Are headlights too bright? Are they brighter than in years past? And what can be done?
It seems you cannot go down the more rural areas of I-10 without a big truck or pick-up or something nearly blinding you. Here is the shocking legal part. If you have an accident, the blame could be on you.
Alabama is not known for its innovative headlight safety laws. For example, we do not require annual vehicle inspections that could alert a driver to adjust the headlights. Nor do we severely limit the use of LED lights. LEDs put out more white-colored (as in brighter) beams than the old halogen lights.
Here is the reality. Our laws protect the driver of a vehicle with those intense beams rather than the person who must look at them.
I guess it is good that drivers with bright lights can see better, but what about the rest of us? I have a friend who drives a convertible, and he says that because his car is lower to the ground, every pick-up and 18-wheeler makes him want to put on sunglasses… in the middle of the night. It is like playing laser tag on the Interstate.
Now, this is going to shock you. Europeans have headlights that automatically adjust to keep down glare. Guess what? We don’t have those … at least not on most vehicles.
If bright beams attack you, follow this safety tip: Look down and to the side of the road. It is not a great safety tip, but the one I know.
Now, Alabama law says that if you can’t see, slow down. Seriously. Failure to slow down while blinded could make you the cause of the accident. Something doesn’t seem right there, so if you get hurt fighting off the new LED headlights, give me a call. I am on your side.
If you or a loved one is injured in a personal injury accident, you can talk to us at the law firm of Steele Ritchie for free. We genuinely want to help. We are local attorneys with decades of experience helping people, especially in the southwest Mobile area.
Give us a call at (251) 666-1212. We are proud to be called the “personal injury lawyers near me” by many people here in Mobile and Baldwin Counties.
Allen Ritchie
Alabama Personal Injury Lawyer