To think night driving is getting more dangerous

[DazzledbyHeadlights]

Since a few years ago - and now that cyclists/pedestrians have more right of way. I agree and think it works well during the day.

However at night? Headlights seem to be more blinding than ever. Spotting a dimly lit cyclist in front of a full dazzling tank of a car is hard.

In addition, many pedestrians seem to have a cavalier ‘my right of way, I’ll step out’ attitude. I was driving along a 40mph stretch this evening and - 3 times - a dark figure suddenly appeared, stepped out onto the road and I needed to break quite abruptly.

Oh yes this is so annoying. Someone just round the corner from me does it and he is in a transit van so the lights are high. It is really blinding.

What is happening in other European countries? Surely this can’t just be a UK problem?

It's a global problem. Europe, America, Asia etc. They're all mostly going to be the same vehicles, so they're going to have the same LED headlights.

The more dangerous your vehicle, the greater your responsiblilities on the road.

It's OK to call for more restrictions on pedestrians and cycliests IF you are prepared to accept a whole bunch of extra restrictions on motorists.

I can think of a few: Lowering the bar for losing your license, and keeping people from driving again for much longer periods. Compulsory regular tests after age 70 or 75. Raise the minimum driving age to 18. Ban on under 21s driving in a car with other under 21yos in it. Vehicle tonnage tax high enough to motivate people to switch to the smallest possible vehicle for their needs. Much tighter speed limits everywhere. More speed cameras everywhere. Legal consequences if you are caught driving while fatigued beyond a certain level...

How has it got to the point where consumers are complaining en masse about the safety of a product, that has escaped the scrutiny and attention of governments and regulators in Europe and beyond. It’s unbelievable, it really is.

Ive been complaining about blinding LED car lights for 3/4 years and it seems half of mumsnet have too… so why hasn’t anyone done anything about it yet?!

Shall we start a mumsnet campaign??

The manufacturers can reduce the intensity of less if they choose to or instead of having the intense white gabe a more yellow tone or alter the shape of the headlights to reduce intensity.

Problem is that led headlights are billed as a safety feature to the driver of that vehicle without regard to oncoming vehicles.

*lights

** have

There are certainly a lot of people who find headlights too bright, both on this thread and IRL.
My current car, and last car both seem to have bright headlights because it seems every time we drive of an evening, someone starts flashing furiously when the full beams aren't on.

Are headlights brighter than they used to be?

Yes. Led white lights are more bright and dazzling. Though technically they are within regulation. I think it’s to do with intensity and wavelength.

I echo the LED headlight complaints but also what a PP said about the shiny road surface. Here in Glasgow, the roads have been left to crumble since lockdown and if the council deigns to fill in the craters, the repairs are being completed using the cheapest, shittiest tar you can imagine. The resurfaced roads are so shiny, any rain hides the road markings but also reflects every streetlamp, traffic light and headlight so it's twice as dazzling. For anyone familiar with Mario Kart, I laughed at a meme that said it's like commuting via Rainbow Road.

On my way to and from work, there are lots of stretches with no streetlamps and the pavements are further shaded by overgrown trees and bushes, so pedestrians are invisible until you're right behind them. It's even worse when the temperature drops because the pavements around here are never gritted, so people dressed head to toe in black walk on the road instead.

Glad it’s not just me

They are flashing you because they're being dazzled constantly! Not just a quick flash! Try driving towards a car like yours on a wet night. You should be able to angle your headlights, and if you're constantly having people flash you, you should have learnt to do this a long time ago!
We have a normal sized car and a 4x4. The ONLY reason we have a 4x4 is because we tow horses and we angle our lights down towards the road. Absolutely pointless having bright daft lights and shining into eyes. They're not lighting the road. Learn how your car works.

I know how my car works thanks. It's one of the things I ask to be explained to me when I pick my cars up from the showroom.

So can you adjust your lights so the beam is lower, see if you stop getting flashed. If you do then problem solved, if you don't then there must be a reason it is happening, maybe you could work out what it is.

It is really easy to adjust on my car, I assume most modern cars are the same. I adjusted mine when I got the car by sitting on my drive when it was dark, putting the lights on so they were shining on the garage door. They were high and I just adjusted a knob until they looked right.

My car has LED lights and there is a knob so they can be adjust from inside the car.

I’ve heard his before about these lights being auto levelling. But levelling to what? The road? In which case aren’t other drivers still dazzled if you’re in a suv and they’re not?

I think a Mumsnet campaign would be a really good idea. Here is the link to the petition again, BTW. https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/653793

Signed
it does require more traction or even light!

Bumping

Petition signed

I've been finding it hard to drive at night and was putting it down to my new glasses - I changed to varifocals last year so I'm getting more peripheral distortion which seems worse at night. But the glare from headlights has become quite extreme, and that isn't anything to do with my glasses. Driving in well lit areas is fine, but on the open road where oncoming headlights are the only source of light, it's completely dazzling. Before making any long journeys I now check what time sunset will be, so I can make sure I'm off the trunk roads before dark.

Signed the petition!

Had one sat on my bumper part of the way home from work tonight, rendering my mirrors useless. Don't think I needed my headlights on at all as theirs lit up the inside of my car.

Such fun trying to see anything when you've got another one coming towards you as well!

They light up the road ahead of when they’re behind me 🙄

If they pull back then it’s not so blinding.

If they are far enough behind and central to me then my rear view mirror auto dimming thing does its thing. It is when they are slightly off centre (or are just bigger than my little car) that I get absolutely dazzled in my wing mirror, I have no idea how to avoid it. I have taken to shielding the reflection with my hand at times.