17 and Desperate to Drive: How to Encourage Your Teen to Drive Safely | The Yorkshire Dad of 4

17 and Desperate to Drive: How to Encourage Your Teen to Drive Safely

Our eldest daughter is 15 now and that means in no time at all she will be 17 and desperate to drive. I know when I was that age I couldn’t wait to get behind the wheel and start driving. So, I am now thinking about when that day comes, she has her provisional license and we need to encourage her to drive safely.

Teenagers are always looking for the next step in gaining their freedom and it’s no surprise that most 17-year-olds are desperate to get behind the wheel. Though you might be worried about this – as most parents are! – the best thing you can do is to encourage safe driving.

Keeping your eye on car buying trends is a good way to work out which car might be suitable for your teen if they are planning to buy their own but for now, let’s concentrate on getting them that license.

Learning With a Driving Teacher

Everyone must learn to drive with a qualified driving teacher and you must apply for a provisional license before you can get behind the wheel. This can take a little bit of time so be patient with the process!

Finding the right teacher can also be a small challenge. If your teen has older friends, you will probably be able to get a few recommendations from them. However, don’t worry if your teen doesn’t like their first driving instructor as lots of people have 2 or even 3 instructors before settling.

Driving lessons should be conducted in a safe, educational and fun way. If your teen doesn’t feel safe in lessons they aren’t going to feel safe even when they do pass their test. This is a problem because while we should avoid being overly confident, nervous drivers can also cause serious problems on the road and be held back by their anxiety.   

Learning With You

To save money on lots of lessons and to firmly cement their learning, you might like to take your teen out in your car. To do this you must ensure that they are insured to drive your car, that you are 21 or older and you have had a full driving licence for at least 3 years.

However, before you do this you must both feel comfortable with going out driving together. You need to remain calm and be able to guide your teen around roads that are suitable for their current capabilities. So, you might like to start in a car park that is deserted during the evenings or go to a quiet estate where you will be expected to drive slowly.

Saving for a Car

Driving lessons and new cars are expensive so unless your teen has an especially awesome weekend job, it’s likely that you will have to chip in as well. However, this doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t encourage your teen to save up to realise their dream – even if they are only able to add a couple of hours work to their schedule.

Saving up for a large expense like a car takes discipline and determination so even if you are going to pitch in, this is a great life lesson for them to learn. Help them set up a savings account or create a CV for a Saturday job to show that you are there to support them in this new challenge.


* This post was sourced for TheYorkshireDad.com, however, this is extremely valuable to how I’ve been thinking about my girls driving.

6 thoughts on “17 and Desperate to Drive: How to Encourage Your Teen to Drive Safely”

  1. #thesatsesh ooooh my, it just feels me with fear – i was not a natural driver, stopped counting after so many fails. My cousin died at 19 in a mates car….the subject just fills me with denial.
    I’ll just freeze him instead.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.