There is a growing debate nationwide over the need for a mandatory federal standard for driver’s licensing programs.Currently, there is no single federal standard.As Atlanta auto accident lawyers, we strongly support a strict, federal mandatory standard for licensing policies.A bill called the Safe Teen and Novice Driver Uniform Protection Act would establish exactly such a standard.It’s not surprising that some of the strongest supporters of this proposed standard are parents.
A new survey by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety reveals that parents favor stronger licensing standards for their children.The study is the first of its kind into parental attitudes towards graduated driver’s licensing policies.It clearly reveals that parents strongly favor licensing policies that can prevent their children’s risk of being involved in an accident.
The parents were asked several questions, including their opinion about nighttime driving restrictions and passenger restrictions.90% of the parents said that they were in favor of nighttime driving restrictions on teenagers, and most of them wanted restrictions that began at 10 PM or earlier.Georgia’s GDL laws impose a restriction on nighttime driving between midnight and 6 AM for teen drivers.
There was also strong parental support for supervised driving requirements.60% of the parents wanted 50 hours of supervised driving, and 40% wanted 100 or more supervised driving hours.
Much of the accident risk for teen motorists comes from their teenage passengers.In fact, studies have shown that the risk of an accident for a teen motorist increases with the number of passengers in the car.This was likely what was going through the minds of the parents in the survey, as they voiced their strong support for restrictions on teen passengers.44% wanted just one unrelated teen passenger in a teenager’s car, while 38 % wanted no passenger at all.
It’s safe to say that the public mood is swinging in favor of a strong, tough federal standard for licensing programs.Georgia’s lawmakers must make note of the results of this survey when they decide whether to vote in favor of the Safe Teen and Novice Driver Uniform Protection Act.