Arrrgh!!!

Buffy, it is the sight of accidents like this that makes the rest of us drivers pause and think a bit. I well remember that the day after I passd my driving test a colleague at work said "So ow you have a license to kill". That was many years ago but I thik it is something we all need to remember.

I am so glad it wasn't too bad an accident and that your neice survived.

that's quite sickening buffy how's your niece doing?

She still aches a bit...or did last week, but she will be fine. We have to hope the car isn't totaled, because she has more left to pay on the loan than the blue book value of the car. :-(

Things will work out, though. Thanks for asking.

Adele, that "license to kill" comment was chilling. The 17 year old who hit my niece is on her second crash. Her parents may be affluent enough to be able to foot the bill for automobile insurance fr her that is mandated by law, so their child might be able to keep driving. It seems to me that she needs to be removed from the roads until she can make more adult decisions while she is driving. I'm hoping her parents will agree to take her off the road.

When I pulled up your blog, yesterday, the first thing that I saw was the photo of your niece's smashed auto. I got a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach at the sight. The intrusion into the passenger compartment need only have moved aft by a couple of inches and your niece would have been in serious trouble. Shame on the parents of the young driver who hit her!

Too many of the parents (at least, in these parts) are anxious for their child(ren) to be licensed--so that they need not run them all over town. Kid hits 14, gets a limited license--hits 16, gets unlimited license and a car to go with it. On our street, a 3-car garage is the norm. However, there are several houses on the street that constantly have 2-4 cars/SUVs/trucks sitting about outside. (This is, in part, because they have so much stuff in the garage...but, not entirely.) At times, driving down our street is like negotiating a used car lot. But that's a different beef!)

Yes, Cop Car. It could have been worse. She was really lucky that she wasn't further through the turn when she was hit. She's still dealing with aches and pains, and the docs are putting her through some x-rays today. I hope for the best. Fourteen is just too young to let kids drive unless it's on the farm!

Hold on. I've just seen Cop Car's note above. Are you saying that in the US kids can drive from the age of 14? On public roads? That is truly chilling. Many kids of that age just don't have the maturity or foresight to think of what the consequences of their actions could be.

Over here kids can learn to drive at the age of 17 - and some rumblings are heard occasionally that this is too young an age. However, motor insurance is compulsory and it is very expensive for those under the age of 25 - because insurance companies know which age group has the most car accidents.

14, with a learner's permit, and a licensed driver in the car with them. But, farm kids drive all the time, on the farm, if not into town.

The regulations differ from state to state, Adele. You can't get your learner's permit until you are 15 in Illinois, and here insurance is compulsory now. I don't think every state requires proof of insurance yet. The insurance rates for kids under 25 ARE high, and also for unmarried men in their 20s, but that doesn't stop many kids from driving. That's one of the things that concerns me. I figure this girl's parents will shell out for insurance and put her right back on the road if the courts don't prohibit her from driving. Her rates will be sky high, but mummy and daddy may still pay them.

Kansas has recently updated their regulations on teen driving. I'll post some info about the new system on my blog, if anyone is interested.

I am stunned to think that kids are allowed to drive from the age of 14 and even more stunned to discover that motor insurance isn't available nationally. As I said before many kids of that age just don't have the maturity to make appropriate decisions and to take the consequences.

However, I suppose your neice could take the girl to court for the balance of the loan outstanding on the car. Why should your neice be stuck with paying the money.

I agree with you, Adele. Unless my niece takes this girl to court, she will be out of pocket thousands of dollars, and now she has no car to trade in on a new one. I think the girl or her parents, or her insurance company, should have to make things right, but I bet my niece still comes out with less than she had before she was hit.

Oh my... looks scary, glad to hear she has aches and pains and no major injuries.

Now we have a court battle to face, Desiree. They've totaled her car, and she owes more on the loan than the value they've given for it. I want that teenager to make things right, or she'll go through life thinking she can skate away from the bad stuff.