What is the penalty for turning on lights in the wrong place at the wrong time?

When driving at night or in bad weather, if you do not turn on the headlights in the appropriate mode, it will greatly affect visibility, causing danger to yourself and other vehicles participating in traffic.

The 2008 Road Traffic Law also stipulates that motor vehicle drivers must use headlights when participating in traffic at night, driving in foggy conditions, bad weather that greatly affects visibility or when participating in traffic in road tunnels.

Clause 3, Article 5, Decree 100/2019/ND-CP on administrative sanctions in the field of road and railway traffic stipulates that the act of driving a car without using or not using enough headlights from 7:00 p.m. the previous day to 5:00 a.m. the next day, when fog or bad weather limits visibility; using high beams when avoiding oncoming vehicles,... will be fined from 800,000 to 1 million VND.

Drivers who do not turn on their headlights or turn them on incorrectly can be severely punished by traffic police. Illustration photo: Dinh Hieu

Thus, in any case, between 7pm the previous day and 5am the following morning, drivers are required to turn on their headlights. In addition, at times outside the above time frame but in bad weather (darkness, fog, limited visibility, etc.) or when entering a tunnel, drivers must also turn on their headlights to ensure safety.

However, turning on the lights is not enough, you need to turn on the right type of lights when participating in traffic. On all types of cars, the lights will have 2 main modes: high beam (also known as far-pha) and low beam (also known as cos-cot), the driver must use them appropriately.

Clause 12, Article 8 of the 2008 Road Traffic Law stipulates that it is strictly forbidden to honk or rev the engine continuously; honk from 10:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m.; honk or use high beams in urban areas and densely populated areas, except for priority vehicles on duty.

For the act of "using high beams in urban areas, densely populated areas and driving in road tunnels without using low beams", car drivers will be fined the same as the above violation of "not turning on high beams" with a fine of 800,000 to 1 million VND (according to Clause 3, Article 5 of Decree 100/2019/ND-CP).

You should leave the headlights in "auto" mode when using a car. Illustration photo

To ensure safety and avoid being fined by traffic police, driving experts have some advice on using car lights as follows:

- Actively turn on the car's headlights when it's dark, not necessarily at the prescribed time; if the car has automatic headlights, you should use this mode to avoid forgetting.

- Always turn on the lights in low beam mode (cos) when driving in the city or densely populated areas;

- On highways with high medians, drivers are allowed to use high beams for best visibility;

- On highways without median strips, you can use high beams when there are no vehicles and switch to low beams immediately when there is an oncoming vehicle or when driving close behind another vehicle;

- On winding mountain passes, you should use high beams. This will help increase visibility for drivers and help other vehicles detect vehicles ahead early, but when there is an oncoming vehicle, you must immediately lower your low beams;

- If you want to overtake vehicles going in the same direction, the driver can flash the headlights to ask for permission to give way;

- In case of heavy rain or dense fog, turn on the headlights combined with the emergency lights to ensure safety.