DR. WALLACE: I am a 19-year-old guy who purchased my first automobile. I had been driving my mother's car. Since I have employment I have to pay for my own car insurance. When I got my policy, I was shocked at the cost. I'm too young to drink and I don't do drugs. I'm also a very careful driver who has never been in an accident or even had a traffic ticket. I don't wear glasses and I'm a former high school athlete and have excellent reflexes.

I feel ripped off. I feel cheated. I feel I've been conned! —Ken, Moline, Ill.

KEN: I receive many letters from teen car owners complaining that they must pay higher insurance rates. The concerns are that teen drivers have a poor safety record, thanks to inexperience and the "youthful exuberance" of some.

For instance, according to information released from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 78 percent of fatal accidents involving teen drivers were due to driver error, compared to 63 percent among drivers age 20 through 49. And 31 percent of deaths when a teen was driving were caused by speeding, compared to 21 percent for older drivers.

These statistics show why insurance companies ask for an additional premium to insure younger drivers. The statistics are also the reason why parents get worried when their children ride with a teen driver.

Of course there are many, many safe, courteous teen drivers like you on the road. Only a relatively few are idiots behind the wheel, but they give all teens a bad reputation. A decade or two ago, it was only the guys who drove recklessly, but lately, I'm afraid, some of the girls have caught up with them!

HE SHOULD BE AN HONOR STUDENT

DR. WALLACE: My son is intelligent. He should have A's and B's on his report card. Instead he's bringing home a few B's and mostly C's. He rarely does any homework. When I ask him about this, he tells me he does his homework at school or that his teachers don't require homework.

I'm a single mother and can't take off from work to talk to his teachers. What can I do to get him to reach his educational potential? He keeps telling me he wants to become an attorney, but with the grades he's getting, he will never be an attorney. In fact, he might not even have good enough grades to attend college. Please give me your recommendations. He should be an Honor student! —Mom, Detroit, Mich.

MOM: Even though you are a single mother and working full-time, you can't afford not to find time to visit your son's school. He's clearly doing no more than just getting by; it hasn't dawned on him that there's a connection between what he does now and whether he ever realizes his dream of becoming an attorney.

I applaud you for being concerned about your son's performance rather than just shrugging it off and calling it "good enough." It's time you make an appointment with your son's counselor to discuss what might be keeping him from making better grades. Almost all employers will give parents time to visit their children's school during work hours on occasion. If this is not possible, see if the counselor will meet with you before or after your work hours. School personnel will usually go out of their way to help a student and confer with a parent.

Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. E-mail him at [email protected]. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.