With the lack of experience of older drivers, teen drivers pose a distinct threat to many on the road. Although these drivers are legally held in the same regard as others, their inexperience can sharply increase the possibility of a serious accident. Even with the help of a driver's education program and the rigors of state testing, many unready or immature drivers slip through the system and gain their licenses.
Especially with the boom in hand-held technologies, problems with cell phone use have markedly set teen drivers apart from older drivers. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the National Center for Statistics and Analysis recorded the 16- to 24-year-old age group as the most common offenders of cell phone use on the road. In 2008, this figure reached 8 percent, which dropped from 9 percent in the previous year.
Alcohol use among teens, which is strictly prohibited in any context in the majority of states, accounted for nearly one-third of all teenage road fatalities. 31 percent of these deaths were attributed to a driver with a noticeable amount of alcohol in their system. Considering that many states hold a low threshold for teen intoxication charges or use a zero tolerance standard, this alcohol abuse stands out as a serious instance of recklessness. For a quarter of these individuals, the driver was legally intoxicated at 0.08% BAC or higher when the crash occurred.
In the event of an accident, many teens suffer severe injuries or die because of their unwillingness to use seat belts. The 2008 figures offered that 55 percent of all teen drivers or passengers killed in an accident were not wearing a seat belt when the accident occurred. This accounted for 2,014 of the 3,678 teen traffic fatalities in 2008.
For more information regarding legal action in response to these acts of negligence, contact a car accident lawyer.
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