State minimums are a legal floor, not a readiness standard
Every state sets a minimum amount of supervised practice. The numbers vary so widely that they can’t all describe what a new driver needs.
Arkansas requires no set number of supervised hours and issues a learner’s license at 14. Iowa requires 20 hours (2 at night) before an intermediate license. Ohio requires 50 (10 at night). Pennsylvania requires 65. IIHS lists at least 70 hours of supervised practice among its graduated-licensing best practices.
- What it supports
- Hours alone can’t define readiness; the legal minimum is a floor, not a target.
- Evidence type
- Official state sources and IIHS
- Limits
- Requirements change. Our state guides show what each state requires today and when we last checked it.
Pennsylvania requires 5 of its 65 hours in poor weather. South Dakota requires 10 of 50 in inclement weather. Alaska requires 10 of 40 hours “at night or in inclement weather,” so night driving alone satisfies it. No other state’s supervised-driving requirement mentions weather.
- What it supports
- Practicing in rain and bad weather is on the parent; almost no state requires it.
- Evidence type
- Official state sources and IIHS
- Limits
- Based on the IIHS table and state sources as of October 2026.
The riskiest stretch starts when supervision ends
Learner drivers with a parent beside them crash rarely. Risk jumps when they start driving alone, and it stays high for months.
NHTSA: novice teen drivers “rarely crash while they are being supervised by adults, but have the highest crash rates of all age groups during the first 6 months of unsupervised driving.”
- What it supports
- The license is a handoff, not a finish line; the first six months need a plan.
- Evidence type
- Federal safety guidance
In a naturalistic study, cameras and sensors recorded 90 Virginia teenagers through their permit period and first year of licensed driving. Crash and near-crash rates rose eightfold in the first three months after licensure compared with the previous three months on the permit, and risky driving such as hard braking rose fourfold. The learner period itself was relatively safe.
- What it supports
- Readiness to drive alone is the biggest safety decision in the process.
- Evidence type
- Peer-reviewed naturalistic driving study (NICHD and Virginia Tech Transportation Institute)
- Limits
- One study of 90 teens in one state. Most recorded events were near-crashes, not crashes.
In the 2018 study, teens’ crash and near-crash rate did not decline over their first year of independent driving. In an earlier NICHD cohort of 42 teens followed for 18 months, rates did come down, but they remained far above adult levels at the end.
- What it supports
- Experience alone won’t fix the gap quickly, so the practice before the license matters.
- Evidence type
- Peer-reviewed naturalistic driving studies
- Limits
- The two studies differ on whether rates fall during the first year. Both show risk well above adults’ throughout.
How large the risk is
The national numbers that frame everything else.
In 2024, 2,899 teenagers (13 to 19) died in the U.S. from crash injuries. The fatal crash rate per mile for drivers 16 to 19 is about three times that of drivers 20 and older; counting police-reported crashes of all severities, it is over four times.
- What it supports
- Teen drivers need more, and more varied, supervised experience than adults assume.
- Evidence type
- National crash data (FARS) analyzed by IIHS
- Limits
- Per-mile rates use 2022 National Household Travel Survey mileage.
CDC: about 2,800 teens ages 13 to 19 were killed and about 227,000 injured in motor vehicle crashes in 2020.
- What it supports
- Teen driving deserves to be treated as a serious safety task, not a rite of passage.
- Evidence type
- Public health data (CDC)
- Limits
- CDC’s most recent published counts are for 2020.
Varied, deliberate practice makes a measurable difference
The strongest evidence on how families practice comes from one randomized trial.
In a randomized trial of 217 parent-teen pairs, the TeenDrivingPlan guided practice across six environments (parking lots, residential streets, intermediate roads, highways, rural roads and commercial districts), plus night and bad weather. Families using it practiced in more environments. Blinded evaluators stopped the on-road assessment for unsafe driving for 6% of those teens, compared with 15% of teens who used only the state driver’s manual.
- What it supports
- Varied, structured practice beats piling up hours on the same routes.
- Evidence type
- Randomized controlled trial (Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia)
- Limits
- The authors describe the result as preliminary evidence: the difference just missed conventional statistical significance (P = .06). The research was funded by State Farm.
Where and when the risk concentrates
Night, passengers, rural roads and wet pavement each carry more than their share of crashes.
