"Tech Tuesdays: Technology for Keeping Tabs on Teen Drivers" Edmunds Daily

Tech Tuesdays: Technology for Keeping Tabs on Teen Drivers

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Handing the car keys to an inexperienced teen driver is one of the most stressful moments of child-rearing for any parent or guardian. Watching a teenager drive out of sight for the first time is a rite of passage akin to the ancient practice of sending a kid out into the wilderness to face a whole new world of dangers.

But thanks to technology, parents and caregivers can now ride shotgun with teen drivers. And as we reported in a recent feature article, there's a way to track a teen's behind-the-wheel behavior for almost every budget. Or level of parental paranoia.

The range of solutions runs from cell-phone nanny services such as Sprint Family Locator and Verizon Chaperone that can be added to an existing calling plan for less than $10 a month to GPS-enabled vehicle-tracking systems like Youth Driving Safe that allow speed monitoring and more for about $300 for the hardware plus a monthly fee and yearly service contract.

American Family Insurance's Teen Safe Driver Program employs an in-car camera to record a teen's "risky driving behavior," such as swerving, hard braking and sudden acceleration. It doesn't allow the insurance company or parents to spy on their teens while driving. Instead footage is wirelessly transmitted to DriveCam, the supplier of the camera, where it's reviewed by one of the company's "trained analysts" who assigns the driver a risk score and emails a report to parents (like the one shown above).

Realizing what a hot-button issue -- and potential marketing tool -- this technology is for parents, at least one automaker is getting into the act. Ford's MyKey, which debuted on the 2010 Focus and will appear on other FoMoCo models, allows parents to program a key so that when it's used to start the car it puts limits on the vehicle's top speed and the audio system volume and doesn't allow deactivation of safety system such as blind-spot monitoring and traction control.

This all may indicate to some that "helicopter parenting" has gotten out of control and has now taken to the road. But considering that the Centers for Disease Control considers car crashes the leading cause of death among teenagers -- and a recent study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety shows that these electronic leashes are effective in getting teens to drive more safely -- it's a prime example of how technology can help save lives.

Or at least help parents worry less while their teens are on the road.