Inexperience is a huge factor. It’s better to let teenagers learn to drive as early as they are ready, rather than forcing them to wait, which can make them resentful. Perhaps because of the statistics Joseph quoted, laws about teen driving are getting stricter. (Maryland changed the law one month before I would have been grandfathered in. I remember being so upset!) The number of practice hours required is increasing, as is the minimum age for taking license tests. Waiting a few years is not going to make much of a difference; what will is educating teens about the dangers of driving and making sure they have no access to alcohol. Don’t be lax about monitoring the practice hours, even if it means some inconvenience, and above all, let your children know that you trust them. This is an important milestone, and it deserves some celebration.
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