Five reasons why parents should not give in children's demands for bikes 12th August 2021
Bike riding by teens is becoming one of the most common sights nowadays. Many teenagers feel independence and pride as they no longer depend on their guardians to drive them to places. As a result, adolescents have the irresistible urge to flaunt their expensive bikes and lethal driving skills in front of their peers.
You will come across many road accidents reported on the news channels every day. According to research, a person travelling in a commercial plane is less likely to die than riding a motorcycle on Indian roads.
Unfortunately, minors don't take into consideration the consequences of mindless driving. Even some parents allow their kids to drive because they think the worst that could happen is receiving fines from traffic police. However, outcomes can be much severe. Also, your bike insurance won't help you in case of death due to underage driving.
In this article, we share five reasons why parents should not give in to children's demand for bikes.
1. Legal consequences:
The Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act of 2019 states that the guardian or the vehicle owner shall be held liable for the infringement and shall be punished accordingly. Imposition of a fine of Rs. 25000 with three years of imprisonment will be made if your ward drives in an illegal driving age. The minor may have to go to court as well and face trials under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act resulting in the cancellation of the vehicle's registration.
2. They are not yet matured:
An individual needs to be cognitively mature to drive fast cars and bikes. For example, adolescents may feel the thrill of getting an adrenaline rush when riding a motorcycle at high speed. But, what they don't understand is that their brains are not yet mature enough to handle it.
3. Road accidents:
According to International research, the possibility of underage drivers being involved in a road accident is four times more than adult drivers. Road accidents are among the top causes of death and injury for people between the age of 16 to 20. Reasons are inexperience, distraction, poor driving judgment and decision making, alcohol consumption, and lack of adequate driving skills.
4. Financial drain:
Financial drain is not seen as a problem by many. But believe it, accidents can take a toll on your life savings. In some cases, insurance does not cover the cost of the damage or third party insurance. Plus, if the crash leads to any chronic health problems, then you will keep drowning in the hospitalization bills for the rest of your life.
5. Physiological trauma:
We often overlook the matters of mental health. But unfortunate events like this can be very traumatic. If you or your dear ones have been in an accident, you will likely have anxiety and panic attacks in the future. The memories of tragic accidents can cause mental health problems to the young, and the memories are enough to last you a lifetime.
Prepare yourself for your teen to take the wheel:
If you have a teenager in your family who will be of legal age to drive soon, distance your kids from any such bad experience. Being a good driver and role model, you can instil safe driving habits in your teen. For example, you can re-familiarize yourself with your vehicle's safety features and discourage phone use while driving.
Safe driving has an immediate payoff to you and your teenager by keeping accidents and violations off a teen's driving record.
To know more about the different bike insurance, click here…