Ideally, teen drivers in California and throughout the nation will drive to work, school or social events without passengers in their vehicles. Research has found that teenagers are 44% more likely to get into accident when they have a passenger of a similar age in their cars. Generally speaking, newer drivers don’t have the experience to keep their focus on the road when other people are nearby. In many cases, siblings can be more distracting to teen drivers than their friends are.
Therefore, parents should avoid having their older children drive their younger brothers or sisters to football practice or to a dance class. Siblings are more dangerous for a teen to drive with because they know how to get the driver to laugh or how to make that person angry. This can result in a driver focusing more on getting even with the passenger as opposed to road conditions.
After six months, parents can consider whether to lift the passenger ban, but it is generally a best practice to keep it in place for a full year. Teens could also be at risk if they are passengers in another young driver’s automobile. Parents are encouraged to find out who their kids are riding with, where they are going and if they are going to be riding with a teen driver at night.
People who are injured in car accidents caused by negligent drivers could be entitled to reimbursement for medical bills and other damages incurred. These damages may include lost wages, lost future earnings and the cost of replacing property. An attorney may use evidence such as phone records or physical evidence from a crash scene to show that negligence played a role.