Teen Tracking: Should You Monitor Your Teen Driver?

Teen Tracking: Should You Monitor Your Teen Driver?
By Ryan M Horban

 

Tracking Teens With GPS Should Parents Monitor Teen Driving

The numbers associated with teen driving activity are loud and clear. Facts validate that the number one cause of premature death among teens are automobile accidents. Regardless if the cause is inexperience operating a motor vehicle, peer pressure from other teens, a tendency to engage in risk taking behaviors or some unknown reason, the reality is when a teenager picks up their car keys and heads out the door parents worry. Concerned parents want to take every and any step to protect their kids and that is why it is not odd at all to hear about anxiety ridden mothers and fathers using the latest technological tools to aid in parenting. The question though is if it is right to use GPS trackers to monitor teen driving activity?

GPS tracking devices offer an easy method and simple way for parents to know how fast their teen driver is operating their automobile, the various locations that the teen driver stopped and a wide variety of other information associated with driving activity. In fact, real-time GPS tracking systems have advanced so much in the past decade that the systems actually are smart enough to send alerts to concerned parents via email or cell phone text message the instant a teenage motorist is driving too fast!

Parental Choices & Personal Decisions

Parents must always remember that communication between teen and parent is essential. Discussing safe driving practices and the rules of the road are critical building blocks in the development of safe driving behaviors both short and long term. However, sometimes more is needed than simple discussion and reading of DMV text books. The use of GPS personal tracking and vehicle monitoring devices is not about invasion of privacy, but enhancement of safety. It is very well possible that GPS tracking systems could prevent a teen driver from getting a traffic citation for speeding or some other light crime, but maybe GPS devices can prevent a serious traffic collision from occurring. Traffic accidents that could potentially be fatal for the teen motorist. Maybe technological tools such as GPS trackers can result in the life of a teen being saved. Additional oversight and parental knowledge is a positive, but do you agree or disagree with concerned parents that decide to utilize automobile trackers and GPS surveillance to find out what their teenage sons or daughters are really doing when driving?