What Are the Safest Cars for Your Teenager?

Getting a driver’s license might be a rite of passage for every teen, but it can be a worrying time for a parent. With more than 108,000 crashes occurring every year in Maryland, you’ll want to do everything possible to ensure your teenager stays safe on the road and choosing a safe vehicle is the first step. 

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Fortunately, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and Consumer Reports has compiled a list of the safest cars for teens that includes:

• Ford C-Max Hybrid
• Toyota Corolla hatchback
• Subaru Legacy
• Mazda 6
• Volvo S60
• Honda CR-V
• GMC Terrain

Choosing a car with a good safety rating can help protect drivers and passengers, but this doesn’t necessarily mean that your teen won’t be involved in an accident of some kind. In fact, teens are four times more likely to be involved in a crash than drivers aged 20 years or over. 

Preparing Your Teen for the Road

An essential part of preparing your teen for the road is ensuring they know what to do if an accident happens. Making sure your teenager is aware of the need to stop if they are involved in a crash (however minor), as well as educating them about how to access help quickly is vital, for example. 

If the worst does happen and your teen is involved in a crash, you’ll want to find a car accident lawyer to help your family. Even if your teen wasn’t at fault, other drivers may try to blame them due to their age or inexperience, so protecting their liability is important. 

Furthermore, seeking legal representation after a car accident allows injured parties to obtain compensation for the harm they’ve suffered. If your teenager has been injured due to an accident, for example, they may be eligible to receive compensation from the driver or road user who was responsible for the incident. 

Can Teens Claim Car Accident Compensation?

In most instances, a parent or guardian will need to act on behalf of a teenager if they are under the age of 18 years. However, this doesn’t prevent a teenager from being awarded compensation. While a parent may initiate the claim, any compensation that is subsequently awarded will be intended for the victim. Indeed, compensation payouts for minors are sometimes placed in a trust so that the funds can be used solely to provide care, medical treatment and/or support to the victim. 

According to the latest statistics, 17,888 crashes occurred in Baltimore City alone in just 12-months and 938 of these accidents involved teen drivers. With teenager drivers accounting for more than 5% of car accidents in the city, it’s not surprising that many young drivers do need to claim car accident compensation. 

With help and guidance from approachable and experienced car accident lawyers, however, you can navigate the process of making a claim as a family and help your teen to recover from the trauma and shock that an unexpected car accident can cause.