Practice makes better young drivers – take advantage of the long weekend

Car crashes are the single leading cause of death for young adults in New Zealand.

Although 15-19 year olds are only 7% of licensed drivers, they're involved in 16% of injury crashes and 13% of fatal crashes.

The key to your son or daughter being safe on the road is to make sure they get as much practice as possible with an experienced driver in the passenger seat before they start driving alone.

Public holidays are a good time to give your learner driver some lessons, although it’s best to keep away from the motorways and highways.

Research says that a learner driver with 120 hours of supervised driving practice under their belt is 40% less likely to have a crash when they start driving alone.

Getting lots of supervised hours behind the wheel means that young drivers can develop the full range of skills and experience needed to be safe, responsible drivers. This is why ACC and NZTA have been running the Practice programme since 2003.

‘Practice’ is a practical driving programme designed for young drivers who already have their learner licence and the people who are teaching them to drive. The aim is to make them safer, more competent drivers.

It also helps people who are guiding them through the process of learning to drive by providing tips on how to explain everything from ‘starting off’ to ‘driving at night’.

Features on the Practice website include:
• Online videos showing how to do key driving skills
• Useful driving tips from professional driving instructors
• At-a-glance progress chart
• Opportunities to win prizes.

To sign up, visit www.practice.co.nz.

ENDS

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