For many teen drivers, speeding and texting are a Deadly combination.
Teen drivers frequently text while driving, speed, or do both, often resulting in serious car accidents, according to a recent study about the dangers teenage drivers pose to other drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists on the road.
"We all want teen drivers to be safe on the road for themselves, their passengers, and the people who share the road with them," Catherine McDonald, co-director of the PENN Injury Science Center at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing and the lead researcher for the recent study, said in an interview with Health Day News. "We need to encourage safe driving and find ways to help prevent those risky driving behaviors like speeding and cellphone use that can lead to a crash."
Collisions caused by inexperienced teenage drivers have long been a serious problem. Our Tampa car accident attorneys at Armando Personal Injury Law know all too well because we have worked with people dealing with the aftermath of such devastating car crashes.
How common are texting while driving accidents among teens?
The PENN Injury Science Center studied the driving habits and cellphone use of teen drivers who had their driver's licenses less than eight months. The average age of the drivers in the study was 17 years old. Here's what researchers found out:
- 30 percent of teen drivers held their cellphone while they were driving.
- Teen boys and teen girls use cellphones equally while driving.
Such findings reflect similar studies focusing on texting while driving among teenagers. For example, a 2019 national Youth Risk Behavior Survey found that 39 percent of young drivers had texted or emailed while driving at least once during the past 30 days.
Teen drivers often speed.
The recent PENN Injury Science Center teen driving study found that 40 percent of young drivers drove over the speed limit. In addition, 5 percent of drivers admitted they had used their cellphones while driving and speeding.
"Teens are less averse to risk, and so when you add speeding to that it can be very, very deadly," Pam Shadel Fischer, senior director of external engagement at the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA), said in an interview with Health Day News. "We need them to understand that and we need them to also understand distraction takes your focus off the road."
These findings are similar to a previous GHSA study which found that speeding played a more prominent role in collisions caused by teen drivers compared to other age groups. Specifically, speeding was a factor in 43 percent of teen driver accidents compared to 30 percent for all other age groups.
Other reasons why teen drivers cause accidents
Along with texting while driving and speeding, other common contributing factors in collisions caused by teenage drivers include:
- Drinking and driving, even though teenagers are not legally allowed to drink alcohol.
- Distractions caused by teenage passengers in the car. The more teenagers in a vehicle, the more likely a teen driver will cause a collision.
- Inexperience, which often results in teen drivers not accurately assessing just how dangerous certain situations are on the road.
Why should I hire a Tampa car accident attorney?
You might think you don't need a lawyer if a teenage driver injured you in a car accident. But sadly, such injury claims or lawsuits often become complicated legal cases. The teen driver might deny doing anything wrong or even claim you somehow caused the collision. And their insurance company will almost surely do the same – somehow insist that you were at fault so they don't have to pay for your injury-related expenses.
We know the games insurance companies play and how to counter them. That's why we have such a strong track record of success in Florida. Discover what a dedicated Tampa car accident lawyer can do for you. Contact us and schedule a free case evaluation so we can answer your questions and explain your potential legal options. Our office is conveniently located on East 5th Avenue in Tampa, and we work on a contingency fee basis. That means you pay no fees unless we secure a monetary settlement or court judgment on your behalf.