Southern California Accident News

October 17-24: National Teen Driver Safety Week

October 17th through 24th is National Teen Driver Safety Week

Traffic accidents are the leading cause of death for teenagers in the United States. For each mile driven, teens are involved in three times as many crashes as drivers in other age groups, explains a California injury lawyer.

The high incidence of car accidents among teenagers has been attributed to multiple factors: inexperience behind the wheel, speeding, driving under the influence, neglecting to wear seat belts, distracted driving (i.e., texting-while-driving), drowsy driving, and night time driving.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) compiled some statistics on these factors:

• • Teens between the ages of 15 and 19 years old accounted for 11% of fatalities resulting from distracted-driving accidents in 2008. 18% of teenage traffic fatalities involved distracted driving that year.
• • 58% of individuals between the ages of 16 and 20 years old involved in fatal collisions in 2006 were not wearing seat belts.
• • In 2006, 1,377 (18%) of the 7,643 15- to 20-year-old drivers and motorcyclists involved in fatal traffic crashes had a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 or higher.

In response, the NHTSA created a website to provide parents and teens with resources and information to promote measures proven to reduce teenage traffic accidents, including seat belt use, graduated driver’s licenses, and alcohol use prevention. 

Additional information, including articles covering accident statistics, studies on California roads, and accident victims’ rights, is available free of charge to the public.

To request a book or an article, or to speak with a California injury lawyer, feel free to call 866-981-5596. 

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