IIHS: 35% of teen driving fatalities in 2024 occurred between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m., and 53% between 6 p.m. and 3 a.m. CDC: per mile driven, the fatal crash rate at night for drivers 16 to 19 is about three times that of drivers 30 to 59.
- What it supports
- Practice night driving deliberately before the license and limit it after.
- Evidence type
- National crash data (IIHS, CDC)
CDC: “The presence of teen or young adult passengers increases the crash risk of unsupervised teen drivers. This risk increases with each additional teen or young adult passenger.”
- What it supports
- Limit teen passengers for the first months of solo driving.
- Evidence type
- Public health guidance (CDC, citing peer-reviewed studies)
In 2024, 41% of U.S. traffic deaths occurred on rural roads, which carried 31% of vehicle miles traveled. The death rate per 100 million miles was 1.56 on rural roads and 1.01 on urban roads.
- What it supports
- Rural roads belong on every teen’s practice list, wherever the family lives.
- Evidence type
- National crash data (FARS) analyzed by IIHS
- Limits
- All ages, not teen-specific.
FHWA: 75% of weather-related vehicle crashes occur on wet pavement and 47% happen during rainfall.
- What it supports
- Practice in rain, not just snow.
- Evidence type
- Federal crash data (FHWA, from NHTSA data)
- Limits
- FHWA does not state which years these averages cover. Its newer 2019–2023 analysis finds 77% of weather-related crashes happen in rain or mist.
- Sources
- Rain and Flooding Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Road Weather Management Program, Page updated September 2024
What helps after the license
Graduated licensing works by handing over independence in stages. Parents can apply the same idea.
CDC: research consistently shows graduated licensing systems reduce teen crashes and deaths, with reductions of about 19% in injury crashes and 21% in fatal crashes among 16-year-olds.
- What it supports
- Staged independence works; parents can extend it beyond state minimums.
- Evidence type
- Public health guidance (CDC, citing a 2015 meta-analysis)
CDC’s Parents Are the Key: “no teen or young adult passengers for at least the first six months” and “make sure your teen is off the road by 9 or 10 pm for at least the first six months of licensed driving.”
- What it supports
- A family plan for passengers and night hours during the first six months.
- Evidence type
- Public health guidance (CDC)
- Limits
- These are recommendations for families, often stricter than state law.
The cost lands on parents
Insurers price a new driver by age and location, not by how well they were taught.
CarInsurance.com’s 2026 analysis: an average of $3,594 a year, from $4,050 for a 16-year-old to $3,105 for a 19-year-old. By state, the increase ranges from about 4% in Hawaii to 137% in Maine.
- What it supports
- The financial stakes of a teen driver fall on the parent.
- Evidence type
- Industry rate analysis
- Limits
- Averages of quoted rates; your premium depends on carrier, car and coverage. We refresh these figures every year.
MoneyGeek’s 2026 comparison finds good-student discounts of 8% to 25% by state, from 7.5% to 25% across major carriers.
- What it supports
- Ask insurers about discounts; they’re modest but real.
- Evidence type
- Industry rate analysis
- Limits
- Carriers set their own terms and change them.
Readiness, coaching and licensing timing
What research shows about how parents coach, when teens get licensed, and what waiting does and doesn’t change.
In-vehicle audio and video from 50 North Carolina families over the first four months of the learner period, covering more than 2,000 short drives: vehicle handling 53% of comments, clear-to-enter-traffic 23%, negative comments 22%, navigation 18%. Basic instruction declined over the four months; higher-order instruction, like anticipating hazards, stayed low.
- What it supports
- Readiness means the teen, not the parent, is making the driving decisions; parents should hand those calls back on purpose.
- Evidence type
- Naturalistic observational study
- Limits
- Small sample (50 families) from one state, first four months only. Categories overlap, so percentages don’t sum to 100.
New Jersey licensing and crash records: crash rates in the first month were highest for drivers licensed at 17 years 0 months; later-licensed drivers had a flatter rise; beyond about six months of experience, licensing age made no additional difference.
- What it supports
- Waiting only helps if the teen keeps driving with you while they wait.
- Evidence type
- Peer-reviewed population study
- Limits
- New Jersey licenses at 17 and applies graduated rules to all novices under 21, so the ages and rules differ from most states.
