While teenagers look forward to getting their driver’s licenses, their parents often face this juncture of their children’s lives with fear and trepidation. Car accidents are a leading cause of severe injuries and death among teenagers all across the U.S.. Local insurance agent Billy Proudfit, Vice President of Proudfit Insurance Agency, has been committed to changing that trend in the Pittsburgh area. Proudfit has dedicated his resources for helping families prevent tragedies.
His website, www.TeenDriverInsurance.com/Proudfit contains many useful tools to help parents keep their kids safe. He also writes a free monthly e-zine, “Driver’s Seat,” for which people subscribe through the website. Recently retired, Police Officer and Accident Investigator James Poer contributes to the newsletter.
Proudfit is also a charter member of the Society of Family Insurance Specialists which is a national organization of insurance agents that are committed to helping families protect themselves through education and insurance protection.
The Society recently released the Safe Teen Driver Guide that was co-authored by Proudfit, Officer Poer, David Evans, a certified driving instructor and other members of the Society.
“One of the most common reasons why teenagers get into so many accidents is that they just don’t have enough experience behind the wheel.” Explains Proudfit. Driver education experts recommend at least 100 hours behind the wheel before driving unsupervised.
“Parents need to take the responsibility to provide their teens with more driving experience.” Said Officer Poer. “This new home study Safe Teen Driver Guide gives parents a tool that can help their teen experience the most common driving skills while being supervised.”
The Safe Teen Driver Guide provides a step by step outline of driving skills and practice exercises that parents can use to teach their teen to drive. “This time in a child’s life is exciting and should be enjoyed by the entire family.” Says Proudfit. “By using this guide, parents can spend time with their child and make this experience most enjoyable. Plus, it gives parents peace of mind knowing that their child is a safer driver.”
You can learn more about the Safe Teen Driver Guide by visiting www.safeteendrivercourse.com, or contact Billy's office at 724.225.3120 or 800.920.3120
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Inexperience Can Lead to Tragedy
Inexperience Can Lead to Tragedy
Recently, I had the privilege to host an interview with a man who has a very riveting story to share. Although his story was one that we all hope to never experience, he has turned a tragic event into a mission to help others prevent the same happening to them.
You see, Chris Fore, as an adolescent was just beginning to move into a new chapter in his life. He was the typical American high school student who had the world ahead of him… an athlete with a promising future… raised with good moral values and very active in his church. He had the world in front of him and it looked brighter than ever.
Then one night everything changed.
Chris was just 16 when he experienced an event so terrible, that it would forever change the course of his future. But worse, it would ultimately end the future of his good friend.
One night after bible study, Chris and his friends decided to drive over to another friend’s house to finish the evening playing basketball. Chris’s friend, who was driving, had just gotten his driver’s license earlier that day, and as they were driving through rural neighborhoods with many somewhat blind driveways, he caved in to peer pressure and pushed his vehicle beyond a safe speed.
His inexperience as a driver led to an accident that ended his life and left a memory with those that survived the crash that would last for as long as they lived.
Chris survived the car crash to share the story to hopefully, make teens realize how dangerous driving really is. Chris spent the next several months in a wheel chair and his aspirations of becoming a star athlete diminished.
Today, Chris is a high school football coach where every day he preaches his message of teen driver safety. He speaks on this subject every opportunity he gets and has turned this tragedy into a lifelong mission of preventing the same happening to those he influences.
Again, I had the privilege to speak with Chris and I would like to help him share his story with you… in his own words. If you would like a free copy of my interview with Chris, please send me an e-mail at billy@proudfitinsurance.com or call my office at 724.225.3120.
Billy Proudfit
PS - Peer pressure, inexperience, and speeding are the leading causes of teenage deaths in our country. There are steps that you can take to possibly prevent or at least, reduce the likelihood of this happening to your family. I would like to help you. Please let me know if I can.
Recently, I had the privilege to host an interview with a man who has a very riveting story to share. Although his story was one that we all hope to never experience, he has turned a tragic event into a mission to help others prevent the same happening to them.
You see, Chris Fore, as an adolescent was just beginning to move into a new chapter in his life. He was the typical American high school student who had the world ahead of him… an athlete with a promising future… raised with good moral values and very active in his church. He had the world in front of him and it looked brighter than ever.
