Florida Injury Lawyer Blog

FHP Targeting Intoxicated Drivers during Labor Day Weekend to Reduce Risks of Drunk Driving Accidents in Fort Myers and Elsewhere

August 26, 2011 | Associates and Bruce L. Scheiner

Holiday weekends come with an increased risk of being involved in a drunk driving accident in Fort Myers and elsewhere in Southwest Florida. To help keep these accidents to a minimum, the Florida Highway Patrol will be participating in a national campaign, “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over.”

Increased enforcement efforts to bust drunk drivers will run through Labor Day. Thousands of law enforcement agencies across the state will be on the lookout for impaired drivers.

Associates and Bruce L. Scheiner, Attorneys for the Injured, continue to support the Lee County Sheriff Department’s Mobile Eyes program. Motorists who report a drunk driver to 911 are elibible for a $50 reward if officers can stop and arrest the driver for DUI.

“Drunk driving is simply not worth the risk. Not only do you risk killing yourself or someone else, but also the trauma and financial costs of a crash or an arrest for impaired driving can be significant,” said FHP Director, Colonel David Brierton.

Labor Day weekend is usually a time when motorists hit the road to join friends and family for one last summer weekend.

During this weekend and next, all FHP personnel in uniform will be combing the streets in search of intoxicated drivers or those who are endangering themselves or others. The increase in active officers aims to make their enforcement efforts more visible on our roadways and to encourage drivers to refrain from driving while intoxicated.

Officers will also be providing assistance to motorists who may break down or need other forms of assistance during travel.

Remember that you can always call *FHP, or *347, to get in touch with the FHP to report a drunk driver or simply to request some roadside assistance.

Not only could your phone call reward you wish some extra money, but it could help to save a life this Labor Day weekend. We encourage all residents to have a safe and happy Labor Day weekend and Don’t Drink and Drive!
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Avoid Child Injury in Fort Myers and Educate Your Student about the Hazards of Biking or Walking to School

August 21, 2011 | Associates and Bruce L. Scheiner

As we previously discussed on our Fort Myers Injury Blog, students of all ages are heading back to school this month. While many of them take the school bus to school there is still quite a few that bike or walk. There are a number of hazards that a child will face during their journey to and from school that could result in child injury in Naples.
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According to iWalk, there are about 25,000 student pedestrians injured on their way to school every year. The younger the student, the more at risk they are for being involved in a motor-vehicle accident on our roadways. Many children are unable to understand the flow of traffic and other dangers.

Our Fort Myers child injury attorneys would like to ask that all parents and teachers take a moment out of their day to discuss pedestrian and bicycle safety with their students. We also ask that school officials take a look at the most dangerous routes that our children take to school and consider ways to make them safer for our young ones, including traffic lights and crossing guards.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, roughly 85 percent of children get to school each day by school bus, car or by public transit. A little more than 15 percent of trips are made to and from school on-foot or by bicycling.

Students who live within a two-mile radius of the school they attend are required to walk to school. Under Florida Statute 1006.23, school officials are required to examine these areas to ensure that hazards are kept to a minimum. These areas must meet state criteria to ensure they’re safe enough for our young children.

The City of Cape Coral Police, the City of Fort Myers Police and the Lee County Sheriff’s Department also assist with safety efforts. Cape Coral provides crossing guards from its own force where Fort Myers provides crossing guards from an independent contractor.

The National Safety Council offers these safety tips for children that walk to bike to school. Parents are urged to discuss these tips with their children as well:

Walking to School

-Never walk alone. Always walk with a group and with a responsible adult.

-If there isn’t a sidewalk to walk on, walk facing oncoming traffic.

-Always cross the street at an intersection or at a street corner.

-Don’t step off the curb until you look both ways to see if a car is coming.

-Keep looking left and right as you cross the street.

-Do not run. Always walk across the street.

-Never dart out in front of a parked car because oncoming drivers may not be able to see you.

Bicycling to School

-Make sure to always wear your helmet.

