IT’S
THE
LAW
In 2010, Alabama made some
major changes to its laws concerning licensed drivers ages 16 and 17.
These drivers now hold a “graduated
license” and may not:
Have more than one non-family
passenger other than the parent,
guardian or supervising licensed
driver who is at least 21 years of age.
Operate a vehicle between 12
midnight and 6 a.m., unless:
• accompanied by a parent or legal
guardian.
• accompanied by a licensee 21
years of age or older with parental
consent.
• going to or from their place of
work.
• going to or from a schoolsponsored event.
• going to or from a religioussponsored event.
• driving due to a medical, fire or law
enforcement emergency.
• driving to or from hunting/fishing
activities in possession of required
licenses.
Drive while operating any nonessential handheld communication
device.
Violations of these provisions result
in an extension of the graduated
license period and/or suspension
of the license. (SOURCE: Alabama
Department of Public Health)
Consider a driving contract with your
teen to acknowledge these terms
in writing and ensure that they are
aware of these guidelines and yours.
14
14
GET
SMART
KEEP AN EYE
ON NEW DRIVERS
FROM BEHIND
THE SCENES
DRIVESCRIBE / WWW.DRIVESCRIBE.COM
Tracks driving performance (speeding) and gives points for good driving (with $10 gift card
rewards). Immediately notifies friends and family members via text message and/or e-mail
of any imperfections such as excessive speed, failure to stop at a stop sign and hard braking.
DRIVESAFE.LY / WWW.DRIVESAFE.LY
DriveSafe.ly™ is a mobile application that reads text (SMS) messages and emails aloud in real time
and automatically responds without drivers touching the mobile phone. DriveSafe.ly is the
solution to texting while driving.
CONTINUE TO MODEL GOOD DRIVING BEHAVIOR. JUST BECAUSE
YOUR TEEN IS DRIVING DOESN’T MEAN THEY WON’T SEE YOU DRIVE.
HOW MUCH
CAR CAN YOU AFFORD?
Our safety tip list may make you feel a bit better about letting your teen drive, but if you’re
thinking about buying them their own car, you
might be asking yourself some of the below
questions. Jessica Pigg at Guardian Credit
Union offered her advice.
HOW CAN I FIGURE OUT HOW MUCH CAR
I CAN AFFORD TO BUY MY TEEN?
The best tool here is pre-approval. At Guardian Credit Union, you can meet with a loan
officer, discuss how much you prefer to spend
on the monthly payment, how many months
you prefer to extend the terms of the loan,
and your loan officer can work with you to
determine the most affordable amount for you
and pre-approve you before you even begin the
car buying process. This arms you with the
information you need to prepare for negotiation at the dealership and to ensure you do not
overextend yourself once you are at the point
of purchase. And remember “forgotten” costs
like taxes and fees, which are not included on
the price displayed on the vehicle. Plus, when
considering your monthly budget, you have to
consider the cost of insurance in addition to
the car payment. Check with your local insurance agent; many offer discounts for teens with
www.potentialmagazine.com
good grades, for attending a driver’s education
course and other options that will help save you
a few dollars each month.
WHAT ARE SOME THINGS I NEED TO TAKE
INTO CONSIDERATION WHEN CAR
SHOPPING WITH/FOR MY TEEN?
In order to get all of the technology your teen
wants in today’s new vehicles while staying
within your price range, consider shopping for
a vehicle one model-year older than the current
“new” vehicles. Slightly pre-owned vehicles
often carry high percentages off MSRP when
compared to new vehicle prices and provide all
the bells and whistles without the depre