Then one night everything changed.
Chris was just 16 when he experienced an event so terrible, that it would forever change the course of his future. But worse, it would ultimately end the future of his good friend.
One night after bible study, Chris and his friends decided to drive over to another friend’s house to finish the evening playing basketball. Chris’s friend, who was driving, had just gotten his driver’s license earlier that day, and as they were driving through rural neighborhoods with many somewhat blind driveways, he caved in to peer pressure and pushed his vehicle beyond a safe speed.
His inexperience as a driver led to an accident that ended his life and left a memory with those that survived the crash that would last for as long as they lived.
Chris survived the car crash to share the story to hopefully, make teens realize how dangerous driving really is. Chris spent the next several months in a wheel chair and his aspirations of becoming a star athlete diminished.
Today, Chris is a high school football coach where every day he preaches his message of teen driver safety. He speaks on this subject every opportunity he gets and has turned this tragedy into a lifelong mission of preventing the same happening to those he influences.
Again, I had the privilege to speak with Chris and I would like to help him share his story with you… in his own words. If you would like a free copy of my interview with Chris, please send me an e-mail at billy@proudfitinsurance.com or call my office at 724.225.3120.
Billy Proudfit
PS - Peer pressure, inexperience, and speeding are the leading causes of teenage deaths in our country. There are steps that you can take to possibly prevent or at least, reduce the likelihood of this happening to your family. I would like to help you. Please let me know if I can.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Why Insurance Rates for Teens Are So High?
By Billy Proudfit, Charter Member of the Society of Family Insurance Specialists
As an insurance agent, this is probably one of the most frustrating responses I get from parents who are adding their teen to their car insurance. I understand this frustration and after I explain the reasons, they usually respond with “But, my teen is a good driver…”
That may be true and you’ve probably spent countless hours helping your teen become a safer driver. If you have, then you should be glad that the chances of your teen getting into an accident will be less likely than most teens on the road. But let me emphasize… Less Likely Than Other Teens… not experienced drivers.
It takes thousands of hours behind the wheel to get the experience to avoid accidents and become the safest of drivers. And this can take years. Here’s a statistic to prove this point.
The crash rate for 16 year olds is nearly 3 times higher than 19 years and nearly 6 times higher than drivers 20 to 24 years old.
Unfortunately, you are going to have to pay high rates for your teen to drive. But, you can take steps to avoid paying the highest rates and keep them down.
Step One- Use an insurance agent that specializes in insuring teen drivers. Family Insurance Specialists represent companies that offer good rates but most importantly offer quality insurance protection that can help you avoid paying out of your own pocket for an accident if your teen causes an accident.
Step Two- Make sure you are getting every discount you deserve. Available discounts may include safe driver, claims-free, good grades, multiple policies with the same company, and you can qualify for a lower rate by keeping a good credit rating.
Step Three- Buy a safe, older, lower profile vehicle for your teen to drive. Make sure it has airbags and anti-lock brakes and is not considered a dangerous vehicle. Your Family Insurance Specialist can help you decide which vehicles are least expensive to insure.
Step Four- Increase your deductibles or drop the collision on older vehicles. If your teen is driving an older, less expensive car, you can “self insure” the car. That means of course, if something happens, you’ll have to pay for the damages to your car, but it can save you a lot of money- nearly 1/3 to 1/2!
Step Five- Get a Teen Driver Monitoring Device installed in your teen’s car. The greatest advantage of these systems is that this will most likely prevent your teen from speeding. Speeding tickets can greatly increase your insurance rates and jeopardize your insurance coverage. Insurance companies know that if a teen driver gets a speeding ticket, the likelihood of an accident in the near future is great. You could get cancelled and it may be more difficult to get another insurance company to pick you up.
To learn more about how you can get the right protection for your teen driver, find out other ways you can save on your car insurance, and keep your teen driver safe please call our office at 724-2285-3120 or visit our website at www.TeenDriverInsurance.com/Proudfit
As an insurance agent, this is probably one of the most frustrating responses I get from parents who are adding their teen to their car insurance. I understand this frustration and after I explain the reasons, they usually respond with “But, my teen is a good driver…”
That may be true and you’ve probably spent countless hours helping your teen become a safer driver. If you have, then you should be glad that the chances of your teen getting into an accident will be less likely than most teens on the road. But let me emphasize… Less Likely Than Other Teens… not experienced drivers.