-Make sure that your helmet fits. Make sure that there is the width of two fingers between the bottom of your helmet and your eyebrows.

-Always ride on the right-hand side of the road in a single file line in the same direction as traffic.

-Always come to a complete stop before you cross a street.

-Wear bright colors so that drivers are more likely to see you during your early morning venture.

-Get out and practice. The more experienced you are on a bicycle, the less likely you are to be involved in a serious accident.
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Man Sentenced to 15 Years after North Fort Myers Drunk Driving Accident Kills 2 Nuns

August 20, 2011 | Associates and Bruce L. Scheiner

A local man was recently sentenced to 15 years behind bars after a drunk driving accident in North Fort Myers that killed two nuns and injured a third, according to the North Fort Myers Neighbor. The man struck a plea agreement with a guilty plea on two counts of DUI manslaughter and DUI unlawful blood alcohol .15 or higher, says the State Attorney’s Office.

After he serves his 15 years in jail, he’s to be placed on state probation for another 15 years. If he violates probation, he could be put on probation for an additional 15 years. The man could have faced up to 24 years in jail if he handn’t taken the deal.

“During his 15 years of probation, he can have no alcohol, must undergo random alcohol screenings and must give one lecture a year at a church or school about the dangers of alcohol abuse,” said State Attorney’s Office spokeswoman Samantha Syoen.

Our Naples drunk driving accident attorneys understand how devastating an accident like this can be. Drunk drivers throw their consideration for other people’s lives out the window when they get behind the wheel. Drivers like this all too often cause serious or fatal injuries.

The North Fort Myers man caused this accident back in September of 2009. He was turning onto Gran Via drive from U.S. 41 when he drove in front of the car transporting the three nuns. The vehicle’s collided. The driver was later tested for alcohol and returned a .228 reading.

One of the nuns dies on scene. The other two were taken to Lee Memorial Hospital where a second was later pronounced dead. The third was treated for her injuries and released.

In 2009, Florida lost more than 2,500 lives because of traffic accidents. More than 900 of those fatalities were the result of traffic accidents that involved at least one intoxicated driver.

Florida state law requires the following for a DUI first conviction:

-A fine of anywhere from $250 to $500.

-You can get up to 50 hours of community service.

-Probation, but not for more than a year.

-Jail time, but no more than for 6 months.

-License revocation for a minimum of 180 days.

-Completion of 12 hours of DUI School.

-Imprisonment, of no more than 9 months, with a blood alcohol level of .08 or higher with a minor in the vehicle.

When this is all said and done, the average cost of a DUI conviction in Florida is as much as $20,000. That’s when you factor in all of the various fees, fines, defense costs and insurance increases.

And it doesn’t end there, a DUI conviction will stay on your Florida driving record for years. This is all best-case scenario because like the North Fort Myers man, you could spend quite a bit of time behind bar if you injure someone while intoxicated behind the wheel.
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Parents Concerned with More than On-Time School Buses – Child Injury in Fort Myers

August 19, 2011 | Associates and Bruce L. Scheiner

The Lee County School District has a plan and its transportation department plans to get your children to and from school on time this year.

Parents are still concerned about the yellow buses getting their children to school safely.

Every year, more than 25 million students across the country use school buses to get to school and back each day. Unfortunately, many people are injured in the process. According to the National Safety Council, there were 134 deaths resulting from school bus-related traffic accidents in 2005 alone. Another 11,000 were injured in these incidents.

Lee County school buses transport about 48,000 students every year. That’s more than half of the county’s 85,000 student population. Lee transportation operates nearly 700 school buses every school year. A lot of parents still worry about sending their children out to the bus stops with the congested traffic of the morning rush hour. Talking with your child about safe bus-riding habits can help to reduce their risks of child injury in Fort Myers, Naples and Cape Coral.

Our Naples personal injury attorneys would first like to wish all of our students a happy school year. Getting to and from school can be the most dangerous part of your child’s day. Luckily, Joseph Burke, Lee County’s new superintendent, says that he and the district aren’t done with their safe bus stop efforts. While the county continues to search for shorter bus route for students, the school board is still keeping safety as a top priority.

