If your teen has been involved in a traffic collision, or your teen has been the victim of another’s negligence, we encourage you to contact our car accident lawyers for a confidential consultation about your rights and the issues that may be involved in your case.
Don’t delay contacting an attorney because this can be a difficult process to navigate alone. There are time limits on how long you have to bring a claim or lawsuit.
Teenage Drivers
Teenagers can get their driver’s license at age 16 with some very important restrictions. Teen drivers who break the law face fines and immediate license suspension for an initial 48 hours. Additional suspensions are imposed if a conviction for certain violations is determined.
Notably, a teen driver convicted of a 1st offense of using a cell phone or text messaging while driving faces a 30-day license suspension and a license restoration fee.
For the first 6 months after obtaining a driver license, the driver may only drive with:
- A licensed driving instructor
- Parents or legal guardians, at least one of whom holds a valid driver license
- Person providing instruction who is at least 20 years old or has held a license for at least 4 years
- For the second 6 months, the driver may drive with:The above listed people
- Immediate family (e.g., brothers, and sisters)
- Until their 18th birthday, drivers may not use cell phones (even if hands-free) or other mobile electronic devices while driving.
- Teenage driving Accidents
- While many teens start driving with full respect for traffic laws and every intention of being responsible behind the wheel, the fact remains that without experience, even good intentions can be forgotten.
Seat belt facts about teens
- Teens have the lowest rate of seat belt use
- In 2013, only 55% of high school students
- reported wearing seat belts when riding with others
- Car crash risk is especially high during the first few months after getting a driver’s license. This may not always be due to irresponsibility or lack of attention. Sometimes, teen driver accidents happen simply because of a lack of experience.
As new drivers, teens are statistically more likely than older drivers to underestimate dangerous situations. They often may not recognize the potential for a hazardous situation until it is too late. In addition, they have less time to develop good habits, and thus are more likely to exceed the speed limit, leave too little space between the car in front of them, and not pass or change lanes with sufficient caution.
In today’s driving climate, there are more distractions than ever. From text messages to music apps to online games, smartphones offer teenagers constant temptation to take their eyes off the road. Even when smartphones are turned off, interaction with friends in the back seat, other activities such as personal grooming or eating, or simple lack of focus create conditions under which car accidents can easily happen. Statistics show that distracted driving accounts for at least 58 percent of all teen driving accidents.
What Happens After a Teenage Driver Is in an Accident?
If your teenage driver is in an accident, we recommend you follow our car accident checklist. Contact our firm if your accident is serious, if there are physical injuries involved, or you feel that you require assistance with legal and insurance matters. Start with a no-obligation case consultation, you may need an attorney who your family can trust to represent your case.
If your child has not experienced an accident, we recommend that your family read through the car accident checklist and answer any questions your child may have.
Accident checklist tip:
- Don’t say sorry.
- This can imply guilt.
- In respect to the toughest laws in the U.S., Connecticut has some of the strictest laws in the books where teenage driving is concerned. Many of these laws are meant to be preemptive, such as the state’s “new driver” laws around the most common risk factors for teen drivers.
These laws are in place not only to protect teenage drivers and those with whom they share the road, but also to help establish liability in the event a teen driver accident does occur. Violation of these laws that results in a car accident will mean that the teen is found to be at least partly at fault in the car accident.
View the most common accidents among teen drivers here.
Most teens who are found to be at fault in a car accident will have their license suspended for at least 30 days. There may also be court fines and a license restoration fee of $175. Second- and third-time offenses will involve a longer license suspension (between 90 days and 1 year) along with additional penalties, possibly including jail time. In the case of reckless driving or street racing, there is also the potential for jail time.Stressed teenager after an accident
Depending on how serious the driving infraction was that led to the accident, a teen driver may be classified as a “youthful offender.” Offenses that qualify as “youthful offender” infractions include: reckless driving, disregarding a police officer’s signal to stop, evading responsibility involving property damage or physical injury, or driving with a suspended license.
Being classified as a youthful offender may mean a lighter penalty for a negligent driver. More importantly, it gives the teen driver a chance to keep a criminal conviction off their record. If classified as a “youthful offender,” a teen driver may be assigned probation or parole, which sets strict rules to ensure that they change their behavior. While these rules can be difficult to live under, avoiding a criminal record can mean all the difference to a teenager’s future.
However, there are circumstances under which a teen driver cannot seek a lighter penalty.
- Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs
- Negligent homicide with a motor vehicle
- Evading responsibility following an accident that results in a death or serious injury
- Parental and Guardian Liability of Teenagers Involved in Car Accidents
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