17 year old boys driving a car-full of mates

I recognize so many of the tragedies referred to in this thread. We were in Ireland years ago for a cousins 40th in a rural location. The morning after 4 local lads were found to have died after being in an accident. Winter, crap weather….

i don’t remember much about the party…. But I do think about those boys who I never met. The lovely b&b owner who did know the families was devastated.

I wouldn't like this, my dd is 18yo and has mentioned a group of friends driving to a local city over Easter which I'm nervous about.

Teens and cars are not a good mix imo.

Absolutely not. My teen’s been passed for a year now + 6 months driving before test. He had one month of driving to school alone before he was allowed a passenger. Not allowed to drive more than 1 hour away. Not allowed even a sip of alcohol if driving and not allowed in any other teens car if it’s heavy rain (we live semi rural with a lot of standing water recently). I frequently drive their car to check their MPG, they actually drive better than me!

I am sorry that is so awful

I would also like to see a ban on young people driving rear wheel drive cars like BMW's. Too much power and too easy to lose control with rear wheel drive.

They need to change the law. I've signed the graduated driving petition initiated by one of the mum's of the Welsh boys. My son is 17 and passed his test after only two months. He loves driving and he is out and about with his friends often. His friends are the same. If we stopped him driving he would get in with someone else. It's really difficult. If it was the law it would be easier

YANBU at all

I have heard about so many fatal accidents that involved a group of young people in a car, even without drink or drugs being an issue.
How can anyone easily concentrate when they have a bunch of mates in the car all talking and excited? Let alone when they are a very inexperienced driver and will likely be chatting to their mates, not screening them out and concentrating on driving.

Young people don't have a fully developed sense of risk so when they are making split second decisions in a vehicle and distracted and excited, it's a recipe for disaster. And a new driver WILL have some sort of accident in the first year, hopefully just a car park prang or something very minor.

The government needs to seriously look at this because there have been so many tragedies.

Nope. The statistics for accidents and deaths when teen boys get a similar aged passenger in the car are staggering (can't be bothered to find them now but they shocked me!!) we intend to buy the car, lessons and insurance on the proviso we can set the rules in the first year which will include no same aged passengers, and where possible, limited night driving (I don't mean religiously for the whole year, but longs drives, out of town straight after learning etc). I prefer countries that have a more staged learning process eg you pass but with a curfew etc.

Nope! A boy in my town was recently killed driving in the rain at night. He was 17 and only just passed his test.

Of course they could enforce it! Private school, private land. If students wanted to drive to school they had to sign the agreement, pay the fee and obey the rules. School in semi-rural area and set in extensive grounds so not really practical to try and circumvent rules by parking on a road instead.

Stick to your guns if you can. My brother caused a 3 car accident at 17 (car full of mates - no drink/drugs) - he and his group were okay but caused injury to the other drivers. He went to court and was charged with dangerous driving. He wishes my parents had rules. As a teacher, I've lost a 17 yo in a car accident. And 4 students were killed on a road I used to drive down daily very recently.

We are having this conversation with dd at the moment. She's just turned 17, as have her friends, and they're all having lessons.
I'd like to think she's sensible enough herself to make those decisions but faced with a wet walk home I know she'd get in the car.
We're currently negotiating her getting in with her best friend when she passes and a lad she works with as he drives an old slow heap.
Strangely enough I don't mind her getting a lift with another lad from work who drives a fast car because I've rightly or wrongly assumed, at 25, he would know better.

How could they police this? They have no power to enforce anything. Given the state of roads around schools at drop off time , and the number of parents not using car seats etc. Were they allowing the 6th formers to park on the premises?

17 year olds can't get married so they won't have a spouse. The vast majority don't have a child either. Driving with a screaming baby is possibly even more distracting than a load of teenage boys so it seems like a very sensible idea to ban this!

The school where I taught allowed sixth formers to bring cars to school nut the only passengers they were allowed were siblings with , obviously , permission of parents. Student and parents had to sign an agreement outlining this and other conditions before a permit was issued.

Some states don’t allow passengers, I think, makes perfect sense, a car full of 17 year olds sounds like a recipe for disaster.

My daughter is the first driver in her friend group and I asked her not to drive her friends until she had built up some confidence driving without an instructor/parent with her.

She's been driving six months now but I do still worry when she's out in the car because she is still an inexperienced driver.

I think a huge number of us recognise the 'yeah, there was that crash in the summer term where 1/2/3 in my year died and the driver was never the same' story. There's usually a particular bend or road where they all happen as well.

I missed out on it purely because my 1st boyfriend was 2 years older, so he'd been driving for a year by they time I got into a car with him. There were still a couple of moments, just he had the year of experience to not crash.

Yanbu. I've told mine he isn't to go with mates at this age. If he's stuck he can ring me. He's also a police cadet so I think he's got his head screwed on about this.

This is why I think the rules should change in the UK. In Australia, a P plater cannot drive legally with more than 1 passenger who they are not related to, who are between the ages of 16-21. Young lads egging each other on cruising around in wet conditions- I'd be telling him no, although it will be a few years before he understands why you say no to it

Better sad than dead. A colleague’s son and three of the other passengers were killed in a car accident. Middle of the day, good weather, no alcohol involved.

Yet if anyone suggests 17 is too young to drive, MN implodes because everyone lives 'rurally' and they need to know how to drive, but as long as their 17 Yr old is not a passenger.

Sorry just seen it has already been posted. Yes please keep it going and I would urge people to sign. The loss of life caused by these fatalities has far reaching devastating consequences.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-shropshire-67507424

These poor boys lived locally to me, DS knew some of them from college. I certainly have huge fears about him out and about with his mates. Harveys Mum Crystal is campaigning for progressive driving licences for young drivers.

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/655298

Yanbu. I lost two friends ages 17 in a car, the driver survived, no drugs or drink involved. Police said inexperienced driver who made a mistake at a roundabout. Destroyed our school year and sadly the driver dropped out and no one saw her again. All girls.

The statistics genuinely point to increased risk with younger inexperienced drivers.
Weight of 4 adults means a small car will handle (steering and braking) differently to when it had two people only.