Learn how it works before learning how to drive.
LISTEN ABOVE:Â RTEC driving instructor Tony Williams speaks to Tim Dower
That's the message from a driving instructor following an incident in Whangamata, where an 11-year-old girl was run over by a learner driver.
The driver was practising with her mother in a New World car park when she accelerated instead of breaking, crashing into and trapping the young girl.
The girl suffered minor injuries.
RTEC driving instructor Tony Williams told Tim Dower competence with the vehicle comes before confidence.
"You've got to know how it all works. A lot of people I see, they come into a corner and accelerate before they go around the corner, rather than braking to control the vehicle speed."
Williams also suggested parents add an extra rear-view mirror before getting into the car with their teen for driving lessons.
He said that would enable parents to better see hazards around them without having to turn around .
RTEC driving instructor Tony Williams
RTEC driving instructor Tony Williams
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