To think headlights are too dazzling?

[IdiotsIdiotsEverywhere]

I hate driving at night and it seems to be worse when other cars are coming in the opposite direction. Driving on a single carriageway this evening on a 60 MPH road and once a few cars pass together I lose complete sight of the road in front of ME!

I've tried switching between contact lenses and glasses & glasses with anti glare but no difference. It's not even the windscreen as using different cars.

Yes I think it is distracting too when cars have their headlights on in sunshine.

YANBU it’s particularly bad if you drive a ‘normal’ car and a 4x4 drives up behind you. It means their headlights are perfectly aligned with your rear view window and the light reflects off the mirrors too making it worse.

This drives me mad! I have to slow down because I just can't see properly, and that seems to mean they sit on my bumper because they don't think I'm driving fast enough! If they sat a bit further back and didn't have such appallingly bright lights I could probably drive at a normal speed!

YANBU the new LED headlights on cars are super bright.

Yes! Fine in the city where there's street lamps but I hate driving after dark in the country

YANBU, I hate driving in the dark now, even more so when it's pissing it down, feel like I can't see at all.

I thought this was just me!

Yanbu.

Sometimes I think cars must still have their full beam on.

Same problem - was afraid to admit in case someone said that it was me and that everyone else is fine with it so I shouldn't be driving.

I cannot see cyclists pedestrians, corners, road markings - anything at all when lights are blinding me. Signed the petition

I bought yellow tinted glasses to wear at night because this was causing me stress...they do help by at least 50% in my experience. But yes, they should be banned!

I hate them. I suffer from migraines and have had a migraine triggered a number of times after being dazzled. Sometimes while stopped at traffic lights I have to put my hand up in front of my eyes to block them.

Luckily I hardly ever need to drive at night anymore.

My eyes were hurting today in the dark because of all these lights. DH doesn't understand my issue. Need to look into those glasses as well.

You mention contact lenses and glasses. I think that in people who are short or long sighted or suffer from astigmatism the reaction time of the pupils is longer than in people without sight problems, so you are more likely to be blinded or to be blinded for longer.
I am short sighted and I definitely have a much bigger problem with this than DH who has never needed glasses.

Where is the petition link as I can't find it?

@Anyonebut

That's really interesting, I do have astigmatism myself. Hubby has "better than 20/20 vision".

Another one who thought it was just me.

Am I the last one to notice front lights on new cars turn off one side when the indicator is on? Only just started noticing it. I reckon it’s because the lights are too bright and people can’t see the indicator.

I was also stuck behind idiot today for half an hour stopping and starting and he kept his foot on the break pedal

Also interested to read this

I complained at the opticians that i was having trouble with car headlights (again only on country roads) and as i needed driving glasses anyway we thought that would sort the problem

It hasn't

Topseyt

I drive an auto too. When I stop I put it into N and apply the handbrake.

I hate it too, i do avoid night time driving if i can - or i dont go too far.
The other lights are dazzling and put me off - its quite dangerous.

Thought it was just me! I had a real road rage rant at my dp earlie about this! They don't even seem to illuminate the road infront of the cars, they just dazzle like a torch being shone in your eyes. Certain types should be made illegal and there should be a maximum wattage/brightness and enforce it!

Repeating the link to the petition: www.change.org/p/uk-parliament-regulate-how-bright-led-car-headlights-are

I thought it was just me also. I rarely drive at night but when i do I get a headache because of these new legal headlights.
How is it legal to temporarily blind another road user?

In France UK drivers by law have to buy and fit special head light adapters to their cars to stop glare.

In UK we get massive blinding glare from new types of head lights. No anti glare stuff and it's terrifying.

@idiotsidiotseverywhere - I have astigmatism, my optician told me it means that glare affects me more than the next person (anecdotally have tested with friends and seems legit). You know at night when you look at a street lamp and you see the light extending from it /distorting, with a bit of haze around the lamp? With astigmatism that effect is greater than for someone without astigmatism. So bright headlights are more dazzling and it's harder to read what's around them.
Iv read also that there's a correlation for people with blue eyes perceiving contrast as stronger than those with brown eyes, no idea if there's evidence behind that though!
I find nighttime driving painful as despite having a mild prescription and being legally fit, I have to really concentrate driving at night if on unlit roads, to the extent that I changed jobs so I was driving in a city (where there's always a background glow) rather than country a roads. I do plenty of daytime miles without issue.

www.highwaycode.info/rule/114
You MUST NOT

use any lights in a way which would dazzle or cause discomfort to other road users, including pedestrians, cyclists and horse riders.

I thought it was just me who had this problem, was starting to think their was something wrong with my eyes!

I have been driving 21 years and never had this problem until a couple of years ago.

Also has anyone else noticed that lots of people seem to drive with front fog lights permanently on?

When did that become acceptable??

My car has an auto setting on the lights so I have side lights on in the day as well.