It takes thousands of hours behind the wheel to get the experience to avoid accidents and become the safest of drivers. And this can take years. Here’s a statistic to prove this point.
The crash rate for 16 year olds is nearly 3 times higher than 19 years and nearly 6 times higher than drivers 20 to 24 years old.
Unfortunately, you are going to have to pay high rates for your teen to drive. But, you can take steps to avoid paying the highest rates and keep them down.
Step One- Use an insurance agent that specializes in insuring teen drivers. Family Insurance Specialists represent companies that offer good rates but most importantly offer quality insurance protection that can help you avoid paying out of your own pocket for an accident if your teen causes an accident.
Step Two- Make sure you are getting every discount you deserve. Available discounts may include safe driver, claims-free, good grades, multiple policies with the same company, and you can qualify for a lower rate by keeping a good credit rating.
Step Three- Buy a safe, older, lower profile vehicle for your teen to drive. Make sure it has airbags and anti-lock brakes and is not considered a dangerous vehicle. Your Family Insurance Specialist can help you decide which vehicles are least expensive to insure.
Step Four- Increase your deductibles or drop the collision on older vehicles. If your teen is driving an older, less expensive car, you can “self insure” the car. That means of course, if something happens, you’ll have to pay for the damages to your car, but it can save you a lot of money- nearly 1/3 to 1/2!
Step Five- Get a Teen Driver Monitoring Device installed in your teen’s car. The greatest advantage of these systems is that this will most likely prevent your teen from speeding. Speeding tickets can greatly increase your insurance rates and jeopardize your insurance coverage. Insurance companies know that if a teen driver gets a speeding ticket, the likelihood of an accident in the near future is great. You could get cancelled and it may be more difficult to get another insurance company to pick you up.
To learn more about how you can get the right protection for your teen driver, find out other ways you can save on your car insurance, and keep your teen driver safe please call our office at 724-2285-3120 or visit our website at www.TeenDriverInsurance.com/Proudfit
Monday, June 2, 2008
After School Hours Are Dangerous For Teen Drivers
Most parents only really get concerned about their teen driver children when they head out on the road at night. And rightfully so. That is a very dangerous time. But a recent study shows that the time right after school is also are very high risk time for teen drivers.
This study by AAA indicates that weekday afternoon driving time is just as dangerous for teens as night driving. The researchers studied the number of fatal crashes involving teens between 2002 and 2005. They found that 16 and 17 years olds were involved in almost as many fatal crashes between 3 and 5 pm on weekdays as they were on Friday and Saturday nights between 9 pm and 2 am. There were 1100 weekday fatal accidents and 1237 weekend evening fatal accidents.So what can you as a parent do about this?
Well, here are several suggestions:
1. Establish some specific driving rules with your teen. Be consistent in enforcing both the rules and the consequences when the rules are broken.
2. Impose an absolute ban on cell phone use while your teen is driving. Don’t call them yourself when you know that they are driving.
3. Require that your teen use a seatbelt any and every time they are traveling in any vehicle whether as a driver or a passenger. You must do the same to reinforce the importance of this.
4. Don’t allow your teen driver to carry passengers during the first 3 months or more of driving. Let them get used to being out there on their own before they add the distractions of passengers.
5. Don’t permit your teen to ride with other teen drivers. I know this will be a hard sell in these times of high gas prices but until you know just how safe the other teen driver is, you really should not permit your child to ride with him or her.
6. Make your rules known to other adults in your teen’s life. This can help provide an extra set of eyes when you are not around.
7. Install a GPS monitoring system in your child’s car. When they know that you are watching all of the time, their driving habits will be safer.
To get more safety tips and to find out how you can get a GPS tracking system installed in your child’s car for free, visit my web site at www.TeenDriverInsurance.com/Proudfit or call my office at 724-225-3120
This study by AAA indicates that weekday afternoon driving time is just as dangerous for teens as night driving. The researchers studied the number of fatal crashes involving teens between 2002 and 2005. They found that 16 and 17 years olds were involved in almost as many fatal crashes between 3 and 5 pm on weekdays as they were on Friday and Saturday nights between 9 pm and 2 am. There were 1100 weekday fatal accidents and 1237 weekend evening fatal accidents.So what can you as a parent do about this?