National survey of 1,039 people ages 18 to 20 (2012): 44% licensed within 12 months of their state’s minimum age, 54% before 18. Top reasons for delay were no car (44%), other ways to get around (39%), cost of gas (36%) and cost overall (36%); 35% said they just didn’t get around to it. Graduated licensing generally doesn’t apply at 18 and older.
- What it supports
- “We’ll wait until 18” can mean learning with the fewest safeguards; set an end date and keep teen rules in place.
- Evidence type
- National survey
- Limits
- Data from 2012; self-reported reasons; licensing patterns may have shifted since.
Federal licensing data analyzed by the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute: 16-year-olds 46.2% (1983) to 24.5% (2014); 17-year-olds 68.9% to 44.9%; 18-year-olds 80.4% to 60.1%.
- What it supports
- A teen who isn’t eager to drive is common, not a sign something is wrong.
- Evidence type
- Analysis of federal licensing data
- Limits
- Data ends in 2014; it shows how many teens are licensed, not why.
NHTSA’s Countermeasures That Work rates pre-licensure driver education as needing further evaluation. A study of 151,800 Nebraska teens found those who took driver’s ed had fewer first-year crashes (11.1% vs. 12.9%) and violations than teens who used a supervised-driving log instead.
- What it supports
- Driver’s ed is a foundation, not a finish line; parent-supervised practice is still needed on top of it.
- Evidence type
- Federal research summary and a large observational study
- Limits
- The Nebraska teens chose their own path, so it isn’t a randomized comparison; the authors couldn’t measure course quality or how much supervised practice the log group did.
In an IIHS study, newly licensed teens offered a free skid-avoidance course had a crash rate of 8.7 versus 8.6 for teens never offered it; none of the differences was statistically significant. In Norway, a slippery-road course in the second phase of driver training was followed by more crashes for a couple of years among young men. Scandinavian research suggests the maneuvering drills raise confidence and lead students to underestimate risk.
- What it supports
- A car-control course is worth doing for calibration and respect for speed, not as a substitute for supervised hours, and parents should watch for overconfidence afterward.
- Evidence type
- One U.S. controlled study and Scandinavian evaluations
- Limits
- Only 234 of 1,481 teens offered the IIHS course completed it, so the study can't rule out a benefit; the Norwegian findings are from the 1980s and applied only to male drivers.
All sources
Primary sources first: peer-reviewed studies, federal and state agencies, and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Industry analyses are used only for insurance costs.
- Crash and citation records of young drivers with skid avoidance training (Farmer & Wells). IIHS, 2015. Controlled study · iihs.org
- Phase 2 in the driver education: effect on the accident risk (Glad). Norwegian Institute of Transport Economics (TØI), 1988. Evaluation study · trid.trb.org
- Conflicting goals of skid training (Katila, Keskinen & Hatakka). Accident Analysis & Prevention, 1996. Peer-reviewed study · trid.trb.org
- Point and Insurance Reduction Program (PIRP). New York State DMV, Checked October 2026. State program · dmv.ny.gov
- Frequently asked questions. Tire Rack Street Survival, Checked October 2026. Program details · streetsurvival.org
- FAQs. B.R.A.K.E.S., Checked October 2026. Program details · putonthebrakes.org
- Teen Defensive Driving. The Mid-Ohio School, Checked October 2026. Program details · midohio.com
- Teenagers. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), 2024 data. National crash data · iihs.org
- Fatality Facts 2024: Teenagers. IIHS, 2024 data. National crash data · iihs.org
- Fatality Facts 2024: Urban/rural comparison. IIHS, 2024 data. National crash data · iihs.org
- Graduated licensing laws (state-by-state table). IIHS, Checked October 2026. State law summary · iihs.org
- Teen crash risk highest during first three months after getting driver’s license. National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NIH), July 2018. Research summary · nichd.nih.gov
