5 Safety Rules for Your Teen Driver

This post is about 5 safety rules for your new teen driver. All opinions are my own.

Before you turn over the car keys to your newly-licensed driver and do whatever it is you do to calm your nerves (no judgment if you’re pouring wine at 10 am), you are going to need to go over these 5 basic safety rules with your teen. When I say, “go over,” I mean you will be saying the same thing repeatedly, over and over. Teenagers really are like toddlers in so many ways.

So, your teen passed his/her road test. Now what? There are a lot of teen driver safety tips, but today, we’ll focus on these 5.

The gas is on the right and the brake is on the left.

You’d think this would be obvious having taken the driving course and practiced for a year with a parent, but it bears repeating. When my firstborn was a newly licensed driver, she drove through our area’s iconic ice cream shop and landed in the kitchen on the tenth day of licensure. Fortunately, no one was hurt, the restaurant and kitchen of the establishment were closed and only the ice cream window in the front was open.

She pulled right up to the side of the building to park and mistakenly stepped on the gas instead of the brake and careened right through the brick wall, landing amidst kitchen equipment. She called, panic-stricken, declaring that she had hit a wall. There was some discussion about injury, other cars involved, and basic details. I hurried to where she was and found her vehicle lodged inside the kitchen with a crowd of onlookers and possibly every first responder in town, including the K-9 unit.

My son (the kid who flies planes) told me on a recent trip to practice driving in a parking lot, that he uses both feet to taxi and land the plane! Oh noooo! I am already getting deja vu. Let me repeat, the gas is on the right, and the brake is on the left!

Check your mirrors at all times.

When I was learning to drive, my father (who was a truck driver and drove for a living) always said, “Check your mirrors. Know who is behind you, next to you, and in your blind spot at all times.” I always wondered if he was being followed because he said this a lot. I always thought, who cares who is behind me? But he said it a lot, so I did it. When teaching my kids to drive, I shared the same wisdom with them. One of them wasn’t listening.

These days, cars have all kinds of safety features. Not long ago, my oldest backed her sister’s car right into her father’s car. Did she not see his huge SUV as she walked past it to enter the car? Did she not see or hear the car’s safety features blinking and beeping at her? Let’s not ignore the fully functioning backup camera.

There are two noteworthy points here: 1. This is the same child who drove through an ice cream shop. 2. Check your mirrors at all times!

Obey posted speed limits.

One day I was driving with my teen as we approached a bend in the road. I pointed out the speed limit sign to her. Her reply? “Oh Mom, that’s just a suggestion.” What?? Did she just say that? Yes, she did. And no, it is not a suggestion. It’s the law.

I am not ashamed to share that I stalk my kids on the Life 360 app. I don’t actually stalk them because I simply don’t have time to be a helicopter mom. I do peek at it occasionally when they’re driving because I can see how fast they’re driving. I have called their passenger to relay the message to slow down. Fortunately, I haven’t had to do that in a while.

If you don’t have an app to track your kid’s speed, you can try this instead:

This parent is part crazy/part genius. I like his style though. I wish I’d thought of this.

Park away from other cars (and ice cream shops)

Twice, my kids have tapped parked cars trying to park. These mishaps are totally avoidable. They should just listen to their mom and park nowhere near any other vehicle or structure.

They are a confident little group of motorists. I mostly admire their determination to get it right. Their determination far exceeds their driving skill.

Parking lots are among the most chaotic places on the planet. Do all of us a favor kids, and park as far as possible from all cars and structures. If the oldest kid had, she wouldn’t have landed in a commercial kitchen!

Never trust a blinker.

Surprisingly, I don’t have a personal experience with this one. Back in college, I remember a friend telling me that her dad always said, “Never trust a blinker.” And it stuck with me decades later. I still say it. I tell it to my kids. It’s just good advice.

The Parenting Bingo card

If you have heard me mention my bingo card, three fender benders in one season is a spot on my card.

They say bad things happen in threes. Three parked cars fell victim to my teen drivers within a three-month period of time. No one was hurt and they learned how to handle the situation by finding the owner of the car or leaving a note for the owner. In both cases, we taught them what to do if it happens again (I’m really hoping it doesn’t happen again!).

Both owners were really gracious and kind to my kids and we resolved the issues quickly. The only car owner who didn’t take it well when his parked car got hit was my husband. He was so irate, he had to give himself a time-out far away from my daughter.

The recurring theme is that my kids are largely unskilled in parking lots (and their driveway). Expect an occasional mishap with your teen driver. They are excited about their newfound freedom. They overestimate their skill. They simply make mistakes. Hitting three parked cars in three months earns a spot on my Bingo card.

Talking about safety with your teen is like talking to toddlers

Like most moms, you will repeat the same things over and over every time your kid leaves the house. Repetition, Repetition, Repetition. Just like toddlers.

Keep repeating yourselves. Those kids will hear you. I’ve been driving forever and I still hear my dad telling me to check my mirrors while driving. I still hear my college friend saying, “My dad always says, never trust a blinker!”

The safety of our kids is too important not to be a nag. They’ll probably eye-roll you. My kids say, “Mom, you say the same thing every time we leave the house.” I know, kids. I know.

These are just 5 safety tips for new drivers. When your teen is ready to hit the road, there is so much more to know about safety. For more information about teen driving safety, click the link below. Follow me for more real-life tales of navigating momlife.

https://www.nhtsa.gov./road-safety/teen-driving