1 in 10 11th and 12th Graders Admit to Driving Drunk to Ring in the New Year
New Year’s Eve will be here in a few days and it is important to focus on driver safety. A new study that was done by the Liberty Mutual and Students Against Destructive Decisions found that one out of ten children in grades 11 and 12 admitted to driving drunk during the holiday. This is when drivers in this age bracket are most likely to drink and drive. This is surprising because most people might think of July 4th or St. Patrick’s Day as being holidays when more teens would drink and drive.
Parents need to be proactive because most drivers under the age of 18 operate a motor vehicle under a parent’s auto insurance policy. This means that if your kid gets caught drinking and driving behind the wheel then you could land in some hot water as well. If your teen driver hits someone or worse yet kills someone then you could be held liable for any damages that are not covered by the terms of your auto insurance coverage.
Drivers who are under the age of 21, are not allowed to even have one drink. The blood alcohol content level cannot surpass .02 for these individuals. Parents need to be vigilant and make sure that they do not let their child drive to a New Year’s party. They should offer to drop the child off and pick the child up after the party is over. This will allow the parent to make sure that their vehicle or their child’s vehicle is parked safely in their drive way.
Parents should also consider adopting a policy wherein the child can call them if they have been drinking and get a ride home with no punishments. Many teens are afraid to call their parents for help if they have been drinking because of the fear of repercussions. These teens often drink and drive because they do not have a designated driver to take them home. Approximately 40 percent of deaths from Dec 25th to January 1st might be due to drunk drivers according to The U.S. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism . You do not want your kid to be a statistic so make sure to educate your teen on drunk driving and its consequences.
Source: HomeInsurance.com