Well, here are several suggestions:
1. Establish some specific driving rules with your teen. Be consistent in enforcing both the rules and the consequences when the rules are broken.
2. Impose an absolute ban on cell phone use while your teen is driving. Don’t call them yourself when you know that they are driving.
3. Require that your teen use a seatbelt any and every time they are traveling in any vehicle whether as a driver or a passenger. You must do the same to reinforce the importance of this.
4. Don’t allow your teen driver to carry passengers during the first 3 months or more of driving. Let them get used to being out there on their own before they add the distractions of passengers.
5. Don’t permit your teen to ride with other teen drivers. I know this will be a hard sell in these times of high gas prices but until you know just how safe the other teen driver is, you really should not permit your child to ride with him or her.
6. Make your rules known to other adults in your teen’s life. This can help provide an extra set of eyes when you are not around.
7. Install a GPS monitoring system in your child’s car. When they know that you are watching all of the time, their driving habits will be safer.
To get more safety tips and to find out how you can get a GPS tracking system installed in your child’s car for free, visit my web site at www.TeenDriverInsurance.com/Proudfit or call my office at 724-225-3120
Set a Good Example!
When most teenagers reach about 14 years of age, they begin to think about driving. Obviously some children dream about this more than others but what is important to you as a parent, is how they might imagine themselves as a driver.
Where do they get their persona as a driver? Where do they learn habits?
The answer is, they learn a lot from watching you drive. They will pick up your good and your bad habits and that is why as a parent, you must really monitor your own driving while your young teens are in the car. You should begin to model good driving behavior and even talk about that behavior with your children.
Here is a short list of the Don’ts: While your young teens are in the car, don’t:
· Eat and drive. Make sure that they see you giving your full attention to your driving.
· Talk on your phone while driving. I know this one is hard to break but when your child tries this while driving it is the equivalent of having them drink a few stiff ones and then try driving.
· Run the yellow light. Teach your teens not to gamble with yellow lights. Their judgment is not as well developed as yours and this behavior can end in tragedy.
· Follow too closely. This is something you shouldn’t do at any time but when your child is in the car they will get a sense for what is the correct following distance. Show them by leaving enough space between you and the car in front of you.
· Drive aggressively. Again, they will model what you do. Teach them to be a courteous and respectful driver. It might make you late a few times but what is that to saving their life.
· Speed. Your children should respect the speed limit. This will save them money in tickets and attorney’s fees, but it will probably also save their life. 33% of teen driver fatalities are due to excessive speed.
Ok, enough with the negatives. Here are a few things you should do when your teens ride with you:
· Always use your seatbelt. And always insist that all passengers wear theirs as well.
· Use turn signals and practice “accurate” driving. Talk to your teens about this.
· Keep your car maintained and the windshield clean. Also check for tire wear and tire pressure as well.
· Come to a complete stop at all stop signs.
· Slow down in bad weather. Tell your teens that you are driving a bit slower and leaving more distance from the car in front today because the bad weather makes the driving that much more dangerous.
These are just a few tips that you can use. I’m sure you can think of even more to help your child become a safer driver so that you can get through this time in your life without a tragedy.For more help on teen driving safety, please visit my web site at www.TeenDriverInsurance.com/proudfit.
Where do they get their persona as a driver? Where do they learn habits?
The answer is, they learn a lot from watching you drive. They will pick up your good and your bad habits and that is why as a parent, you must really monitor your own driving while your young teens are in the car. You should begin to model good driving behavior and even talk about that behavior with your children.
Here is a short list of the Don’ts: While your young teens are in the car, don’t:
· Eat and drive. Make sure that they see you giving your full attention to your driving.
· Talk on your phone while driving. I know this one is hard to break but when your child tries this while driving it is the equivalent of having them drink a few stiff ones and then try driving.
· Run the yellow light. Teach your teens not to gamble with yellow lights. Their judgment is not as well developed as yours and this behavior can end in tragedy.
· Follow too closely. This is something you shouldn’t do at any time but when your child is in the car they will get a sense for what is the correct following distance. Show them by leaving enough space between you and the car in front of you.