Of Florida’s 67 school districts, Charlotte and Lee counties have some of the earliest school start times. Parents oftentimes worry about their children heading to the bus stop before the sun even comes up.

Of all the school bus-related accident injuries from 2000 to 2005, nearly 50 percent of them were sustained by the passengers of a school bus, nearly 10 percent were by the school bus drivers and more than 40 percent were sustained by occupants of other motor vehicles. During the same time period, more than 80 percent of school bus-accident fatalities happened when a pedestrian was hit by a bus.

The National Safety Council offers these safety tips for students riding the school bus this year:

-Don’t play around while waiting at your bus stop. Carelessness can lead to accidents.

-Line up as the bus pulls up to your stop.

-Don’t step onto the road until the bus has come to a complete stop and has opened its doors.

-When you’re getting on the bus, use the handrail.

-Once you’re on the bus sit down and talk with an inside voice.

-Keep your hands, arms and head inside the bus.

-Keep books, bags and other items out of the bus’ aisle.

-Don’t stand up to exit the bus at your stop until the bus has come to a complete stop.

-Always stay at least 10 feet away from the bus.

-Make sure the driver sees you and signals before crossing the road if you need to.

-Look in all directions for oncoming traffic before you cross the street.
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Unattended Little Ones Left in Cars Suffer Fatal Child Injuries in Cape Coral

August 8, 2011 | Associates and Bruce L. Scheiner

Our hearts go out to the parents and families of the two children who suffered tragic accident this past week. Two children suffered heat-related injuries in Cape Coral and in Collier County. One child died, according to WINK News. Both children were left unattended in hot vehicles. The Florida Department of Children and Families in Southwest Florida is investigating the cases.

Our Cape Coral personal injury attorneys are urging parents to be extra careful not to leave their child in an unattended car this summer. You think this is something that could never happen to you or your child, but the truth is it happens more often than we’d like to think. According to the San Francisco State University Department of Geosciences, nearly 50 children under the age of 14 died because of hyperthermia in 2010 alone.

There have already been 21 reported fatalities in 2011. Since 2002, at least four children in Southwest Florida have died as a result of being left in a hot car. Florida is second only to the state of Texas in the number of child deaths due to hyperthermia.

“These twenty-one deaths were tragic and preventable – not one of those children should have lost their lives in this horrible way,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. “We need to do everything we can to remind people to be vigilant and never leave a child alone in or around a motor vehicle.”

Recently, a 1-year-old was accidentally left in a car in Cape Coral and died after being admitted to Cape Coral Hospital. Just the next day, an 11-month-old in Collier County was rescued from a hot car by law enforcement.

It is illegal in the state of Florida to leave a child that is under the age of 6 in an unattended or unsupervised vehicle for more than 15 minutes. The temperature inside a vehicle, even when the windows are cracked, can quickly reach as high as 140 degrees. According to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, research, hyperthermia is the leading cause of non-crash vehicle deaths for children under the age of 14.

Another child nearly drowned in deep end of the community pool at Lochmoor Villas in North Fort Myers, according to The News-Press. The 4-year-old lost grip of his inner tube and sank 6 feet to the bottom of the pool. He remained motionless at the bottom of the pool, face down, as his babysitter failed to notice.

After nearly 5 minutes of being submerged in the water, the boy resurfaced in the arms of a retired asset security manager for Wal-mart with CPR training. He was revived and after more than 6 minutes of CPR, paramedics arrived and took the child to HealthPark Medical Center.

The Fort Myers boy is one of nearly 20 child near-drowning cases that have seen by the Lee Memorial Health System this year. Nationwide, approximately 5,000 children are hospitalized each year because of drowning and related accidents.

