Multimedia News Release - GEICO Offers Tips to Make it a Safer Summer for Teen Drivers

WASHINGTON, June 7 -- If you want to pinpoint the reason that many young teens have serious driving accidents, this pretty much sums it up - - inexperience. Whether they are on their way to surf, swim or start a summer job, teens may find themselves in driving situations they aren't equipped to handle yet.

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Parents can make the summer driving season a safer one, say officials at GEICO, by helping their teens develop more experience and by limiting certain driving situations until new drivers are better prepared to handle them.

  * Limit night driving. Many teen car crashes take place between 9 p.m. and
    12 midnight. Beginning drivers should be restricted to driving during
    the day initially.

  * Restrict passengers. Having more passengers in a car increases the
    chance of greater risk-taking, because of greater peer pressure and
    because it leads to greater distractions.

  * Keep it slow and safe for starters. Remember that teens need to stay
    away from fast-moving, high volumes of traffic until they feel
    comfortable in such situations.

  * Be firm about safety belt use. Require that your teenagers wear safety
    belts at all times -- no exceptions.

  * Discuss realistic consequences of drug and alcohol use. Let them hear it
    from you that alcohol and drug use is totally unacceptable when driving.

  Parents can also help by:

  1.  Providing training for bad weather situations. Limit your teen's
      driving during periods of bad weather until the teen demonstrates a
      high level of competence and confidence.

  2.  Supervising as much practice driving as possible. Parents should take
      an active role in the teenager's driving practice. Make a firm
      schedule to supervise your future driver and stick to it.

  3.  Restricting cell phones to emergency use only. Don't let bad habits
      begin. Provide your young teen with a cell phone for the car for
      emergency situations only.

  4.  Choosing safe vehicles for your children. Proper attention to the
      vehicle a teen drives is as important as his or her actual driving.
      Avoid small cars, trucks and sport utility vehicles. Look for
      automobiles with high safety ratings (air bags, crumple zones, etc.).

  5.  Serving as a responsible role model. New drivers learn a lot by
      example, so practice safe driving. Teens with poor driving records
      often reflect the behavior of parents with poor driving records.

To get a free copy of GEICO's "Can I Borrow the Car?" brochure and other teen safe driving materials, please go to the GEICO Web site: http://www.geico.com/ and open the link to the GEICO Information Center.

GEICO (Government Employees Insurance Company) is the fifth-largest private-passenger auto insurer in the United States. It provides auto insurance coverage for more than 5.5 million policyholders and insures more than 8.8 million vehicles. GEICO uses television, radio, print media and direct mail to attract customers to call its 1-800-841-3000 number and visit its Web site, and keeps its rates low by dealing directly with the customer. GEICO offers sales and claim services 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For more information, go to http://www.geico.com/.

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