South Florida Injury Lawyers Blog
The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles is urging residents to wear white on Tuesday as part of a statewide “White Out” of teen traffic accidents. The awareness effort is part of National Teen Driver Safety Week, which runs from Oct. 17 to 23.
Car accidents in Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and elsewhere in Florida, are the number one cause of death among teenagers. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that 6,428 motorists were killed in accidents involving teen drivers in 2008. Florida car accidents involving teen drivers killed 516. Only California and Texas reported more deaths involving young drivers.
“The number of teens who died in traffic crashes dropped 21 percent between 2008 and 2009, which signals that Florida is heading in the right direction,” said DHSMV Executive Director Julie Jones. “Despite the decline, 153 families felt the impact last year when they lost their teens to crashes. No one wants to see someone with their whole life ahead of them die, especially when the cause of death is preventable. Join us Oct. 19 as we white out teen crashes.”
Teen drivers and the risk of Florida car accidents
-772,910 teens are licensed to drive in Florida.
-29,485 crashes involved teens last year.
-153 teens died in Florida car accidents in 2009, and 19,292 teens were injured.
-Florida teens make up 5 percent of the state’s population but are involved in more than 9 percent of its traffic accidents.
The state’s Take the Wheel website is an interactive site for teen drivers. It’s Drive with CARE program teaches parents and teenagers about Courtesy, Attention, Responsibility and Experience.
Freeman & Mallard is a personal injury and wrongful death law firm dedicated to helping motorists who have been injured in Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and the Port St. Lucie/Fort Pierce areas. Call today for a free consultation. 1-800-529-2368.