According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), there have been 37 drownings and 38 near-drowning incidents reported already in 2011. In an effort to reduce these incidents, the CPSC has launched a new 2011 campaign, Pool Safely: Simple Steps Save Lives, consisting of television and radio public service announcements to highlight a number of important water safety steps that can be taken to save lives.

The CPSC is urging parents and children to adopt as many safety steps as possible in and around pools and spas. The pool safely campaign is a first-of-its-kind campaign launched by the federal government to raise national public education efforts to reduce child drownings and near-drownings in swimming pools and spas.

“As the summer swimming season approaches, our message to parents and caregivers is simple: stay safe in and around pools and spas by practicing as many safety steps as possible. This includes staying close to children at all times, knowing water safety skills like CPR, and ensuring anti-entrapment drain covers are installed in all pools and spas,” said Inez Tenenbaum, Chairwomen of the CPSC.

Pool safety tips to keep your child safe near pools this summer:

-Never leave your children alone in or near the pool.

– An adult who knows CPR should always be present when children are swimming.

-Practice touch supervision with children under the age of 5. This means that the adult is within an arm’s length of the child at all times.

-Keep rescue equipment, like a shepherd’s hook or life preserver, and a telephone by the pool.

-Do not use air-filled “swimming aids” as a substitute for approved life vests.

-When children are done swimming, secure the pool so they can’t get back into it.

-When not in use, remove all toys from the pool after use so children don’t try to reach for them.
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GHSA Steps in to Help Prevent Distracted Driving Car Accidents in Naples and Elsewhere

August 4, 2011 | Associates and Bruce L. Scheiner

As we’ve recent reported on our Florida Injury Lawyer Blog, our state is one of the few states left that has absolutely no law in place prohibiting or restricting any or all drivers from using a cell phone or texting behind the wheel.

The Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) is trying to change that. They recently released the very first comprehensive overview looking into distracted driving records, habits and car accident statistics. The report analyzed research from more than 350 scientific papers published between 2000 and 2011.

Our Naples car accident attorneys understand the hazards that are presented on our roadways when a driver engages in distracting activities behind the wheel. The new report, Distracted Driving: What Research Shows and What States Can Do, summarizes how distraction impacts driver performance and crash risk, how often drivers are distracted, what distracted driving is exactly and what countermeasures may be most effective and what states can do to reduce distracted driving.

“Despite all that has been written about driver distraction, there is still a lot that we do not know,” said GHSA Executive Director Barbara Harsha, who oversaw the report’s development. “Much of the research is incomplete or contradictory. Clearly, more studies need to be done addressing both the scope of the problem and how to effectively address it.”

The report suggests that states implement the following countermeasures to help curb the behavior:

-Evaluate the distracted driving laws and programs of other states. This evaluation should provide the information states need regarding which countermeasures are effective and which are not.

-Implement distracted driving communication programs.

-Record distracted driving in crash reports statewide. Be as detailed as possible to assist in evaluating current distracted driving laws and programs.

-States that have not already passed handheld bans (Florida) should wait until there is more definitive research and data are available on these laws’ effectiveness before create its own.

-Continue to leverage effective, low-cost roadway countermeasures. These countermeasures can include edgeline and centerline rumble strips. These measures are used to alert motorists when their car drifts out of their driving lane.

-Assist employers in developing and implementing distracted driving policies and programs.

“While distracted driving is an emotional issue that raises the ire of many on the road, states must take a research-based approach to addressing the problem. Until more research is conducted, states need to proceed thoughtfully, methodically and objectively,” says GHSA Executive Director Barbara Harsha.

Currently, 34 states, the District of Columbia, and Guam ban text messaging for all drivers. Twelve of these laws were enacted just in 2010 alone. Another 9 states, the District of Columbia, and the Virgin Islands prohibit all drivers from using handheld cell phones while driving. Florida does not regulate driving distractions.
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Studies Fail to Influence Distracted Driving Regulations in Florida to Reduce Car Accidents in Fort Myers and Elsewhere

August 3, 2011 | Associates and Bruce L. Scheiner

As we recently discussed on our Florida Injury Lawyers Blog, Florida is one of the few states left that still has no law regulating the distractions of drivers on our roadways. Drivers of all ages on our roadways are allowed to talk on their cell phone, send text messages, surf the web and do just about anything else. These distractions are a primary cause in a number of car accidents in Fort Myers, Naples, Bonita, Cape Coral and elsewhere in Southwest Florida.

