NC 5th Worst State for Teen Drivers | Shapiro, Washburn & Sharp

According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, North Carolina is the fifth worst state for young drivers.  A study from the NHTSA found that NC has the fifth most fatal car accidents involving teens 16-19 in the entire country.  Part of the problem is that teens in NC are much less likely to buckle up at night than anywhere else.

In 2006, 68% of the teens who died in car crashes at night were not wearing their seat belts.  During that period, 525 teens were killed in nighttime accidents.  61% of those teens were not belted in. 

During the same period, South Carolina had 731 young people killed in wrecks, 70% of whom were not belted.

Officials are urging more police checkpoints, especially at night, when 20% more teens are riding around without seat belts than during the daylight hours.