Should I Put A GPS Tracker In My Teen's Car?

A Mother Chooses GPS Tracking

Recently, the mother of a 17-year old boy called one of our vehicle tracking experts and asked about how GPS tracking technology could help keep her teen safe. The woman explained that her son had passed the state written and behind-the-wheel driving tests flawlessly less than a year ago, but received a traffic citation for speeding last week.

Her son was clocked by a county sheriff speeding 67 mph in a 45 mph zone. The officer could have given the teen a much more severe penalty for driving 20 mph over the posted speed limit, but chose to give the kid a slight break.

After the incident, the mother began to become very concerned about the driving patterns of her teen. She did not want her son to become a statistic and became determined to find a solution to improve his driving habits.

Upon hearing a news story about how GPS trackers were helping improve teen driving safety, she realized she may have found the answer to her problem. Feeling the solution was only a mouse click away, the mother turned on her computer and began researching GPS tracking devices.

Should Parents Be Fined For Irresponsible Teen Behavior?

A New Approach To Solving Teen Driving Dangers

Any parent who has a teenager understands how stressful life can be. Teens can get themselves into an unlimited amount of trouble as potential bad influences are all around them and can shape behaviors that can last a lifetime.

So why exactly is a parent to do?

Well some states are not providing the answer to that tough question, but what they are doing is fining parents for irresponsible actions of their teens.

Currently, many school districts have been teaming up with local law enforcement and working on programs and initiatives that require parents to pay a fine if their teen skips class. Some parents are familiar with these types of measures, but now some groups are calling for parents to be fined for irresponsible teen driving habits as well.

It does not matter what statistics you read or where you get them from, their is mountains of evidence that can validate  teen drivers are more likely to be involved in a motor vehicle incident than any other types of drivers. Believing parents play a significant role in a teen's driving habits, some groups believe the best way for the roads to become safer for everyone is to make parents of newly licensed drivers more accountable for their teen's driving. By requiring a teen and/or parent to be financially responsible for any traffic infractions or violations received by the teen driver, some groups believe vehicle-related fatalities in the 17-25 age group will be reduced significantly.

Teen's Death Has Parents Asking For GPS Tracking Law

Teen Tracking Via GPS In Cell Phones

The saying is that there is no pain worse than that of the loss of a child. Sadly, for the parents of a teenage girl named Kelsey Smith they understand the heartbreaking feeling all too well.

Kesley was a typical teen who lived with her parents in Minnesota, but less than 10 days after her high school graduation she was abducted from a local Target parking lot. Her attacker took her from the public parking lot and then to a remote location where he raped and murdered her. The attack occurred in broad daylight.

Her body was found four days later.

The story is difficult to type, let alone think about. However, one of the more disturbing twists to the story was that when Kelsey's parents were frantically searching for their daughter they asked her cellular provider, Verizon, for access to the GPS tracking data recorded from her cell phone in hope that it would lead them to her location which was still unknown. The parents pleaded and begged for the GPS tracking data and felt that access to it could help them bring home their daughter alive and well. Verizon refused to give the parents access to the GPS system data and continued to withhold it until law enforcement forced their hand with a subpoena.

Risk-Taking Behaviors Could Be Due To Brain Development

Everyday teens engage in risk-taking behaviors that could potentially put their lives in danger. Neuroscientists and researchers now believe that the risk-taking behaviors that teens frequently engage in is due to lack of development in a specific portion of the brain that is responsible for executive decision making and planning. Unfortunately, the risk taking can lead to a serious situation when it is teamed up with teen driving. With car accidents being the main cause for premature death among teens it is clear that parents need to understand the dangers associated with teen driving.

Parents need to be aware that irresponsible teen driving can result in a traffic citation, revoked driver's license or an accident.

So what are parents doing to help make sure that their teen drivers are following the rules of the road?