A recent study, conducted by the U.S. Department of Transportation, reports that areas in our country that enforce laws prohibiting such driving behaviors actually experience a significant reduction in roadway dangers. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood recently announced that Syracuse, New York, and Hartford, Connecticut were the most recent states to experience these reductions after the execution of two pilot projects used to measure the effects of increased law enforcement coupled with high-profile public education campaigns.

Our Fort Myers car accident attorneys understand the dangers that accompany distracted driving habits. In 2009 alone, there were nearly 5,500 traffic deaths because of accidents that involved a distracted driver. Another 500,000 people were injured in these incidents. Distracted driving fatalities accounted for nearly 20 percent of all traffic fatalities during that year. While 34 states, the District of Columbia, and Guam already enforce texting bans and nine states, the District of Columbia, and the Virgin Islands have prohibited all hand-held cell phone use while driving, Florida has yet to make its first move to protect motorists from these preventable accidents.

“These findings show that strong laws, combined with highly-visible police enforcement, can significantly reduce dangerous texting and cell phone use behind the wheel,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. “Based on these results, it is crystal clear that those who try to minimize this dangerous behavior are making a serious error in judgment, especially when half a million people are injured and thousands more are killed in distracted driving accidents.”

Each pilot program was funded by $200,000 in federal funds and $100,000 from the state. Each area examined whether increased police enforcement along with paid advertising and news media coverage had the ability to reduce distracted driving. Both pilot efforts used “Phone in One Hand, Ticket in the Other” as the media campaign theme. This media theme was similarly structured to the highly-successful national seat belt campaign, “Click It or Ticket.”

The studies concluded:

-Syracuse, New York witnessed a decrease in handheld cell phone use and texting behind the wheel by a third. This area credits high-visibility enforcement for the reduction.

-Hartford, Connecticut witnessed nearly a 60 percent reduction in handheld use. Texting by drivers reportedly dropped by nearly 75 percent.

“The success of these pilot programs clearly show that combining strong laws with strong enforcement can bring about a sea change in public attitudes and behavior,” said NHTSA Administrator David Strickland. “We applaud the work of the men and women of the Syracuse and Hartford police forces, and call on state legislatures, law enforcement and safety advocates across the nation to follow their lead.”

Florida may one day be able to experience the same benefits of safer roads if our state decides to enact a law to regulate the distracting driving habits of motorists. Until then, safe driving habits are the sole responsibility of the individual driver. Be safe, be responsible and be focused.
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National Crash Study Examines Car Accidents in Florida

August 2, 2011 | Associates and Bruce L. Scheiner

The Naturalistic Driving Study, the world’s largest field study of driving behavior, is looking for participants in Florida. This study looks to record driver’s actions and reactions behind the wheel when interacting with varying traffic conditions and in the event of a car accident in Fort Myers or elsewhere. The study is looking for 3,100 drivers to volunteer in Buffalo, Seattle, Tampa Bay, Durham, central Pennsylvania and Bloomington. Researchers will then use this recorded data to aid the development of safety improvements in road design, cars, and driver training programs, according to Forbes.

“Collision prevention is the central goal of the study” said Ken Campbell, chief program officer overseeing safety for the Strategic Highway Research Program, which is part of the non-profit Transportation Research Board. “And the driver is the key to prevent collision.”

Our Fort Myers car accident lawyers understand the benefits of a study like this one. Previous studies only focused on countermeasures that protect vehicle occupants after a collision, like seat belts, airbags and crash-worthy vehicles. This is a new study that focuses on driver behavior, which is the primary cause of most accidents. The researcher’s goal is to develop more efficient crash avoidance systems.

