Auto accidents that involve teenage drivers

This is Thomas Berrett from Hal Waldman and Associates and the topic of this video is going to be car accidents that involve teenage drivers. Car accidents that involve teenage drivers often result in very, very serious injuries. And in my personal opinion, the reason for that is because they almost always involve or in large percentage of cases involve excessive speed. And so we have cases where people run into telephone poles, or overturn vehicles or drive off embankments, because a team driver is speeding.

In most cases, the team driver doesn’t own the vehicle that they’re driving, it’s typically a family member’s car. In depending on the age of the teen, depending on the circumstances of the accident, such as whether alcohol is involved. And depending on the team’s driving history, you may have the ability to make claims against people in addition to that teen driver.

So for example, if you have a 16 year old 17 year old driver, who is under the influence of alcohol, what we want to know is where did that alcohol come from. And in situations where they obtained it from a parent, we can make a claim against the parent. In situations where they obtained it from a beer distributor, or from a liquor licensee such as a bar or restaurant, we can make claims against them as well. We see lots of teen car accidents that involve cell phones, whether it’s texting or talking on the phone. And, you know, those are also situations that allow you sometimes to make claims for recklessness in your lawsuit.

Typically, the teen driver is going to be insured for liability purposes under the car that they are operating. And again, if there are other factors involved in the collision, besides just speeding or carelessness, other insurance policies might come into play. One of the things that happens in teen car accidents is people are generally concerned about the effect that making a claim will have on the teen driver. And this can be a tricky situation when the injured person is a friend of the teen driver. But my feeling and what I tell clients is that you have to protect your child and assert your child’s rights, regardless of what the effect is on the other person.

After all, it was that other person’s carelessness that caused injuries to your child. So we have quite a lot of experience in handling car accidents that have teen drivers. And if you have questions about a situation where you or your child has been injured by a teenager, you can call and ask to talk to me at 412-338-1000. Thank you