LIFE Published December19, 2019 By Staff Reporter

What Happens If Your Teen Is In a Car Accident?

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As a parent of a teen, there is probably nothing more frightening than the thought of a car accident. For teen drivers, it can be a scary thought as well. There are different types of car accidents a teen might be involved in, and unfortunately, many relate to distracted driving.

As an example, rear-end collisions are the most common type of car accident in the U.S., and there are around 1.7 million rear-end accidents every year in this country.

Whether you're the parent of a teen or you are a teen driver, you should always be prepared for the possibility that an accident could occur, and how to handle it if it does.

The following are things to know if your teen is in a car accident, or you're a teen, and you experience a collision of any kind.

Create An Accident Checklist

If you're operating under the assumption your teen is likely going to experience at least one accident, then you should be proactively prepared. One thing you might want to encourage your teen to have in the car with them at all times is an accident checklist.

An accident checklist should highlight the details of what to do immediately following the collision. This is important because those first steps can be relevant when it comes to insurance and other logistical considerations of being in an accident.

The following are things to include on an accident checklist:

-Write a note on a piece of paper about the time of the accident and any other relevant facts.

-Pullover in a safe spot.

-Call 911 if you see any fluid leaking from the vehicle.

-Contact the police

-Don't say anything to the other drive that admits fault or anything about the accident at all-wait for the police.

-Cooperate with the police.

-Take pictures of the scene with your phone.

-If there are any witnesses, get their contact information.

-Get a copy of the accident report.

Be Proactive

Once your teen leaves the scene of an accident, having done the things above, you want to make sure that both of you are being proactive in dealing with the other details of the situation. This means that you should contact your insurance company sooner rather than later.

You might want your teen to make the call so that first, they have a chance to accept responsibility for the accident and second so they can provide any relevant details to the company.

If it's determined your teen is at-fault in the accident, there will be ramifications, some of which can be ongoing. For example, if a teen is found to be at-fault in an accident, in some states they may have their license suspended for a period of time.

For second- and third-time offenses, this suspension can be longer, and sometimes if there is a blatant case of reckless driving, there is even a potential for jail time.

Reckless driving can lead your teen to be classified as a youthful offender.

What Will Your Insurance Do?

Even if the accident was fairly minor, you can expect the cost of your insurance will likely go up.

Just adding a teen driver to your insurance likely sent your costs soaring.

If your teen gets into an accident, it can cause the premiums to go up or in some cases, your teen's insurance or even your insurance might be canceled.

Work with your insurance company from the start to try to avoid worst-case-scenarios.

Talking To Your Teen

Finally, if your teen is in an accident, it can be very stressful for them. They may feel afraid to drive again or highly anxious.

As a parent, you want your teen to understand the magnitude of the responsibility that comes with driving, but you don't want to blame them to the point that nothing gets solved.

Rather than lashing out in anger, if your teen is involved in an accident, work on talking with them about what happened and how it can be prevented in the future.

Work on strategies to help your teen be a safer driver, and ask them how you can help them to do that.

Teens being safe is the number one priority and the more open you can be with your discussions, the more likely it is that your teen will be safe or let you know if they are experiencing any kind of issue.

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