A STUDY SHOWS TEENS’ PARENTS ARE TO BLAME FOR THEIR POOR DRIVING

Decades ago, teens were most at risk for becoming involved in drunk driving accidents. Nowadays, in an era in which virtually every American has a cellphone, distracted driving has become much more of a threat.

The 2017 Family Safe Driving Report, published by EverQuote, Inc., highlights how 74 percent of parents polled expressed more concern about their adolescents driving distracted more so than drunk.

Of the teens polled for the study, at least 44 percent reported having been in receipt of either a text or call from their own parents while behind the wheel. Some 31 percent of them admitted to having lost a loved one as a result of distracted driving.

The researchers then set out to better understand where the teens had learned the bad habit of chatting or texting on their cellphones while driving. They found that at least 63 percent of the teens’ parents reported having used their cellphones while operating their vehicles themselves.

As if cellphone usage while driving were not bad enough, speeding is another serious issue as well. The teens’ parents set a bad example for their kids on this end. Among those polled, at least 55 percent of all parents copped to having previously driven at excessive rates of speed while their children were in the car.

At least 23 percent of all teens polled for this study reportedly said that they didn’t believe their parents were good driving role models for one reason or another.

Distracted motorists are dangerous in that they not only become visually, but also mentally engaged in what they’re doing. This is why distracted driving crashes can be just as deadly, if not deadlier, than drunk driving ones.

If you’ve either been seriously injured or have a loved one that has been killed because of someone else’s distracted driving, then a Bowling Green, Kentucky, car crash attorney can advise you of your rights to file a legal claim in your collision case.

Source: The Huffington Post, “Shame on parents: Majority admit to distracted driving on mobile devices,” Sue Scheff, Aug. 22, 2017