Driving is one of the most tangible expressions of freedom in American culture. Once teenagers get their driver’s licenses, they can go anywhere they want, but this freedom comes with a lot of risk and responsibility. Teenage drivers ages 16 to 19 die more often in auto accidents than by any other means. However, California was rated number seven among states for safe teenage driving in a study by WalletHub.
The study was fairly comprehensive, not only taking into account the amount of teenage fatalities from auto accidents, but also the presence of DUI laws and the cost of car repairs. They used these statistics to form a three part ranking system consisting of safety rank, economic environment rank, and driving laws rank where 1 is the highest rank and 50 is the lowest.
Safety rank covers teen driver fatalities per 100,000 teens, vehicle miles traveled per capita, teen traffic violations due to drug or alcohol use, share of teens drinking and driving, share of teens texting or emailing and driving, cost of teen crash related deaths, quality of roads, and amount of driving schools.
Economic environment rank covers maximum fines for speeding and red light citations, maximum first time fines for not wearing seat belts, premium increases after adding teens to insurance policies, cost of car repairs, and gas prices.
Driving laws rank covers graduated drivers license laws, occupant protection laws, impaired driver laws, distracted driver laws, red light and speeding camera laws, and leniency of DUI laws.
In the study, New York ranked the highest with a safety rank of one, an economic environment rank of four, and a driving laws rank of four. The lowest ranking state in this study was Montana with a safety rank of 48, an economic environment rank of 42, and a driving laws rank of 48. The Golden State came in with a safety rank of five, an economic environment rank of 39, and a driving laws rank of 16.
It’s great that California ranks well for teenage driving, but if you or a family member has been injured or killed in an auto accident, contact the Alexander Law Group, LLC for representation. Our experienced personal injury lawyers will work to get you the compensation you deserve. Call us at 888.777.1776, or contact us online.
