week Educating New Drivers Nationwide

Our Fort Lauderdale car accident lawyers understand that car accidents are the number one cause of death for teenagers in the state of Florida.

It’s important that we help our newly-licensed drivers to get the driver’s education that they need to help them to stay out of accidents. That’s why officials with the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (DHSMV) are putting on Teen Driver Safety Week. This is a week-long campaign that takes place during the third full week of every October. It’s during this time that safe driving advocates work to spread the word about the importance of safe driving habits among our young drivers.

“It’s important that teens learn to be safe drivers from the beginning, and we encourage parents to be involved,” said the Director of the DHSMV, Col. David Brierton.

There are over 700,000 licensed teenagers in the state of Florida. Just last year, there were about 30,000 of them who were involved in fatal car accidents. In these crashes, there were close to 200 drivers between the ages of 15 and 19 who were killed. Many of these accidents and these fatalities could have been prevented if these newly-licensed drivers were offered a more thorough driving education.

During this week-long safe driving campaign, officials with the DHSMV and with the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) will be visiting high schools across the state and will be putting on presentations to help to dramatize car accidents as viewed through the eyes of the responding paramedics. With these presentations, officials hope to bring home the message to young drivers about the importance of always wearing a seat belt, keeping the number of young passengers to a minimum, keeping distractions out of the driver’s seat and staying sober behind the wheel. Safe driving habits learned early on can turn into lifelong of safety.

Officials with the DHSMV are here to offer parents with a few pointers regarding safe driving habits and their teen. Review these Teen Driving Safety Tips and share them with the young driver in your family to help to keep them safe out there.

Teen Driving Safety Tips:

-Make sure every passenger is buckled up during every ride.

-Never drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

-Make sure the windshield is clean to help to maximize visibility.

-Avoid driving at night if you can.

-Make sure your vehicle always has enough gas. You never want to get yourself stuck on the side of the road.

-Keep the number of young passengers in the car to a minimum. Young passengers only increase your risks for an accident.

-Obey all road laws, this includes posted speed limits and other traffic devices.

-Always adjust your driving behaviors to accommodate the current weather, road and traffic conditions.

-You should always turn on your headlights during daylight driving. more If you or a loved one has been injured or killed in an accident, contact Fort Lauderdale Accident Attorney Richard Ansara. Call (954) 761-401 for a free and confidential consultation to discuss your case. More Blog Entries: Miami-Fort Lauderdale Ranks in Top 5 Most Dangerous Areas in Nation to Drive, Broward Injury lawyer Blog, July 20, 2012 Teen Car Accidents in Fort Lauderdale a High Risk with Relaxed GDL Laws, Broward Injury lawyer Blog, June 7, 2012