Teaching your Teen to Drive in Dangerous Weather

Most teenagers are keen to start driving. It’s exciting, sophisticated and gives them more independence. Teaching your teen to drive can be a great bonding activity, and you’ll probably find that you both enjoy it.

However, you also have a lot of responsibility. You’ll need to ensure that your teen is picking up good practices – especially in dangerous weather conditions. Even the most experienced drivers can struggle in icy, foggy or snowy conditions, so you’ll need to be careful. Here are some tips to help.

First aid

Accidents can easily happen when driving in dangerous weather – especially for a novice driver. So, before you take your teen out in the car, it’s important to make sure they’re prepared. While they will hopefully never have an accident, they should know how to respond if one happens. This means having a well equipped first-aid kit in the car and ensuring they know CPR. If you or anyone in your family is affected by a car accident, call a car accident lawyer in the Houston area. Dangerous weather can be lethal, so it’s important to take extra precautions.

Teach the mechanics

Driving in difficult weather calls for an understanding of how vehicles work. Your teen will need to know to use a low gear when driving down steep hills in snowy conditions and to not put too much pressure on the brakes. Accidents can happen when your teen doesn’t understand the car and how it will respond to the varying conditions. So, teach them how cars work. Make sure they know how to assess any issues too.

Gear them up

While your vehicle does most of the hard work, your teen will need to wear the right things when they’re driving in dangerous weather conditions. It’s always important to wear flat, dry shoes, but this is particularly important in difficult weather. Your teen might need to wear snow boots if they’re driving in snow – especially if they need to get out of the vehicle to shovel. It’s also important to wear sunglasses if they’re driving in bright sunshine – especially in the snow. Sunlight can reflect off settled crisp snow and impair their vision.

Teach by influence

The best way to teach your teen how to drive in dangerous weather is to teach by influence. If your teen sits in the passenger seat and watches you using the correct practices, they’ll understand. So, keep off your phone while driving and avoid any other distractions. Come prepared, wear the right gear and take driving seriously. How is your teen supposed to be safe if you aren’t? As parents, you’re responsible for the next generation of drivers, so teach them well.