Nationwide 'Rally-for-Teen-Driver-Safety' Campaign Kicks Off

Rookie Driver Providing Safety-Aids to Raise Awareness

SPRING LAKE, Mich., May 1 -- Parents will do everything in their power to ensure the safety and well-being of their teen children, especially when they first begin driving a car. In an effort to reduce teen driving crashes in communities throughout the country this summer, Internet- based company Rookie Driver.Net today announced its national Rally-for-Teen- Driver-Safety campaign. The goal of the rally is for parents nationwide to share the company's Rookie Driver safety-aids with their friends and families, helping increase visibility and raise awareness of new teen drivers. The firm is kicking off the cause by supporting a two-for-one sponsorship that runs now through September 30, 2007.

The campaign gets underway with summer vacation quickly approaching. Parents have good reason for added concern for their children, as teen drivers hit the roads nationwide in huge numbers during the summer. Teen drivers average 44 percent more hours behind the wheel each week during the summer (23.6 hours) than during the school year (16.4 hours), according to a Liberty Mutual/SADD Teen Driving survey.

"Teen driving statistics are extremely alarming, and increasing awareness of our kids during their first year of driving is so important that it is our company's entire focus," says Corinne Fortenbacher, president of Rookie Driver.Net. The Spring Lake, MI company manufactures new driver safety magnets and stickers, marketing them online. Their products are designed by teens and specifically identify novice drivers thru a line of trademarked "Rookie Driver" emblems that are placed on cars of teen drivers.

  The Statistics on Teen Driving Accidents Are Staggering

  According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration:

  -- Over 1 million teens are involved in auto crashes every year in the
     United States.
  -- New teen drivers have a 3 in 10 chance of being in a serious traffic
     accident within their first year of driving.
  -- 16-year-olds have higher crash rates than drivers of any other age.
  -- New teen drivers have 5 times higher crash rates than even 18-year-old
     drivers.
  -- The two main factors leading to the high crash rates among 16-year-old
     drivers are immaturity and lack of driving experience, according to the
     Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

"The Rally-for-Teen-Driver-Safety campaign came about after hearing from many of our customers who said they were recommending our products to their friends," said Fortenbacher. "We wanted to help out, and creating a national safety campaign seemed like a great way of increasing awareness towards our cause." For every Rookie Driver car magnet or sticker bought, the company will provide another one to share with a friend or family member.

Rookie Driver.Net has grown from a single product launched online in 2006 into a leading provider of products to help identify new teen drivers, according to Fortenbacher. "We continue to create products that are more acceptable to teens, because we enlist their help in the design process. The premiere of our new product line this year has helped us continue as a national trendsetter in the industry."

Branding their products has also been a key strategy. "Successful branding has been crucial for Rookie Driver in accomplishing our goal of creating an acceptable way to raise awareness of new drivers during their most critical time, their first year of driving," Fortenbacher explained. "The brand- building of our logo and product line is no different than when you see Starbucks. You immediately recognize the Starbucks name, their symbol and the colors within their logo. We created a universally recognized term and symbol to increase attention toward a very important concern of parents and drivers. So, when other drivers see a Rookie Driver emblem on a car, they immediately recognize there is a novice driver behind the wheel, and they know to be more cautious and forgiving."

"The Rally-for-Teen-Driver-Safety campaign is a way for us to give back to our customers, along with expanding our cause," Fortenbacher concluded. To learn more about the campaign, visit http://www.rookiedriver.net/ .