Its no secret. Teens are involved in automobile accidents at an alarming rate and the tragic loss of life is heart-wrenching, priceless. But the cost in dollars to society has a price according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and AAA. Earlier today (May 28, 2008), MSN published an article by Doug Newcomb that sheds light on their findings:

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the risk of motor vehicle crashes is higher among 16- to 19-year-olds than among any other age group.

Ask any parent who has just added a kid to the family’s insurance policy and they’ll tell you how expensive it is to have a teen behind the wheel. But the overall cost of teen driving is as tragic as it is staggering. According to a recent report from AAA, car accidents involving drivers 15 to 17 cost society more than $34 billion in medical expenses, property damage and related costs in 2006.

This massive figure includes $9.8 billion related to fatal crashes, and double that amount ($20.5 billion), connected with non-fatal crashes, while property damage losses made up the remaining $4.1 billion. But there are, of course, more heartbreaking and incalculable losses behind these numbers….

According to an analysis conducted for AAA, in 2006 drivers ages 15 to 17 were involved in approximately 974,000 crashes that injured 406,427 people and killed 2,541.

The rest of the MSN article can be found here, The Staggering Cost of Teen Driving.

Now that you are aware of the problem, are you ready to do something about it? The MBCA Educational Foundation is involved with the Tire Rack Street Survival program; a successful program designed to save lives – teen lives – through driving education. Get involved – save a life. Contact us here and we’ll help you get involved.

If you would prefer to make a financial contribution, that’s available also. Please use the donation button in the right sidebar, which will process your financial contribution to MBCA Educational Foundation (any amount, takes less than 5-minutes). However you may get involved, your contribution is appreciated.