Using Hazard Lights in the Rain: Is it Legal in Florida?
Wet season is about to begin in Central Florida. The attorneys here at Tripp Law Firm want to remind our fellow motorists that it’s illegal—and dangerous—to drive in the rain with your hazard lights on.
FLORIDA—Summer is coming. All Floridians know what that means. Rain, and lots of it. Some drivers switch on their hazard lights because they think it is easier to see and be seen with blinking lights on in a blinding rainstorm. If you’re one of those drivers, guess what: You’ve broken the law.[1]
Yes, you’ve read it correctly. In Florida, it is illegal to drive with your hazard lights. Hazards lights are for stopped vehicles only, officials say. However, Florida has carved out an exception and allow drivers to use their hazards while in motion during a funeral procession.
But Why?
A Florida Highway Patrol spokesperson said that “First responders look for flashers to see if someone needs help.”[2] Other officials say that using hazard lights while driving can reduce visibility and mislead other drivers on the road into thinking a car is stopped or stalled. Floridians who’ve shared the road with a vehicle using its flashers say that they make it difficult to see whether a motorist is tapping the brakes or using a turn signal. This type of uncertainty and confusion can lead to an increased risk of motor vehicle accidents on the roads.
What Should You Do Instead?
It’s pretty simple, really. If the rain is hard enough that you feel the “uncontrollable impulse” to flare up those flashers, pull over. Lawfully, and carefully, pull over in a parking lot, plaza or somewhere safe on the side of the road until conditions improve. Otherwise, you are creating a hazard for yourself and for other drivers on the road.
Did improper hazard light usage cause a collision? Injured in a car accident in poor weather conditions? Then call TRIPP LAW FIRM – Personal Injury Law at (407)850-8680 in Orange/Osceola/Seminole County, (863)666-0380 in Polk County, and (727)398-2900 in Pinellas/Pasco County, for an immediate, confidential and FREE Case Evaluation. Indeed, there is NO Fee and NO Costs if we do not obtain a Recovery for YOU!
At the TRIPP LAW FIRM, we have the necessary experience to protect you and your family’s legal rights and pursue the appropriate damages. Thus, don’t hesitate to call us. We answer our phones 24/7/365. The injury law team and staff private investigators at the TRIPP LAW FIRM are ready at a moment’s notice.
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TOLL FREE: (888) 392-LAWS (5297)
Resource(s)
Section 316.2397, Florida Statutes, which is entitled “Certain lights prohibited; exceptions,” states that “Flashing lights are prohibited on vehicles except…to indicate that the vehicle is lawfully stopped or disabled upon the highway…” FLA. STAT. § 316.2397(7)(a) (2015).
Mollie Reynolds, The use of hazard lights: The law explained to Florida drivers, ABC Action News-WFTS Tampa Bay (Jul. 26, 2015), available at http://www.abcactionnews.com/news/the-use-of-hazard-lights-the-law-explained-to-florida-drivers.
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