It’s a long-awaited day for parents: when they finally get to hand over the keys and let their teen take the wheel. There are a few things you can do before that big day arrives to make sure your child is well prepared for driving on their own to make the process less stressful. Here are five tips that will help your teen be more confident behind the wheel.
Teach Your Teen About Car Maintenance
Teaching your child how to perform basic car care like checking the oil, tire pressure, and coolant levels can help them avoid costly repair bills in the future. It’ll also ensure they don’t cause any damage when paired with their lack of driving experience. If you’re not up for teaching these skills yourself, take them to an auto shop or dealership where employees are trained to teach teens safe driving practices. If possible, try taking your teen on a quick practice run around the block before doing this so that they have some time behind the wheel before learning new information. This will also boost their confidence because it shows that you trust them enough to handle something as complicated as looking at changing a spare tire.
Teach Your Teen How to Be a Safe Driver
The first time you sit in the passenger’s seat while they drive, it may feel like an eternity. But try to stay calm and give them pointers on what they could do better during their next driving lesson or at home. Practice makes perfect. If possible, set up some safety cones like those used for parking training and have mock driving sessions with them until they improve – this way, there will be no surprises when you send them off down the road alone after practice. Make sure you teach your teen about traffic laws while they are learning to drive as well. Make sure they understand how to approach four-way stops and how to make legal u-turns. Some basic tips and tricks will help them be aware of their surroundings, which will prevent accidents.
Get Your Teen a Car That’s Best Suited for Them
Getting your child their own set of wheels is exciting, but it may not be the most well thought out idea. Depending on if they’re buying or borrowing a car from someone else; you could end up spending more money to fix it than what it’s worth. While this might seem like an obvious tip, make sure that whatever vehicle you get fits both your budget and driving needs. For example, if you don’t want to take out another loan for a brand new sedan because the last one was totaled during an accident, getting something smaller and cheaper would be better suited towards teens who are just learning how to drive. A small compact car will teach them valuable lessons about spatial awareness and what to do if they get into an accident.
Don’t Rush Your Teen
Everyone has been there – you’ve finally found the perfect car for an affordable price, and now it’s time to set up a driving lesson. However, before doing that, make sure they understand what it takes to be a safe driver. This is especially important if this will be their first time behind the wheel since teens can get impatient when learning something new, which may lead them to attempt things too quickly without proper supervision from a parent or other experienced driver as a backup in case of emergencies. Not only could this result in accidents but also tickets by law enforcement officers who’ll probably stop them on suspicion of drunk driving even though it’s just early morning practice sessions right after getting off.
Get Your Teen Insured Before Letting Them Drive Alone
Even if you’ve already given your child driving lessons and they feel confident behind the wheel, it’s important to get their name on an insurance policy and how to contact a car accident lawyer. This will ensure that should anything happen while they’re out practicing (or even during one of their many road trips), you won’t be held liable for damages or injuries caused by a car accident, which is definitely something no parent wants.
While some parents might want to foot all the costs themselves until their teens can afford monthly payments due to work after high school graduation, this may result in financial problems down the road like credit score issues when trying to buy a house or other major assets later in life. So make sure you choose an affordable plan with low monthly payments to save money in the long run. You can also try getting a temporary insurance plan until you find one that works best for your teen’s needs or get them an inexpensive car with lower premiums since they’ll likely be putting less mileage on it compared to someone who commutes 30 minutes every day, five days per week. Work with an insurance company to explore your options and make sure your teen is covered.
Learning to drive can be a stressful and overwhelming experience for your teen. Make sure they are well-prepared before hitting the road. This will help them feel comfortable and develop safe driving skills. If you are the parent of a teen, use the above guide and step-by-step instructions once they are ready to start driving and make sure they always keep safety in the forefront of their mind.