Teen Driving Accidents in Chicago and Illinois

It’s a fact: Teens often cause traffic collisions in Chicago and across Illinois. As the lawyers of Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C. have observed, the cause in many crashes is the teen’s careless or reckless behavior.

Anyone injured in the crash may have a claim for damages, including other motorists, pedestrians, bicycle riders, motorcycle riders, and passengers in the car with the teen driver. However, victims may be reluctant to pursue a claim, especially if they are a friend who was a passenger in the teen’s car. This is a big mistake.

Teenagers have car insurance just as any adult does. This car insurance exists to cover the costs of damages when a serious crash occurs and drivers or passengers are badly hurt.

If you do not pursue a claim against the teen driver, then the insurance company that has been accepting premiums will be simply let off the hook. Despite being an innocent victim, you could be left with medical bills, lost income, and other losses while the insurer’s profits are protected. This is why you should consult an experienced Chicago car accident lawyer for help in making a claim for damages.

At Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C., we have handled many cases in which teen drivers were to blame for a crash. We understand the ins-and-outs of these cases. We are ready to use our legal knowledge and skills to fight for fair compensation for you.

To learn more about how we can help you, give us a call today or contact us using our online form. We provide free, no-obligation consultations.

What to Do If Your Teen Was Involved in an Accident

Sometimes, teens will become involved in a collision no matter how much their parents discuss the importance of safe driving. If you or a loved one was a passenger in the car with a teenage driver who caused a crash, you may be entitled to compensation. Any victim of a teen car crash may also seek compensation for injuries that include medical costs, lost wages, and pain and suffering.

If you are wondering what to do when your teenager is involved in a car accident, instruct your teen to:

Stay at the scene of the crash
Check if they are injured and if anyone else involved has injuries
Report the incident to authorities
Exchange contact and insurance information with the other driver
Do not admit fault
Tell you about the incident immediately

A Chicago car accident lawyer from Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C. can help you take action after a teen car accident in Chicago or elsewhere in Illinois. To learn more, contact us today online or by calling our toll-free number to schedule a free consultation.

Why Do Teen Drivers Cause Accidents?

Unfortunately, teens and car crashes seem to go together. There were 551,261 licensed drivers in Illinois between the ages of 15 and 19 for the most recent year for which data is available. According to the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT), drivers within this age group were involved in 31,235 total crashes over the course of the year. This total includes 111 fatal crashes and 7,664 wrecks that caused injuries. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) says that teens have crash rates nearly four times those of drivers 20 and older per mile driven.

Teen accidents often occur due to inexperience. Unfortunately, they also result from bad choices. As we review your case, the lawyers of Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C. will explore whether your crash resulted from one or more of the common causes of teen driving accidents.

These causes include:

Speeding– When going too fast, a teen has a much greater chance of a crash, and the crash is much more likely to be serious or deadly. Despite the dangers of speeding, many teens participate in this dangerous driving behavior. Because teens are more immature, they may not appreciate the risks of speeding.
Driver distraction– Around 7 percent of fatal car crashes involving teen drivers ages 15 to 19 involve some type of distraction, the U.S. Department of Transportation reports. This includes any type of visual, manual, or cognitive distraction. However, cell phones and texting can be especially distracting. Using any kind of hand-held device can create a four times greater risk of a car wreck, while texting can make you 23 times as likely to become involved in a crash. Despite these dangers, 40 percent of teens said in a Pew poll that they’d been in a car with a driver using a cell phone in a dangerous way.
Drinking and driving– Illinois has a zero-tolerance law for drivers under the age of 21. Drinking alcohol can significantly increase the likelihood of being involved in a crash. There were seven drivers age 20 and younger who had a blood alcohol concentration of 0.01 or above killed in Illinois in the most recent year, according to the Illinois Department of Transportation.
Driver drowsiness– Teens are more likely than those in other age groups to start dozing off behind the wheel and less likely to stop and rest. The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety reports that missing only one to two hours of sleep doubles the risk of being involved in a crash. Visibility is reduced, and collisions are more likely to happen at night. This is why graduated licensing programs often limit the ability of teenagers to drive at night without an adult in the car.

Teenagers who have passengers in the car with them when driving may also be more likely to become involved in a crash. The more teens in a car at a time, the greater the chance of a crash. This is why graduated licensing programs restrict the number of passengers who can be in a vehicle when a teen is driving.

Preventing Teen Accidents – Talk to Your Teen

In an Allstate Foundation survey, almost half of parents expressed regret that they had not more carefully monitored their teenagers’ driving behaviors once the teens received a license. Two-thirds of the parents also expressed a wish that they had spent more time teaching their kids how to cope with high-risk driving situations.

Parents who work with their kids on safe driving and who model good driving behavior can have a major impact on whether their children are safe drivers. At Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C., our lawyers believe this starts with talking to your child and setting clear rules and guidelines for safe driving.

The Allstate Foundation and National Safety Council recommend parents take the following steps to help prevent teenage driving crashes:

Drive at least 30 minutes each week with a teen who has recently obtained their driver’s license
Practice specific skills together and provide teens with feedback about controlling speed, stopping, turning, following distance, scanning the road ahead for hazards, judging the gap between vehicles in traffic
Practice driving at night and with passengers
Talking about known dangers that increase the odds of a teenage car accident, including speeding, drowsy driving, driving with young passengers, distracted driving, and drinking and driving.

Resources for Parents of Teen Drivers

Unfortunately, many parents don’t know where to start when it comes to discussing safe driving with their teens. As the Allstate survey indicated, 64 percent of parents are actively looking for resources to help manage their teens’ driving experience.

Fortunately, there are many resources out there for parents who want to help their teens be safer and how to minimize the likelihood of teenage driving crashes, including:

End Distracted Driving– This organization provides information to help parents talk about one of the major causes of teen accidents – distracted driving. In fact, partner Patrick A. Salvi II is working with this organization to speak with teens throughout Chicago and surrounding areas in Illinois about the dangers of distracted driving. The website includes EndDD’s checklist of “Simple Steps” one can take to avoid being a distracted driver.
Teen Driver Source – This helpful resource from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia provides free teen driver safety information and downloadable resources to improve teen driving, including the Teen Driving Plan Practice Guide that helps teach specific skills to teen drivers and structure practice effectively.
The Parent-Teen Driving Agreement– The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has a contract on their website that parents can print out and have their teenagers sign. The contract contains some key provisions that a teen must agree to, including rules designed to prevent distracted driving.
State Farm– This site includes helpful resources that parents can use to teach essential safe driving skills to teenage drivers.

These are just some of the many resources available to parents who want to prevent tragic teenage car crashes.

Contact Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C.

If you or a loved one was injured in a crash with a teen driver, it is important to understand your legal rights. You may have a claim against the teen driver (or, more accurately, the insurance company), provided you can prove the teenager was negligent or did something wrong that was a direct cause of your crash.

The money you may recover after the crash can include payment of all medical costs as well as compensation for time you had to take off from work compensation and for pain and suffering.

Establishing a car accident claim can be very complex. It is critical to talk to an experienced Chicago personal injury lawyer to learn about your rights and find an advocate who can represent you and seek the money you deserve.

At Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard P.C., we have recovered more than $2.0 billion to date for our deserving clients. We are available to put our skills, experiences, and resources to work for you. To learn more about how we can help, contact us today. We can provide a free review of your case. Call our toll-free number or contact us online for a free consultation.