In this study, sponsored by the Federal Highway Administration, 3,100 drivers will be monitored with a video recording system that includes four video cameras. These four cameras will tape forward and rear views and the driver’s face and hands. Monitoring equipment, including GPS, wireless radar and sensors, will also record information about environmental variables like traffic, lighting and weather conditions.

All of this information will be held in a storage box in the vehicle that is about the size of a text book. Researchers will retrieve this information from the vehicle every four to six months.

“You can’t just look at collisions or near collisions to know what risk factors are. It’s that comparison with what the driver is doing when there is not a safety-related event that tells you what the risk factors are,” says Dr. Campbell.

The study is mainly looking for participants under the age of 25 and over the age of 65. Both of these groups represent a small percentage of drivers who have high collision rates. Accidents at intersections and crashes that happen when the driver runs off the road will be the initial focus areas of this study. Each participant will receive $500 for each year they participate. To participate, you must have a valid driver’s license, proof of insurance and an approved vehicle. Your participating vehicle is subject to a brief inspection. More than half of all vehicle makes on Florida roadways are eligible for the study. It generally takes less than four hours to install the study equipment into the vehicle.

“This study is long overdue and has the potential for providing the most comprehensive look at why highway crashes occur,” said Peter Kissinger, president and chief executive of the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, a nonprofit research and educational organization that provided technical advice for the study. “It is unprecedented in its scope and approach. It will be a wonderful supplement to other ongoing and planned traffic safety research efforts. My only disappointment is that the transportation research community didn’t initiate the study several years ago.”
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CPSC Steps Up Enforcement Efforts to Prevent Child Injury in Naples and Elsewhere

August 1, 2011 | Associates and Bruce L. Scheiner

Last week was the start of a new generation of rules for safer crib sales at local and national retail stores in an attempt to prevent crib-related child injury in Fort Myers and elsewhere.

Back in December, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) voted unanimously to approve new mandatory crib standards. These new standards are the most stringent crib safety standards in the world. From now on, all importers, distributors, manufacturers, and retailers are required to offer only cribs that meet the CPSC’s new full-size and non-full-size crib standards.

Our Naples personal injury attorneys calculate that the CPSC has recalled more than 11 million dangerous cribs since 2007 after at least 32 infant suffocation and strangulation deaths since 2000 were associated with drop-side cribs with detaching side rails and a number of deaths happened because of fault and defective crib hardware. Because of these incidents, the CPSC improved their regulations in an attempt to prevent these tragedies and keep children safer in their cribs.

New crib regulations and rules include:

-Stopping a manufacturer from making and selling dangerous, traditional drop-side cribs.
-Tightening up and strengthening mattress supports and crib slats -Requiring crib hardware to be more durable.
-Making crib safety testing more rigorous.

“A safe crib is the safest place for a baby to sleep. It is for this reason that I am so pleased that parents, grandparents and caregivers now can shop with confidence and purchase cribs that meet the most stringent crib standards in the world,” said Chairwoman Inez Tenenbaum. “From the start, our goal has been to prevent deaths and injuries to babies in cribs, and now the day has come where only stronger and safer cribs are available for consumers to purchase.”

In addition to these new rules, starting in December of 2010 all child care facilities, including family child care homes and infant Head Start centers will be required to use only cribs that comply with the new crib standards. Public accommodations, such as hotels and motels, and rental companies must comply with the new crib standards well.

In other child-related news, CPSC also recently reported that Macy’s Inc., of Cincinnati, Ohio, agreed to pay a civil penalty of $750,000. The company agreed to pay this penalty after CPSC staff discovered that Macy’s knowingly failed to report to CPSC immediately, as required by federal law, that it had sold children’s sweatshirts, sweaters and jackets with drawstrings at the neck. These items were sold between 2006 and 2010.

Children’s upper outerwear that has drawstrings can include sweatshirts, sweaters and jackets. These drawstrings pose a strangulation hazard to children that can result in serious injury or death.

