A new law signed by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis mandates that anyone who is at least 15 years old must finish a driver’s education course in order to obtain a learner’s permit.
In the past, students were only required to finish traffic law and drug abuse education classes, which meant that the requirements were less strict.
The new law in Florida, which goes into effect on July 1, also mandates that minors who want to get a license must get parental consent, finish a course on traffic law and substance abuse education, and pass a written driver’s exam and a vision and hearing test.
After a year of driving with a permit or turning 18, whichever comes first, if they have no moving infractions and have accumulated 50 hours of driving experience with an adult 21 years of age or older, 10 of which must be at night, drivers can apply for a license.
Driver education for permits is already offered by some schools, such as Florida Virtual, but many reduced the program years ago in order to save money.
Debbie Adams, Principal of Driver’s Education at Florida Virtual School, stated: “The legislators really got this right. They really took the time talking with each other and [are] really taking a look at the dangers that we are facing in the state of Florida along our roads.”
Although driver’s education is offered by many Florida high schools, there isn’t enough room for every student.
With 55,000 enrolled students—many of whom are unable to find a spot in their local school—Florida Virtual School is the largest driver’s education provider in the state and offers free instruction. Among the program’s fundamental skills are hazard prevention and defensive driving.
The number of Florida teen driver collisions in recent years
According to the Florida Teen Safe Driving Coalition, 205,000 Florida teenagers between the ages of 15 and 19 were operating a motor vehicle with a learner’s permit in May 2024.
345 people lost their lives and 1,945 suffered serious injuries in 56,091 crashes involving teen drivers in Florida in 2022. In 2022, there were 1,477,694 collisions involving teen drivers nationwide, which led to 4,39,271 serious injuries and 7,639 fatalities.
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According to an NHTSA study cited by the Florida Teen Safe Driving Coalition, teens are 2.5 times more likely to drive recklessly when they are with another teen than when they are by themselves. This risk rises to 3 times when there are several teen passengers.
In one-third of the fatalities and severe injuries involving these drivers, seat belts were not worn.
The Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (FLHSMV) reported that while the number of crashes involving drivers aged 15 to 19 in the state decreased by 1.93% in 2023, the number of traffic fatalities among this age group increased by 0.92%.
Drivers aged 15 to 19 experienced an 8.05% decrease in incapacitating injuries and a 2.92% decrease in other injuries.
