Anyone reading the story of that 19-year-old hooning around would have been relieved that the kid was caught before he killed himself or anyone else. Apparently the police officer told the P-plater: "Driver's licence, mate . . .because you've definitely just lost it."

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The teenager knew he was in deep doo doo. "Yep ... 100 per cent."

And I bet his family is also breathing a huge sigh of relief. Teaching our kids to be safe on the roads is so tough. My parents were saints. On my second ever driving lesson, I was so freaked out that I drove straight into a telegraph pole. How they had the internal fortitude to keep going with lessons after that I do not know.

But they definitely got back up. They decided I needed driving lessons from an actual qualified driving instructor before I got back behind the wheel of Dad's beloved Ford. The bloke's name was Reg. He was an absolute champion. And I passed my test to get my P plates first time.

My parents were no longer alive by the time my own children wanted to learn to drive - but I swear to heaven that the money we spent on a qualified driving instructor was the best value ever. Getting up those hours to qualify for Ps takes forever. It's not just the time that's hard - it's also the emotional labour. It's stressful not just for the kids, who have their parents supervising them and who are already worried about ten things at once. It's also stressful for the parents.

The good news is that in most jurisdictions in Australia, L-platers get extra credit for each hour they drive under the supervision of an accredited driving instructor. That's usually got an upper limit.

To be honest, I wasn't a great role model in those days. I've slowed down as I've aged but I remember struggling to keep under the speed limit as I whizzed around getting kids from one thing to another. Sure, it was just casual........

© Canberra Times