Teenager Driving Rules & Agreement

TEENAGER DRIVING RULES

We love our children and want to keep them safe. The greatest dangers to children is travel by car. The purpose of this document is to establish rules that we must agree on in order for our children to have driving priveleges. These rules apply to any of our children living in our home or in college, and still apply even if they've passed the "teen" years.

RULE 1: CHECK IN WITH A PARENT EVERY TIME YOU DRIVE.

Tell a parent where you are going, who will be the passengers, and when you will return.
Call home if you will not return home at the agreed-up time.
Call home if you are going to a new destination that the parent has not been informed of.
Call home if your plans change while you are out.
Call home if you cannot get home safely. Parents will arrange a safe ride home.

RULE 2: OBEY ALL TRAFFIC LAWS AND SIGNS.

Never use alcohol or other drugs and drive.
Never ride with a person who is driving after using alcohol or other drugs.
Never ride in a car where any alcohol or drug use is occurring.
Always wear your seat belt at all times as a driver or passenger.
Always have every passenger wear a seat belt.
Do not drive aggressively (e.g., speeding, tailgating, or cutting others off.).

RULE 3: DO NOT TAKE UNNECESSARY RISKS WHILE DRIVING.

No playing around with passengers, messing around with the radio, talking on a cell phone, etc.
Do not drive when overly tired, angry, or upset.
Do not put yourself or others at increased risk by making unnecessary trips in adverse weather.

CRUCIAL NOTICE: If you or your designated driver is not sober, PLEASE DO NOT GET IN THE CAR. Please call your parents. We will pick you up and will not hassle you; this is an inconvenience we strongly prefer over the alternatives.

EXAMPLE VIOLATIONS & CONSEQUENCES:

Violation	Consequence
Used alcohol or other drugs and drove.	Lose driving priveleges and allowance for one year.
Arrested for DUI.	Permanently lose use of our cars and coverage by our insurance. (You will essentially be unable to drive, even if the state does not strip your driver's license.)
Got a ticket for speeding.	Lose driving priveleges for 2 months and lose 3 months allowance.
Didn't make all passengers wear seat belts.	Lose driving priveleges for 1 month.
Lied about where s/he was going with the car.	Lose parents' trust and driving priveleges for 2 months.
Violated agreed-upon passenger restriction.	Lose driving priveleges for two weeks.
Violated agreed-upon nighttime restriction.	Lose nighttime outing priveleges for one month.

The teenager is subject to these rules and consequences at all times.