- Gershon P, Ehsani JP, Zhu C, et al. Crash Risk and Risky Driving Behavior Among Adolescents During Learner and Independent Driving Periods. Journal of Adolescent Health, 2018. doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2018.04.012. Peer-reviewed study (naturalistic driving) · pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Simons-Morton BG, Ouimet MC, Zhang Z, et al. Crash and Risky Driving Involvement Among Novice Adolescent Drivers and Their Parents. American Journal of Public Health, 2011. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2011.300248. Peer-reviewed study (naturalistic driving) · pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Mirman JH, Curry AE, Winston FK, et al. Effect of the Teen Driving Plan on the Driving Performance of Teenagers Before Licensure: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Pediatrics, 2014. doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2014.252. Randomized controlled trial · pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- TeenDrivingPlan Research. Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Center for Injury Research and Prevention, Checked October 2026. Research summary · injury.research.chop.edu
- Risk Factors for Teen Drivers. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Reviewed August 2025. Public health guidance · cdc.gov
- Teen Drivers. CDC, 2020 data. Public health data · cdc.gov
- Reducing Risk for Teen Drivers. CDC, Checked October 2026. Public health guidance · cdc.gov
- Eight Danger Zones. CDC, Parents Are the Key, Checked October 2026. Public health guidance · cdc.gov
- Teen Driving. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Checked October 2026. Federal safety guidance · nhtsa.gov
- The Role of Supervised Driving in a Graduated Driver Licensing Program (Traffic Tech DOT HS 811 598). NHTSA, April 2012. Federal research brief · nhtsa.gov
- Rain and Flooding. Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Road Weather Management Program, Page updated September 2024. Federal crash data · ops.fhwa.dot.gov
- How much does it cost to add a teenager to car insurance?. CarInsurance.com, Updated August 2026. Industry rate analysis · carinsurance.com
- Good student discounts. MoneyGeek, Updated October 2026. Industry rate analysis · moneygeek.com
- Graduated Driver Licensing. Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles, Checked October 2026. Official state source · bmv.ohio.gov
- The Parent’s Supervised Driving Program (PDF). Iowa Department of Transportation, 2021 edition. Official state source · iowadot.gov
- Learner’s and Intermediate License. Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, Checked October 2026. Official state source · dfa.arkansas.gov
- Young Driver. Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, Checked October 2026. Official state source · pa.gov
- Teen Drivers. South Dakota Department of Public Safety, Checked October 2026. Official state source · dps.sd.gov
- Teen permit and license requirements. Arizona Department of Transportation, MVD, Checked October 2026. Official state source · azdot.gov
- First rains after dry spell can mean slick roads. Oregon Department of Transportation, September 2022. Agency safety guidance · content.govdelivery.com
- Teen Driver Risk in Relation to Age and Number of Passengers (Tefft, Williams & Grabowski, 2012). AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, May 2012 (crash data 2007–2010). Research report · aaafoundation.org
- Using Naturalistic Driving Data to Assess the Prevalence of Environmental Factors and Driver Behaviors in Teen Driver Crashes (Carney et al., 2015). AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, March 2015 (1,691 crashes, 2007–2013). Research report · aaafoundation.org
- Measuring Changes in Teenage Driver Crash Characteristics During the Early Months of Driving (Foss et al., 2011). AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, 2011 (North Carolina, 2001–2008). Research report · aaafoundation.org
- Driver education and teen crashes and traffic violations in the first two years of driving in a graduated licensing system (Shell, Newman, Córdova-Cazar & Heese, Accident Analysis & Prevention, 2015). University of Nebraska–Lincoln, 2015 (151,800 Nebraska teens, permits 2003–2010). Peer-reviewed study · dot2.nebraska.gov
- Countermeasures That Work: Pre-licensure driver education. NHTSA, Checked October 2026. Research summary · nhtsa.gov
- Prevalence of teen driver errors leading to serious motor vehicle crashes (Curry, Hafetz, Kallan, Winston & Durbin, 2011). Accident Analysis & Prevention / CHOP, 2011 (NMVCCS crash investigations). Peer-reviewed study · doi.org
- New study pinpoints what happens right before teens crash. Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (via Newswise), April 2011. Research summary · newswise.com
- Tires (TireWise): blowouts and tire pressure. NHTSA, Checked October 2026. Official safety guidance · nhtsa.gov
- Winter Driving Tips. NHTSA, Checked October 2026. Official safety guidance · nhtsa.gov
- California Driver Handbook: Safe Driving. California DMV, Checked October 2026. Official state handbook · dmv.ca.gov
