Do you trust other adults' driving with your dc in the car?

[Elf]

Sort of following on from the school run thread recently but I have been wondering about this for a while. DD1 has a friend who's mother drives very fast and I wouldn't want dd1 to be driven by her quite frankly. Other situations may arise in the future where journeys to ballet, well anywhere really could be shared, but you probably don't know what this person is like behind the wheel of a car. Some people are nice people but bloody awful drivers, aren't they? You can hardly ask someone for a test drive can you?

What have you done? Do just hope your child will be ok on a short journey?

I trust most of my friends/ children's friends' parents. Life would be impossible for me if I didn't because we live out in the country and I couldn't get everyone everywhere if we didn't carpool the children.

The only person I wouldn't want driving my dcs is BIL but we don't live near them so not an issue. He drives like an idiot.

All friends good drivers I think!

I have 1 friend I trust - with my children - full stop.

Also DH dad is terrible driver but on seeing them at the weekend and going out for a meal, DD said she wanted to drive back with grandad

Considering DH and I followed him on the way there and had been commenting on his speed on roundabouts, lack of stopping on an amber lights, and an inability to use his indicators we were horrified, but what could we say.

But give the man his due when DD was in the car she could have had a tea party with a bone china set on that journey [phew emoticon].

Not sure I trust MY driving with some of DS's friends in the car, frankly.

Particularly the little toad next door, who sat bouncing in his seat at a notoriously dangerous junction shouting 'MY daddy would have got out by now... MY daddy would have pulled out in that gap... ' until I cracked and said 'Yes dear, if I was your dad I would have driven you straight into the traffic too.'

I let other people drive the DSs around but it does worry me.
I always find myself casually asking "where did you sit" and "did you have a booster seat" etc.

DS1 is 135cm, tallest of his friends, and technically could do without a booster seat, but he is a very thin build, so he still uses one.

Some of the other mums are happy to put kids in the front seat (pushed back as far as it can go) but DH and I aren't keen on this. However it seems that the mums I know tend to put their own kids in the front if they have 4 children.

To be honest, I worry more about some parents' general level of responsibiity with their/ my kids a bit. One mum in particular has two boys who get very silly, chasing each other, tuggin clothing and darting about all over the pavement when they're walking home from school. When DS1 is with them I worry about them running into the road by accident. Their mum is oblivious and is usually miles ahead or chatting to another mum.

Yes. Of all the parents I know I'm the one I wouldn't trust with kids

yes, in fact i can't think of anyone i don't trust. some of my friends do drive very fast but they never would with ds in the car.

I haven't thought about not trusting other people TBH. DD often goes in the car with grandparents and has done for years. And since starting school last year she has been in her friend's cars in order to get home from school for playdates. I just make sure she will be in an appropriate car seat and that's it.

Well, thanks for your thoughts. I know it is tricky but it's just the thought of the worst happening and too late wishing you had checked the standard of that person's driving. In realiity I know it is hard to do so I just wondered how most people feel.

We've just been contemplating this as another parent (mutual friend) who is applying for a reception place asked whether we would consider a car-share.

I had to be honest and said that i would need to see her driving before i could say yes Rude? possibly - but it is my ds life and i would never forgive myself if anything happened to him whilst in someone else's care.

I then worried i had been a bit rude until i saw her later, and she said that i was quite right to be concerned (she hadn't really thought about it) and she'd take me for a driving test whenever i wanted

Oh help - something else I hadn't even considered. I must stop mnetting - it's making me feel hugely inadequate!

Being a less confident driver myself, I do tend to trust others esp when I can get out of driving myself! However, I do consider myself to be a safe driver, even though I only tend to go to school and back very slowly! So no, if anyone has had a bad track record my dc's would not go in their car. I have one particular person who overloaded their car once whilst in the care of my ds. He never drives with her now as had to share a seatbelt.

I hate other people's driving.

As for sending the kids with other people, why not? They've obviously passed their test.

seeker - if there's anything you haven't thought about worrying over just hang around on MN for a while. Someone is bound to come along and start you fretting sooner or later