When you have a child that reaches driving age, you might be feeling a lot of mixed emotions. While you won’t have to be the one shuttling them around all the time now, you also have to give up some of the control and trust in their ability to be safe driving a car on their own. But regardless of how safe your child is or how well you taught them to drive, there’s always the chance that they could get in a car accident. So to ensure that they’re prepared if and when this incident does occur, here are three things to teach your teenage driver about getting in a car accident.
Make Sure They Call You
While your teenage should likely call the police when they get in any type of car accident so that he or she can get the help they need and get things properly reported, you should also tell your teen that they should call you and inform you—no matter what. Some teens are so afraid of how their parents will react that they don’t tell them as soon as something happens. If your teen does this, they could make another mistake based on their own intuitive rather than your advice. And in situations like this, you both could be paying for that mistake. For this reason, Grace Gist, a contributor to the Huffington Post, shares that you should always express to your teen driver that their safety is all you care about.
Create An Accident Checklist
If your teen’s just been in their first car accident and they’re without you, they may be in complete shock and not know what they should now do or how to proceed. Because this is a great possibility in the event of a car accident involving your teen, Progressive recommends making an accident checklist that your teen should keep in the glove box at all times. Tell your teen this if and when they get in an accident, check over this list so that they don’t forget anything or not take a step that they should.
Go Over That Checklist With Your Teen Driver
While you might be tempted to just put that accident checklist into the car and forget about it, it’s vital that you go over this list with your teen driver so you can answer any questions he or she might have. On this checklist, explains things like what to say to the police, what to say to their insurance carrier and what number to call for this, how to document the accident and exchange information, and to be careful not to admit any fault in the accident.
To ensure your teen’s prepared for this worst-case scenario, consider using the tips mentioned above to teach your teen driver how to handle being in a car accident.