- California Driver Handbook: Navigating the Roads. California DMV, Checked October 2026. Official state handbook · dmv.ca.gov
- Driver’s Manual, Chapter 5: Intersections and Turns. New York DMV, Checked October 2026. Official state handbook · dmv.ny.gov
- Driver’s Manual, Chapter 8: Defensive Driving. New York DMV, Checked October 2026. Official state handbook · dmv.ny.gov
- Driver’s Manual, Chapter 10: Special Driving Conditions. New York DMV, Checked October 2026. Official state handbook · dmv.ny.gov
- Oregon Driver Manual: Section 2. Oregon DMV, Checked October 2026. Official state handbook · oregon.gov
- Traffic Safety Facts DOT HS 811 331 (rear-end crashes account for more than 29% of all crashes, 2007 data). NHTSA, 2007 data. Federal research note · nhtsa.gov
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- Teens are the riskiest drivers, but they drive the least safe vehicles. IIHS, August 2020 (deaths 2013–2017). Research summary · iihs.org
- California Driver Handbook: Financial Responsibility, Insurance Requirements and Collisions. California DMV, Checked October 2026. Official state handbook · dmv.ca.gov
- California Driver Handbook: Laws and Rules of the Road (provisional license restrictions). California DMV, Checked October 2026. Official state handbook · dmv.ca.gov
- Intermediate license (under 18). Iowa DOT, Checked October 2026. Official state source · iowadot.gov
- How much does insurance go up after a speeding ticket?. CarInsurance.com, August 2026. Insurance cost analysis · carinsurance.com
- Associations between parenting styles and teen driving, safety-related behaviors and attitudes (Ginsburg et al., 2009). Pediatrics, October 2009 (5,665 students). Peer-reviewed study · publications.aap.org
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- New Year Means New Changes for Insurance (minimum liability limits rise to 30/60/15). California Department of Insurance, January 2025. Official state source · insurance.ca.gov
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- How long do accidents affect insurance rates?. NerdWallet, December 2022. Consumer guidance · nerdwallet.com
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- Telematics / usage-based insurance. NAIC, October 2023. Regulator reference · content.naic.org
- Consumer Insight: Protect yourself when insuring a teen driver. NAIC, Checked October 2026. Regulator guidance · content.naic.org
- Carvana Announces Record Second Quarter 2026 Results (197,325 retail units). Carvana, July 2026. Company financial release · investors.carvana.com
- Carvana Certified: 7-Day Money Back Guarantee and limited warranty. Carvana, Checked October 2026. Seller policy · carvana.com
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- Check for recalls (VIN lookup). NHTSA, Checked October 2026. Federal consumer tool · nhtsa.gov
- Tefft, Williams & Grabowski Timing of Driver’s License Acquisition and Reasons for Delay among Young People in the United States, 2012. AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, August 2013 (survey of 1,039 people ages 18–20). National survey · aaafoundation.org
- Sivak & Schoettle Recent Decreases in the Proportion of Persons with a Driver’s License across All Age Groups (UMTRI-2016-4). University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute, January 2016 (1983–2014 data). Research report · public.websites.umich.edu
- Goodwin et al. Parent comments and instruction during the first four months of supervised driving: an opportunity missed? (Accident Analysis & Prevention, 2014). UNC Highway Safety Research Center, 2014 (50 North Carolina families, in-vehicle recordings). Naturalistic study · hsrc.unc.edu
- Curry, Pfeiffer, Durbin & Elliott Young driver crash rates by licensing age, driving experience, and license phase. Accident Analysis & Prevention / CHOP, July 2015 (New Jersey licensing and crash records). doi:10.1016/j.aap.2015.04.019. Peer-reviewed study · trid.trb.org
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How we maintain this library
- Primary sources only. We link the study, the agency page or the state’s own site, not news coverage of them.
- Figures as published. Numbers match the source’s wording and data year. Where sources disagree, we say so.
- Limits stated. Sample sizes, study design, funding and statistical uncertainty are noted beside the finding, not buried.
- Law, research and our advice kept separate. What a state requires, what the research shows and what we recommend as parents are labeled as such.
- Reviewed every year. Every source is rechecked each October, and insurance figures are refreshed when new rate data is published.
Spotted something out of date or know of research we should include? Email info@drvnapp.com.
