Many teenagers can’t wait to have their own car. They consider owning one a rite of passage and more importantly, a symbol of freedom. Freedom to go when and where they want, and free from adult restraints. But teens rarely consider the consequences of the way they drive. One mistake is all it takes to end up in a horrible car crash, or worse.
Here are five important mistakes teenage drivers make.
1. Impulsivity
Teenagers are inherently impulsive. Even if they don’t realize it, this impulsiveness extends to their driving behavior. It makes them more likely to pause and consider the situations they encounter on the road before making a decision.
For example, when teenage drivers come to an intersection, they rarely consider the situation. More often than not, they just do it, sometimes with disastrous consequences. Unfortunately, parents and driving instructors don’t pick out this impulsiveness because teens drive differently than adults do in cars.
However, everything changes – and for the worse – when a fellow teenager gets in the car. It actually encourages drivers to make impulsive, risky and aggressive driving decisions. When parents notice this behavior, it is appropriate to take the teenager to a refresher course. Fortunately, companies like Top TestS offers free practice driving theory tests for teen drivers so they refresh their skills. Visit toptests.co.uk to learn more about their services.
2. Get Emotional
Besides being moody for no reason, teenagers are also affected by issues that occur in their lives. After a breakup or failing a school exam, a teen driver tends to be absent-minded while driving, or overly aggressive.
3. Speed up
Juvenile speed for two reasons. First, despite the obvious dangers, they love the thrill of rushing through traffic. Second, they are inexperienced. For this reason, they have not yet developed the ability to properly judge speed and braking distance.
In addition, they are less sharp in driving reflex, which only comes with practice. By combining speed and inexperience, teenage drivers endanger not only themselves, but every other road user as well.
4. Tailgating
Following the car in front of you too closely is a dangerous habit. If the car suddenly stops or slows down, you don’t have time to react. Most likely you will end it. And if you’re really lucky, you’ll come out of the experience unscathed.
But for teenagers, tail is a particular favorite when on the road. They assumed they could slow down time, which was impossible at the high speeds they were traveling at. After all, the faster you drive, the more braking distance you need.
5. Getting distracted
If something happens to a teenager’s phone, his life will be over – or so they believe. Thus, they never leave their favorite electronic gadgets, even when they are driving. Unfortunately, only a few can resist the temptation to use these devices while driving.
They don’t realize that it takes about 4.6 seconds to read a text. While driving at 55 miles per hour, a person travels the distance of a football field during this time. Obviously, taking your eyes off the road all this time is a recipe for disaster.
The first mistake teenage drivers make is being impulsive, especially if they have a friend in the car to encourage them. When they are in emotional turmoil, they also drive aggressively or pay less attention to the road. In addition, they love tailgating and driving at high speed; a dangerous combination considering you need more braking distance when you go faster. Lastly, they tend to use their cell phones while at the wheel.
