The most common young driver mistakes – what to avoid?

Being a young driver is not a pleasant experience. Higher liability and AC rates, as well as a lack of substantive driving training doesn’t help at all. How to do the best for yourself and others?

Young drivers – spirited, eager to drive fast and inexperienced!

When we think of young drivers, the image that comes to mind is that of brash, crazy, and often intoxicated teenagers who speed through city streets at full speed. This is not a correct image – the most common mistakes are much more subtle. On the other hand, they are often more dangerous because of it. Certainly, you can observe that young drivers tend to press the gas. But uncertainty, unfamiliarity with the functioning of the car and lack of experience pose bigger problems than you might first suspect.

The most common mistakes young drivers make – here are the top 4

We’ve compiled a list of the four mistakes most often made by young drivers. Not all of them pose a great danger to fellow road users. However, this does not change the fact that they should be kept in mind. Any unexpected situation on the road can lead to a tragic accident. At the same time, we will try to answer the question of where these problems come from, and also consider what is the biggest problem of drivers in the 21st century – not just the young ones. So let’s start the top 4 mistakes of fresh drivers:

• Lack of technical skills – young drivers leave courses unprepared. The problem is not ignorance of the law, but rather small details – such as not being familiar with the vehicle in question. During the course, they have been dealing with familiar routes, and now they are faced with a completely new experience. Mastering driving is something that has to be done gradually – we can only become masters after many years behind the wheel. Technically, young drivers’ driving is full of oversights and ill-considered decisions. They are not always able to cope with more demanding surfaces – on courses they do not necessarily have a chance to master the methods of dealing with icy roads or potholes.
• Lack of “awareness”, “feel” of the vehicle – this is something related to the first point, but on a level related to the car itself. This often manifests itself when overtaking. Young drivers are not quite able to measure everything precisely. They don’t know how long it will take for the driver from the opposite direction to approach them. Problems with judging the situation and distance prevent them from getting out of a difficult situation, such as a skid, or reacting to another driver’s dangerous behavior.
• Bravado and speeding – Many young drivers tend to push the gas pedal too hard. If someone wants to feel like a rally driver, he should go to the track – it is not so expensive, and certainly gives him a chance to perform. On the track, however, it is better to follow the rules, and not try at all costs to impress colleagues. Paradoxically, it is precisely such stereotypical behavior – the desire to prove to someone how good a driver you are – that leads to truly tragic accidents. This should be absolutely avoided – it’s just plain stupid.
• Overconfidence in GPS. Surprise! The route shown on Google Maps does not always reflect 100% of the actual conditions. No map can fully prepare us for what awaits us on the road. But sometimes you have to see it for yourself to keep a healthy distance from algorithm suggestions in the future.

What makes young drivers drive so irresponsibly?

It seems that everyone today is close to being locked in their own world. Although this only makes social interaction more difficult in real life, on the road this phenomenon poses a real danger. The problem is very clear – young drivers are particularly susceptible to all sorts of distractions such as hands-free kits, multimedia systems and other “gadgets”. Not focusing on driving is a huge mistake – one could even venture to say the biggest. A smartphone can be the cause of accidents – especially if you use it in an extremely irresponsible way. Therefore, when driving, it is better to focus on the destination and the road itself. If we’re injured in an accident, we may never answer all those messages again

On the other hand, if some matter really can’t wait those few minutes of the trip, it’s better to stop and just deal with it. A bad habit of young drivers is also overexertion with multimedia – listening to podcasts, loud music, audiobooks. Many drivers benefit from this – the route becomes less predictable, so we focus more. But in order for this to work, we need to have developed a certain driving style, so over time automation occurs, we develop a routine. When you’re still learning, it’s harder to automate, and it’s entirely possible that you’ll reinforce bad patterns, and thus risk contributing to various types of accidents.

(Photo: pixabay.com)