· Drive aggressively. Again, they will model what you do. Teach them to be a courteous and respectful driver. It might make you late a few times but what is that to saving their life.
· Speed. Your children should respect the speed limit. This will save them money in tickets and attorney’s fees, but it will probably also save their life. 33% of teen driver fatalities are due to excessive speed.
Ok, enough with the negatives. Here are a few things you should do when your teens ride with you:
· Always use your seatbelt. And always insist that all passengers wear theirs as well.
· Use turn signals and practice “accurate” driving. Talk to your teens about this.
· Keep your car maintained and the windshield clean. Also check for tire wear and tire pressure as well.
· Come to a complete stop at all stop signs.
· Slow down in bad weather. Tell your teens that you are driving a bit slower and leaving more distance from the car in front today because the bad weather makes the driving that much more dangerous.
These are just a few tips that you can use. I’m sure you can think of even more to help your child become a safer driver so that you can get through this time in your life without a tragedy.For more help on teen driving safety, please visit my web site at www.TeenDriverInsurance.com/proudfit.
Put Your Teen Through The Paces Before Going Out On Their Own!
The drivers education in-car training provided by our public school systems is really only a starting point for teaching your teen to drive safely. I recommend no less than 100 hours driving time for your child with the parent in the passenger seat before you let them out on their own.
One of the things that you should do when teaching your child how to drive is teach them how to deal with stressful and dangerous situations while you are there to talk them through it. For example, I advise that you take them to an abandoned, low traffic road and with them observing in the passenger seat, you drive car the off the road and talk them through the process of getting the car back on the road in a safe manner.
Too often, young drivers faced with this situation will overcorrect and jerk the wheel to forcefully. This can lead to them losing control of the vehicle. Let them gain experience with this type of emergency maneuver while you are teaching and talking them through it. When you feel that they are ready, have them drive off the road and bring the car safely back on to the road.
Another great learning experience is 5:00 traffic. They are going to have to drive in it eventually; don’t you want to make sure that you have taught them how before they tackle it on their own? Make it a point, when you think they are ready, to have them drive in stressful traffic situations, including traffic to and from ball games and concerts. If they have done this with you in the passenger seat, then when they are doing with a distracting friend in the seat beside them, they stand a much better chance of handling this safely.
Try to think of any other situations that might require your help and seek those out while you are still training them. We have a complete soup to nuts Teen Driver Training guide available to all of our insurance clients. This 47 page book will walk you through the process of teaching your child safe driving habits from vehicle maintenance to traffic lights, to highway safety and even includes a chapter on map reading. If you want to know more about this guide you can contact us by visiting our web site at www.TeenDriverInsurance.com/proudfit.
One of the things that you should do when teaching your child how to drive is teach them how to deal with stressful and dangerous situations while you are there to talk them through it. For example, I advise that you take them to an abandoned, low traffic road and with them observing in the passenger seat, you drive car the off the road and talk them through the process of getting the car back on the road in a safe manner.
Too often, young drivers faced with this situation will overcorrect and jerk the wheel to forcefully. This can lead to them losing control of the vehicle. Let them gain experience with this type of emergency maneuver while you are teaching and talking them through it. When you feel that they are ready, have them drive off the road and bring the car safely back on to the road.
Another great learning experience is 5:00 traffic. They are going to have to drive in it eventually; don’t you want to make sure that you have taught them how before they tackle it on their own? Make it a point, when you think they are ready, to have them drive in stressful traffic situations, including traffic to and from ball games and concerts. If they have done this with you in the passenger seat, then when they are doing with a distracting friend in the seat beside them, they stand a much better chance of handling this safely.
Try to think of any other situations that might require your help and seek those out while you are still training them. We have a complete soup to nuts Teen Driver Training guide available to all of our insurance clients. This 47 page book will walk you through the process of teaching your child safe driving habits from vehicle maintenance to traffic lights, to highway safety and even includes a chapter on map reading. If you want to know more about this guide you can contact us by visiting our web site at www.TeenDriverInsurance.com/proudfit.
5 Most Common Mistakes Teen Drivers Make
This is an article my friend, Officer Jim Poer wrote on teen driver safety. I thought you should read it…
The hardest part of my job is having to knock on a parent's door to deliver the worst news they could ever get. After 30 years of investigating accidents, this is the part of my job I wish I never had to do. That is why I am committed to helping you make your teen a safer driver.
