May 7, 2012

If you are a parent of a teen you want to do everything you can to make sure your teen takes safe driving seriously. One of the leading causes of teen death is car crashes and you do not want your son or daughter to become a statistic. Your Matthews North Carolina Toyota dealer wants to keep your teen safe behind the wheel. Here are some safety tips to consider.

 

Show a Good Example

Kids learn by example and being a good role model just may be what keeps your teen safe. If you don’t want your teen to speed, then make sure you follow the speed limit. If you don’t want your teen to text and drive, then avoid using your cell phone when you are behind the wheel. If you want your teen to buckle up then make sure you do the same.

 

Practice and Practice Some More

Your teen will not learn how to drive safely in one day’s time or even in a month’s time. It takes lots of practice to learn how to handle a vehicle during the day, at night and in different weather and road conditions. A great way to start is to work with your teen in a large empty parking lot where they can get used to the car’s controls. Then move onto an empty roadway if possible and work your way up to different driving conditions like driving in the rain, snow and in rush hour traffic.

 

Set Ground Rules

Finally, when your teen is ready to head out on their own, it is a good time to set some ground rules. This might include allowing them only to drive during the day time hours for a set length of time, not allowing them to drive around their friends until they are more experienced and having rules for wearing seatbelts and not eating while driving.