Car accidents in Florida are the leading cause of death of Florida teenagers, and fatalities related to teen driving have actually increased over the years. Perhaps the spike in motor vehicle fatalities involving teenage drivers and passengers is due to distracted driving, such as texting while driving. Despite the fact that teens are aware of these frightening statistics and many teens do understand how dangerous texting and driving can be, a recent survey indicates that teenage drivers still frequently send or read text messages behind the wheel.
A State Farm Insurance survey found that 26 percent of teens admitted to sending or reading at least one text while driving, and one in five teen drivers admitted to sending multiple texts while driving and engaging in extended correspondence through text messages. However, the survey also noted that 78 percent of teens have spoken up to a friend who was participating in distracted driving, which indicates that the message about teen driver safety is possibly sinking in.
Because teen car crashes in Florida continue to occur, our Sarasota accident attorneys would like to bring attention to the upcoming events including:
- April 2013 is Distracted Driving Awareness Month
- October 20-26, 2013, is National Teen Driver Safety Week
Teen Driver Safety Week 2013
Although National Teen Driver Safety Week doesn’t take place until the autumn, it is never too early to raise awareness about teen safety behind the wheel, such as:
- Always buckling up every time you get into a moving motor vehicle no matter your age
- Respecting the driver
- Encouraging safe teen driver behaviors such as never driving distracted or drunk
- Promoting safe teen passenger behavior such as speaking up when a driver is texting or participating in another form of distracted driving—a program called Ride Like A Friend. Drive Like You Care is a great school-based campaign to encourage this behavior
With wide discussion of safe driving messages for teenage drivers and passengers alike, hopefully 2013 National Teen Driver Safety Week and Distracted Driving Awareness Month will help make more teen drivers aware of the dangers on the road and reduce Florida teenage auto accidents.
While distracted teen drivers cause many car accidents in Sarasota, Tampa, and St. Petersburg, there are many teenage drivers who are injured from other negligent motorists. If your son or daughter was injured in a car crash, please call the experienced Sarasota personal injury lawyers at Mallard Perez for help pursuing justice at 888-409-3805. You will get your questions answered in a free legal consultation and you can also request a free copy of our book What You Need to Know After a Florida Auto, Truck or Bike Accident.