The sweatshirts, sweaters and jackets are the subject of the penalty agreement were sold at Macy’s and Macy’s-owned stores, including Bloomingdale’s, and Robinsons-May. Failing to notify the CPSC after a recall like this has been illegal since 2008.

Federal law requires that all manufacturers, distributors and retailers report to CPSC just 24 hours after they obtain information that reasonably supports the conclusion that a product contains a defect which could create a substantial product hazard, creates an unreasonable risk of serious injury or death or fails to comply with any consumer product safety rule.

Drawstring guidelines were put into effect by the CPSC back in 1996. These guidelines were meant to help prevent children from strangling on or getting entangled in the neck and waist drawstrings of upper outerwear.
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Choosing Your Teen’s First Car and Preserving their Safety in a Fort Myers Car Accident

August 1, 2011 | Associates and Bruce L. Scheiner

When your child turns 16-years-old, it’s time for them to hit the road — alone. There are no more carpools from mom and dad if they’ll be getting their own vehicle. Are you sending your teen out on our roadways in a vehicle that’s going to protect them in the event of a Fort Myers car accident? You may have a lot of questions regarding your teen’s first vehicle, but don’t worry because we’re here to help.

It hasn’t been that long ago since we reported that Cape Coral was the most dangerous city of its size in the nation for teen drivers. Our Cape Coral car accident attorneys understand that parents want to do all that they can to protect their young, newly-licensed drivers. What kind of car is best for them? Are they better off in a new or a used car? Which type of vehicle is going to keep them safe? These are all common questions that a parent with a teenage driver is bound to ask themselves.

First and foremost, you’re going to have to decide whether they should get a new or a used vehicle.

“A first time driver doesn’t need a new car, but of course they want one,” says Lori Mackey, president of Prosperity4Kids. “The depreciation, probability of fender benders and the price tag [means new] is not the most logical way to go.”

A new car will save you the hassle of breakdowns and repairs, but a certified pre-owned car will still provide you with the advantages of a new-car warranty. Used cars may even offer you some better financing rates than a new vehicle would, according to Daily Finance.

Yes, new cars will come with the latest safety bells and whistles, but late-model used cars will still come with airbags, anti-lock brakes and electronic stability control. Even better, a used car typically won’t come with power and performance features that can overwhelm a new driver.

“I see these young, inexperienced drivers in Mustangs, BMWs, and large SUVs. These automobiles are big, powerful and difficult to control for even experienced drivers. In the hands of a new driver, they can be deadly weapons,” says LeeAnn Shattuck, co-owner and chief car chick with Women’s Automotive Solutions.

So you’ve figured out if you’re going to get them a new or a used car. Now you have to start narrowing the search and think about which type of vehicle is best for them. To get this information, you can research websites like the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety for reliable safety and crash-test information. You’re also urged to check out J.D. Power and Associates for quality and reliability ratings.

This is also a time when you want to take things into consideration like the distance and frequency the car will be used for travel. This is when you need to consider MPG ratings as well. You don’t want to get your child a vehicle that they can’t afford to drive to the gas pump. You can check out vehicles mileage data on www.fueleconomy.gov.

“This not only allows you to check and compare fuel economy ratings, but give a lot of good tips on how to maximize fuel economy in other ways that everyone can do. You can research vehicles back to 1987,” says Michael Rabkin, president, From Car to Finish, a vehicle research firm.

You’re not going to want to get them a teeny car either to save at the pump. The smaller the vehicle, the more problematic it can be as it’s less likely to protect them in the event of a front-end accident. Realistically, their safest in a mid-sized sedan with a four cylinder engine, airbags and a good crash test rating.

“Having a car is not a birthright,” says Gail Cunningham, spokesperson for the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, who raised four children. “Today’s teens seem to think that they should have a car waiting for them in the driveway when they return home from the Motor Vehicle Department with their driver’s license. If that’s right for your family, fine. But don’t be held hostage to peer pressure, and by that I mean from other families who are buying their teen a car.”
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