Do Advisory Letters Engage Parents in Teen Driver Safety?

Teens are a high-risk driver group. Previous research shows risk-based injury prevention programs for subpopulations or individuals can be successful as buildouts to universal strategies. The goal here was to assess the efficacy of parent advisory letters as a supplement to graduated driving license and seat belt strategies. The state licensing agency mailed advisory letters to parents of teens that had been identified as high-risk. A follow-up survey resulted in 309 parent responses. The letter was generally viewed as positive. About 80% of parents reported action subsequent to receiving the letter such as discussions with their teen, learning more about teen driver risk, and finding additional driver training. Comments and an open-ended question provided insight for program refinement. For instance, some negative comments were associated with parents’ perception that the letter was accusatory or overreaching. Others commended the letter, saying it provided additional knowledge and suggestions that were helpful. It is an example of continued innovation to improve public safety. The localized and pragmatic approach used here can be refined based on survey results and experience gained during the pilot project. Results inform other states considering low-cost individualized programs to complement their “one-size-fits all” driver improvement strategies.

• Record URL:
  https://www.ugpti.org/resources/reports/details.php?id=1166
• Record URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/74764
• Supplemental Notes:
  • This document was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation, University Transportation Centers Program.
• Corporate Authors:

  Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute

  North Dakota State University
  Fargo, ND  United States 

  Mountain-Plains Consortium

  North Dakota State University
  Fargo, ND  United States  58108

  Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology

  University Transportation Centers Program
  Department of Transportation
  Washington, DC  United States  20590

  North Dakota Department of Transportation

  608 East Boulevard Avenue
  Bismarck, ND  United States  58505-0700
• Authors:
  • Vachal, Kimberly
• Publication Date: 2024-3

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Edition: Final Report
• Features: Appendices; Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 25p

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: High risk drivers; Outreach; Parents; Surveys; Teenage drivers
• Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01920687
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: MPC-24-514
• Contract Numbers: MPC-567
• Files: UTC, NTL, TRIS, USDOT, STATEDOT
• Created Date: Jun 7 2024 4:59PM