Should we increase the minimum driving age?

Age and car accidents are often linked. You have likely heard that the fatal car accident rate for teens is higher than for other age groups and that they get into accidents far too often when considering the percentage of drivers who are teens and the amount of time they spend on the road. The general focus of those quoting these statistics is that teens are unsafe drivers. 

If that is the case, then it seems like the solution should be to simply raise the driving age. If people between 16 and 19 years of age can’t drive safely, what about moving the minimum to 20 years of age? Or, to keep things simple, what about moving it to 21 years of age, just like it is to legally get a drink? Would that help?

Now, this can be argued both ways, but some have said that it would not actually help. The reason is that they believe these car accidents are not just caused by age, but by inexperience. If someone has only been driving for a few years — or a few months, or a few weeks — the odds of an accident increase. The reason that inexperienced drivers tend to be teens is that most people get their first license at 16 years of age.

In this light, moving the driving age up may not change things. You would just have the most dangerous group of drivers become those from 21 to 24. They would be the inexperienced drivers who would make avoidable mistakes and cause car accidents. 

If you get hit and injured by an inexperienced driver, it’s important to know what rights you have to financial compensation for your injuries, lost wages, medical bills and other losses.