Teen Drivers & Summer Break: Tips for Parents

Traffic accidents are already the number-one cause of death for teens in the U.S., and the crash rate is higher for teens than all other age groups — but when summer break rolls around, getting on the road is particularly dangerous for young, novice drivers. The period from June through August is considered the 100 deadliest days for teen drivers.

In this blog post, the auto insurance experts at C&S Insurance break down what makes summer break so dangerous, risk factors for teen drivers, and tips that you as a parent or guardian can share with your teen to keep them safe on the road this summer.

If you’re looking to help insure your teen driver, we’ve got you covered. From auto liability to comprehensive and collision coverage, the agents at C&S can help you find the best Massachusetts and New England auto insurance rates. Get in touch today to get a quote for adding a teen driver to your policy.

Why Summer Driving Is Dangerous for MA Teens

Teens have the disadvantage of being newer, less experienced drivers, with only a few months to a couple years of driving under their belts. Summer break only adds more risk factors, including hazards that cause distracted driving, such as driving with several friends or other teens in the vehicle. With friends in the car, teens may fall victim to peer pressure and engage in behaviors like not wearing seat belts or texting and driving.

Summertime also often means it’s party time, and social gatherings could lead some teens to use drugs and alcohol before getting behind the wheel, a major issue contributing to the likelihood of summer accidents.

More simply, summer can be a more dangerous season because teens have more free time to spend on the road. The days are longer, the weather is better, and school’s out. In Massachusetts, that often means new, unfamiliar driving conditions for teens: heavy beach traffic along Route 6 toward the Cape, backups near the ferry terminals in Woods Hole and Hyannis during peak Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket travel times, and busy summer congestion on Route 1A through the North Shore. While your teen may have driven these routes before, summer often fills them bumper-to-bumper with out-of-state visitors and distracted tourists.

Who Is Most at Risk

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, teen motor vehicle crashes are most likely to involve:

• Male drivers
• Drivers in rural areas
• Drivers of lower socioeconomic status
• Drivers affected by ADHD or other mental health conditions

But all teens are still at risk, as newer, less experienced drivers.

In Massachusetts, “rural” risk can look different depending on where your teen drives. Winding, unlit back roads in western Massachusetts and the Berkshires present different hazards than the seasonal, tourist-heavy roads on the South Shore and Cape Cod. Both come with less familiar terrain and fewer streetlights than a typical suburban commute, which can catch new drivers off guard. Make sure your teen has a basic car safety kit, including a flashlight, first aid supplies, jumper cables, and a phone charger. Help may be farther away on these rural stretches than on a well-traveled suburban road.

Safe Summer Driving Tips to Share With Your Teen

Have a conversation with your teen about what safe driving looks like, both in the summer and during the rest of the year. Here are some key tips to follow to ensure they enjoy a safe school break:

• Take a safe driving course. Your teen may have already taken driver’s ed, but there are additional safety courses available through sites like DriversEd.com.
• Demonstrate good behavior. You serve as a role model for your teen. Practice safe driving habits like putting down your phone, wearing your seat belt, and driving the speed limit. These should apply all the time, but especially when your teen is in the passenger seat.
• Know Massachusetts’ Junior Operator License (JOL) law. If your teen is a newly licensed driver under 18, they’re legally restricted from driving with passengers under 18 or driving between 12:30 a.m. and 5 a.m. without a parent or guardian. Violating either restriction carries an automatic license suspension. (More on this in the next section.)
• Establish rules or guidelines with your teen. Beyond what’s legally required, this could include your own family curfews for night driving or limits on how many passengers (and who) they can drive with.
• Ensure they’re well-rested. A good night’s sleep is key to driving safely. If your teen plans to drive somewhere the next morning, encourage them to go to bed early.
• Make sure they eat before driving. This will help your teen avoid the temptation to eat while en route to their destination, a distraction that involves taking their hands off the wheel.
• Share locations. With smartphones, it’s easy to track where your teen is driving and help keep them safe.
• Check the weather forecast. Dangerous driving conditions like severe storms and heavy rain or wind can come on suddenly during the summer.
• Teach them to recognize impairment in themselves and others. Make sure your teen knows the signs that they (or a friend) shouldn’t get behind the wheel, and that riding with an impaired driver is never a good idea. Reinforce that calling you, another trusted adult, or a rideshare is always the better option, even if it means an awkward conversation or a late-night pickup.
• Download a rideshare app. Make sure your teen has access to an app like Uber or Lyft and knows how to use it in the event that they need a ride.
• Discourage speeding. Instead, encourage your teen to build extra time into their schedule so they don’t need to speed to reach their destination on time.
• Teach basic car maintenance and awareness. Instruct your teen on how to check their tire pressure, safely fill their gas tank, recognize warning lights, and what to do in case of a breakdown.
• Know their plans. Always keep in touch with your teen about where they’re driving, who they’re driving with, and what time you should expect them home. This doesn’t mean you have to be overbearing or know all the details, but you should set expectations with your teen that they will keep you posted if their driving plans change.

Understanding Massachusetts’ Junior Operator License (JOL) Law

If your teen is between 16½ and 18 and newly licensed, they’re driving under a Junior Operator License (JOL), a set of Massachusetts-specific rules designed to reduce crash risk while new drivers gain experience. Because summer is when JOL violations are most likely to happen (more friends, later nights, more spontaneous trips), it’s a good idea to review the rules with your teen before break really gets going.

The JOL law includes two main restrictions:

• Passenger restriction: For the first six months after getting their JOL, your teen cannot drive with any passenger under 18 (other than a sibling or other immediate family member), unless a licensed driver who is at least 21 years old and has at least one year of driving experience is sitting in the front seat.
• Nighttime restriction: JOL holders cannot drive between 12:30 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. unless a parent or legal guardian is in the car.

Violating either restriction results in an automatic license suspension, separate from any other penalty. A first offense carries a 60-day suspension and a $100 reinstatement fee; a second offense extends that to 180 days and typically requires a driver retraining course; a third or subsequent offense can mean a full year’s suspension.

It’s easy for these rules to slip a new driver’s mind on a summer night when a friend needs a ride home or a group is heading back from a bonfire past curfew. Talking through the “what ifs” now and having a backup plan like a rideshare app or a phone call home can help your teen avoid a violation that could sideline their license for the rest of the summer.

What to Expect When Adding a Teen to Your Policy

It’s no question that adding a teen driver to your policy will raise your premium; how much depends heavily on factors like your teen’s vehicle, your driving record, where you live in Massachusetts, and which carrier you’re with. Because that range can vary so widely from household to household, a quote from your current carrier alone doesn’t tell you whether you’re getting a competitive rate.

This is where working with an independent agent makes a difference. Rather than getting a single quote from one company, an independent agent can shop your policy across multiple carriers to find the best combination of price and coverage for your specific situation, including discounts your current carrier might not automatically apply, like good student discounts or multi-policy bundling.

For a deeper look at what drives the cost up (and how to bring it back down), check out our guide to adding a teen driver to your car insurance policy.

Rest Assured With C&S Insurance

Accidents happen, especially when drivers are young and inexperienced. But with C&S Insurance, you can rest assured that you and your teen driver are covered. Learn more about our Massachusetts and New England auto insurance offerings or get in touch with an agent today.