The Dangers of Distracted Driving: Lead by Example

People are surprised to learn that it is not only teenagers and new drivers who have accidents

caused by distractions. Most new drivers develop their driving habits from what they see their

own parents doing while they drive. The development of driving habits form long before your

teen is hounding you constantly to get their learner’s permit and driver’s license. These habits

start to form when they are as young as three or four years old.

Children notice if mommy or daddy is talking on the cell phone, drinking coffee, putting on

makeup, shaving, or texting on the cell phone. In addition to these distracted behaviors, children

can sense parents who are aggressive drivers, like when their parent is yelling loudly at the driver

in front of them. As parents, keep this in mind the next time you get behind the wheel of your

vehicle. Do you want your children and teenagers to truly follow your driving habits, or to

develop proper defensive driving habits?

According to the Distracted Driving government website and related studies, distracted driving is

one of the leading causes for accidents for people of all ages. Teenagers and younger drivers

were responsible for 67,360 of the 421,000 distracted driving accidents in 2012. Adults aged 21

or older caused the other 353,640 accidents. So, young drivers are not the only ones who are

distracted when they drive. Even adults can benefit from taking a defensive driving course online

to refresh and improve their current driving habits.

Types of Distractions to Avoid While Driving

Any time a driver takes their eyes of the road, they are distracted. The key to successful

defensive driving is to eliminate all distractions so the driver’s primary focus is on the road, their

surroundings, road conditions, and other drivers on the road. Some of the more common

distractions include:

● Putting on Makeup ● Shaving ● Text Messaging ● Talking on a Cell Phone ● Eating ● Drinking ● Smoking ● Talking To and Looking At Passengers ● Using Onboard Devices (GPS, Radio, MP3, CD, DVD) ● Reading

These distractions take your eyes and focus off of the road. You are probably thinking everyone

does one or more of the above habits when they drive. You may believe you are one of the safest

and best defensive drivers out there and, as such, can easily manage to drive your car and still

talk on the cell phone or drink your morning coffee on the way to work. You might consider

yourself a safe driver; however, any distraction while the vehicle is in motion increases your

risks for being involved in an accident by three times or more.

There are, at any given time, about 660,000 drivers on the road using electronic devices and/or

cell phones. According to the Distracted Driving government website, sending or reading a short

text message while driving at 55 mph, and taking your eyes off of the road for five seconds, is

just like driving across an entire football field blindfolded.

What Can Parents Do to Lower the Risks for Distracted Driving?

One of the best things parents can do to help their teenagers and young drivers in their household

is to have them take a defensive driving course through an online driving school like National

Traffic Safety Institute (NTSI). The online course they should start with is called SNAP (Safe

New Attitude Program). This program teaches new and young drives all about the distractions on

the road and how to become a better defensive driver and lower their risks of being involved in

an accident.

Another thing parents can do is to sign up and complete defensive driving school courses. This

shows young drivers in their household that even their driving habits need improving. If you or

your teen driver has aggressive tendencies, consider taking an Aggressive Driver/Traffic

Survival online course, too. The purpose of the course is to help you recognize your current

driving habits, and learn how to turn your negative and poor behaviors into positive and good

ones.