Understanding Teenage Driving Laws

Parents need to know the teenage driving laws before they even think about letting teens learn to drive. Statistics for deaths and injuries have been so alarming that new teenage driving laws have been enacted in all 50 US states. 

• The leading cause of death for teenagers is motor vehicle crashes.
• The younger the driver (age 16), the higher the probability of being in an accident.
• The higher the number of passengers in the car, the higher the death rates in a fatal accident.
• One third of all auto accidents involving teens were attributed to teen alcohol consumption.
• More than half of teen drivers use a cell phone while driving.
• Teens are most likely of any drivers to speed and drive recklessly.

New Laws for Teen Drivers
Every state has toughened the regulations for who can drive, when and where. Some of these laws restrict 16-year-olds to driving with an adult for at least 6 months. Others forbid 16- and 17-year-olds from carrying passengers under 21, outside immediate family, for their first year on the road. Seat belt use is mandatory in many states for drivers under the age of 18, even if a general seat belt law is not in effect.

Several states now require a minimum number of hours spent in traffic schools or drivers education programs before a teen can apply for a driver's license. Most states have enacted curfews for drivers under 18, typically between the hours of 1AM and 6AM. One third of US states ban teens from using cell phones while they drive. To find out which laws apply in your state, check the Web site of your state's department of motor vehicles.

If the laws seem restrictive, the penalities for breaking them are worse. Some states have imposed fines as high as $1,000 for teen offenders. Teens may also lose their provisional driver's licenses and have to complete a driver education course and pay a reinstatement fee to get the license back.

Drinking and Driving
There's a simple rule that applies to teen operators and alcoholic beverages: the acceptable blood alcohol level is zero, regardless of the laws that apply to adults. Drunk driving penalties for teens are much harsher than those for adults in some states, with mandatory license loss until the age of 18. In a few states, teens who posess alcohol will lose their driver's licenses, even if they're not in or near a car when the offense occurs. Teens who lose their licenses for drunk driving offenses will need to attend alcohol education programs before their licenses can be reinstated.