Auto Insurance: Connecticut Teen Driving Safety
We recently wrote a post on teen driving and the dangers of driving while texting. It is no secret that teen drivers are one of the riskiest demographics.
Teens tend to overestimate their driving abilities and underestimate the dangers. To combat this, all 50 states and the District of Columbia have a 3 stage graduated driver licensing system (GDL). GDL requires teens build up driving experiences under lower-risk conditions; the premise is that they will mature and develop skills to help them driver more safely. The GDL program has been proven to significantly reduce the risk of teen accident fatalities by requiring teens to earn their license over a period of time.
The five GDL provisions are permit age, practice driving hours, license age, and night driving and passenger restrictions. However the level and extent that each provision is enforced is up to the individual state. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety examines each state’s current laws. The projections are based on research that indicates what key factors might prevent fatal crashes and collisions claims for teen drivers.
Connecticut currently ranks relatively high in terms of implementing GDL procedures to protect teen drivers. We top the charts in permit age restrictions, and restricting the number of passengers in the car. Areas of improvement include the number of practice hours, license age, and night driving. According to estimated effects, raising the license age to 17 years (current age is 16 years, 4 months), and implementing an 8:00 pm driving curfew (current curfew is 11:00), and increasing the number of practice hours could reduce the number of fatal collisions by 17%. To see the full results, take a look at the Young Driver Licensing System by the IIH.
We spend so much time in our cars, driving to work, doing errands, and taking the kids to school and all their extracurricular activities, not to mention eventually sending our children off behind the wheel. At Byrnes Insurance Agency, we provide individuals throughout Connecticut and the country with auto insurance plans to protect against unforeseen damages and injuries. Contact us today for more information.