Parental Responsibility

You Use, You Lose

If a teen uses, buys, or possesses alcohol or drugs, he/she can lose their driver's license or learner's permit for at least six months.

If your teen holds a learner's permit or driver's license under age 18 in Virginia, the following curfew restrictions apply by law, effective July 1, 2003.

Virginia's curfew laws prohibit drivers under age 18 who hold a learner's permit or driver's license from driving midnight to 4 am. If you hold a driver's license, you may drive during these hours:

• In the case of an emergency;

• When traveling to and from work- or school-sponsored events;

• When accompanied by a parent or other adult acting in place of a parent;

• When responding to an emergency call by volunteer firefighter and rescue personnel.

Teen drivers are restricted to the number of passengers under age 18 traveling in a vehicle, effective July 1, 2003.

If you are under age 18, you may carry only one passenger during the first year that you hold your driver's license. After you have held your license for one year, you may carry only three passengers until you reach age 18. Learner's permit holders may not carry more than one passenger under age 18. Passenger restrictions do not apply to family members.

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