When High Beam Usage Is Illegal In Massachusetts

With the regular usage of LED lights in vehicles these days, it seems that everyone has their high beams on all the time.

Sometime in my late 20’s, I really started to notice how much light affected my night time driving, never mind driving at night in the rain! It just feels like everyone has their high beams on all the time, although that can’t possibly be true.

I assume that as the technology gets better and better, headlamps just get brighter and brighter.

You’ll Get a Fine When You Fail To Do This…

The good news is that if you are fortunate enough to drive a newer car, truck, or SUV, you probably have one of those auto dimming features that will turn off your high beams when a vehicle is approaching from the opposite direction.

If you don’t have that feature on your vehicle, however, here’s the deal…

The Code of Massachusetts Regulations, Chapter 540, Section 22, “Failure to Dim,” says you must flick off your high beams when you’re within 500 feet of a car approaching in the opposite direction — a considerable distance.

You’re also supposed to kill your high beams whenever “substantial” objects, such as other cars or people, are visible within a distance of 350 feet, or whenever you’re in a Massachusetts Turnpike Authority tunnel. -boston.com

I mean, let’s be honest, the real reason for having high beams on a vehicle is to flash an oncoming vehicle to warn them of police stopping speeders ahead, which IS legal. Freedom of speech, it’s considered. Just don’t do it in front of an officer? Haha.