Tennessee Teen Driver Accidents

In Tennessee, a person can start driving with a learner’s permit at 15 years old. At this age, they can also receive a restricted license. At 14, an individual is eligible to begin taking driver’s education courses.

Due to the inexperience of many of these drivers, accidents involving teens in Tennessee can happen frequently. To understand the specifics of your child’s accident and determine where to proceed legally, consult with a knowledgeable car accident lawyer immediately.

Hardship License Tennessee, like a lot of states, has what is called a hardship license. That is a Class H license, which comes with limitations. An individual can only use this license for special reasons, such as to get to and from school when they have no other option, or to receive medical care at a location where they cannot be taken by their parents for whatever reason.

In certain hardship cases, a person can receive this license if they are at least 15 years old.

Preparing for a Driver’s Test To get a learner’s permit, a person must be at least 15 years old. They must also accomplish a variety of other tasks while they have their learner’s permit to proceed with getting their complete license.

The major element is that the person must have at least 50 hours of practice under their belt before they are able to take a driver’s test to receive their full license. Ten of those hours must be at night, and the person must accomplish this training with someone that is at least 21 years old. The goal of this driving experience is to help prevent any future teen driver accidents from occurring in Tennessee.

This driving can be done with the individual’s parents, and does not have to be done with a professor or a teacher. Before taking a driver’s test, an individual must also have to have been in possession of their permit for at least 180 days.

Once the individual meets all of those requirements and they turn 16, then they are able to receive their graduated license, or what is called an intermediate restricted driver’s license.

Granting Full Driving Privileges Once a person has had that license, it then transfers to a Class H license. Once the person gets to the age of 17 and they have had their restricted driver’s license for at least one year, then they are eligible for a complete unrestricted driver’s license.

With this license, the individual will no longer have the restrictions as far as the passengers they can have in their car or the times of day they can drive. This is if the license is completely unrestricted at that point in time. However, these new responsibilities can sometimes lead to carelessness, resulting in Tennessee teen driver accidents.

Patterns of Accidents In general, most of the teen driver accidents in Tennessee are going to be related to a lack of experience. These accidents may occur because an individual is not used to driving in crowded areas.

Other common fact patterns of Tennessee teen driver accidents is that an individual may be easily distracted. An individual may be laughing with their friends or texting, and carelessly cause an accident. If you or your child has been affected by a teen driver accident in Tennessee, it is crucial that you consult with a lawyer as soon as possible.

Effect on Insurance The insurance claim is generally not affected significantly no matter if the individual is 16 or 70. If the accident is the individual’s fault, however, then it is going to impact their insurance.

Since teens are considered riskier drivers, the individual does have the danger of receiving an increase in insurance rates. If an individual’s child is involved in an accident, their rates will most certainly increase.

If the defendant driver is under 18, many times, a few individuals may be liable. Most 16 or 17-year-olds do not have big insurance policies or any assets whatsoever. If a client has suffered severe injuries, then the attorney needs to find out if the car is covered independently, or if the teenager is covered by their parent’s policy. Usually, the insurance claim involves not only the teenager, but the family or whoever may own the car.