Teens: Drinking and Driving

It is a new year and a good time to revisit our contracts with our teenagers.  In a December 27, 2012 article in the New York Times, Drinking, Driving, Teenagers and New Year's Eve, Dave Melton, director of global safety for Liberty International, stated that this is a good "time for parents to revisit the contract they may have had in place with their teenager regarding drinking, drugs and driving."  For a copy of the contract go to the CDC web site. 
 
Mr. Melton went on to reiterate the importance of teen agers knowing that their parents will pick them up if they have been drinking or the friend driving has been drinking.  He stated, "Recognize that some teenagers will be drinking...Renew your promise to pick up a child anytime, anywhere, no questions asked."   Sadly, relaxed parenting regarding underage drinking seems to contributing to the problem.  

According to the New York Times article, in a study commissioned by Liberty Mutual and Students Against Destructive Decisions of 11th and 12 th grade students, "they found that nearly half of teenagers said they were allowed by their parents to go to parties where alcohol was being served at least rarely, and more than a third said they were allowed to drink when their parents were with them. Slightly less than a third reported being allowed to drink unsupervised."   Let's keep our teenagers safe, and renew your safe driving contract with your teens.