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Do your teenagers drive you crazy with the way they handle your car? Do you lie awake at nights wondering if you did the right thing in letting them use the car at all? Well, you have good reason to. It is a commonly accepted fact that it isn`t the lack of driving skills in teenagers that leads to accidents, but the lack of maturity and the ability to think in a crunch.

A teen`s primary attitude to driving is something they imbibe from their parents. If parents drive well and follow the rules, you`ll find the children following in their footsteps - more often than not. Parents who drive rashly and through red lights will find that their children have no qualms in doing the same.

When your teens learn to drive, it`s necessary to supervise a fair amount of driving practice before you let them take the car out on their own. You`ve got to iron out the crinkles before they venture out by themselves.

When they`re in a loud and raucous gang, they`ll have more of an inclination to be foolhardy as they show off to their friends. If you find this happening, maybe you could curtail the number and type of passengers they take along. Besides, there is always a tendency to get distracted in a group.

Drugs abuse or alcohol use - they just don`t go hand in hand with driving. Drive home that point as hard as you can. If you think you can`t prevent them from doing it - just ban the car and hide the keys. Wear them around your neck if necessary.

Driving accidents happen more often at night. And in poor weather conditions. You`d be wise to wait till your teenagers got considerably more driving experience before you let them use the car in such conditions.

Your teens may see you as a spoilsport. But a little caution goes a long way in preventing loss of life or limb.