This month, I want to share with you the 5 most common mistakes that lead to teen driver accidents and fatalities.
Mistake #1- Speeding. There is a multiplier effect when it comes to speed. The faster you go, the amount of time required to stop is multiplied and at higher speeds, the time required to stop is greatly increased.Kids don't understand this, the physics side of driving that is. They assume they can stop when they want and unfortunately they don't get this knowledge from their driver's education class.Speed also leads to other common mistakes such as the second most common mistake.
Mistake #2- Over-Correcting. When a teen driver gets into a situation where they need to correct the direction of the vehicle, they often times, over-correct causing loss of control. When you add speed to this effect, the reaction is almost always an over correction that can't be brought back under control.
Mistake #3- Distractions. This is the subject of my latest blog and you can read more on this at http://www.parentalcourage.com. The problem these days is that kids have way too many things in their cars to distract them. Cell phones, mp-3 players, and text messaging, to name a few. But the biggest distraction is usually other kids in the car.
Mistake #4- Following too close. Just as I described in Mistake #1, when a vehicle is following too close at a high rate of speed, the ability to avoid a collision is reduced to almost nothing if that vehicle's driver decides to suddenly stop.
Mistake #5- Failure to Yield. Many accidents occur when a teen driver fails to yield to another driver when the other driver legally has the right of way. Failing to check for other vehicles in the blind spot, or not accurately estimating the closing rate of another vehicle are also very common problems.
Sincerely,
Master Police Officer III James Poer
Officer Poer is a 30 year veteran accident investigator with the High Point Police Department. He is also a parent of 4 drivers. His experience, conviction, and advice is demonstrated on his website- www.parentalcourage.com. Please visit his site often and remain vigilant on your teen driver’s safety!
In my next posting, I will share with you what Officer Poer says on How to Prevent Your Teen From Making These Mistakes!
You can also learn more at my website www.teendriverinsurance.com/proudfit.
Wishing you and your family the best in health, happiness and prosperity!
Billy
The hardest part of my job is having to knock on a parent's door to deliver the worst news they could ever get. After 30 years of investigating accidents, this is the part of my job I wish I never had to do. That is why I am committed to helping you make your teen a safer driver.
This month, I want to share with you the 5 most common mistakes that lead to teen driver accidents and fatalities.
Mistake #1- Speeding. There is a multiplier effect when it comes to speed. The faster you go, the amount of time required to stop is multiplied and at higher speeds, the time required to stop is greatly increased.Kids don't understand this, the physics side of driving that is. They assume they can stop when they want and unfortunately they don't get this knowledge from their driver's education class.Speed also leads to other common mistakes such as the second most common mistake.
Mistake #2- Over-Correcting. When a teen driver gets into a situation where they need to correct the direction of the vehicle, they often times, over-correct causing loss of control. When you add speed to this effect, the reaction is almost always an over correction that can't be brought back under control.
Mistake #3- Distractions. This is the subject of my latest blog and you can read more on this at http://www.parentalcourage.com. The problem these days is that kids have way too many things in their cars to distract them. Cell phones, mp-3 players, and text messaging, to name a few. But the biggest distraction is usually other kids in the car.
Mistake #4- Following too close. Just as I described in Mistake #1, when a vehicle is following too close at a high rate of speed, the ability to avoid a collision is reduced to almost nothing if that vehicle's driver decides to suddenly stop.
Mistake #5- Failure to Yield. Many accidents occur when a teen driver fails to yield to another driver when the other driver legally has the right of way. Failing to check for other vehicles in the blind spot, or not accurately estimating the closing rate of another vehicle are also very common problems.
Sincerely,
Master Police Officer III James Poer
Officer Poer is a 30 year veteran accident investigator with the High Point Police Department. He is also a parent of 4 drivers. His experience, conviction, and advice is demonstrated on his website- www.parentalcourage.com. Please visit his site often and remain vigilant on your teen driver’s safety!
In my next posting, I will share with you what Officer Poer says on How to Prevent Your Teen From Making These Mistakes!
You can also learn more at my website www.teendriverinsurance.com/proudfit.
Wishing you and your family the best in health, happiness and prosperity!
Billy
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