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Old 05-04-2018, 07:59 AM
 
Location: Metro Washington DC
15,394 posts, read 25,628,292 times
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If the hazard lights were Amber, and always separate from the brake lights then hazard use in the rain would not be a problem. That is not case though, so only use them when stopped please.
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Old 05-04-2018, 09:21 AM
 
14,984 posts, read 23,754,305 times
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Hazard lights while raining is a specific irritation since 1.) the person coming up behind you may assume you are stopped and change lanes when they don't need to, 2.) granted one must slow down in bad weather, but usually it gives the person that is using the hazard lights an excuse to drive SLOWER than is safe on an interstate highway, 3.) if weather is so bad that you need hazard lights to indicate a car is there, you shouldn't be driving in the first place.

Yeah we see these all the time in Florida although it is illegal, usually from tourist and snowbirds that can't drive in the rain and fail to realize we get thunderstorms every afternoon in the summer. For me it's like seeing a flashing light going on and off from the other drivers with him saying "I am an Idiot, I am an Idiot, I am an Idiot...." over and over.

Anyways the article indicates the "hazards" of using hazard lights while driving, and the surprising number of states where such usage is illegal:

https://clark.com/cars/illegal-use-h...ights-in-rain/
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Old 05-04-2018, 09:26 AM
 
Location: Watervliet, NY
6,916 posts, read 3,887,295 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BostonMike7 View Post
People do it here in the northeast as well. Not as common though.

It does make a difference in a torrential downpour as you usually find idiots who don't turn on any lights and can barely see them
In NY State it is the law that hazard lights are required whenever you are driving at least 20 MPH under the speed limit for any reason - weather, mechanical issues, etc.
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Old 05-04-2018, 10:26 AM
 
Location: Brawndo-Thirst-Mutilator-Nation
22,564 posts, read 24,349,979 times
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There are times when visibility is so poor, you either use something extra to make yourself visible or pull-off the roadway.
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Old 05-04-2018, 11:13 AM
 
2,274 posts, read 1,326,163 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ma5cmpb View Post
I'm from Ohio and I always noticed that when I'm driving in the south (NC, SC, FL), when it rains people always turn on their hazard lights.

has anyone else noticed that?
OMG, I recently moved to Kansas and people do that here. It really freaked me out the first time it happened. Some guy in a pickup was driving about 40mph in a 65mph zone on the freeway with his hazard lights on. I suppose he thinks that he was safer but driving 20-30 mph below the prevailing speed with reduced visibility from rain and tire spray is crazy. I thought it was just one odd person until I saw it happen over and over again. Is this something that they are taught to do when learning to drive? Maybe the law is different but where I learned to drive you could get a ticket for using flashers while moving. When I see a vehicle with flashers on I assume that the vehicle is stopped and unable to move, not functioning as a roving roadblock moving at 40mph.

Why not just drive the posted speed with headlights and taillights on like a normal person?

Last edited by shorman; 05-04-2018 at 11:21 AM..
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Old 05-04-2018, 01:53 PM
 
133 posts, read 86,715 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by bcattwood View Post
This is what annoys me about them. When a significant people around you have their blinkers going, it is hard to tell who is braking, trying to change lanes, etc. If you are the only car on the road driving slowly, it can make some sense. When everybody is crawling along in a downpour or snow storm, it is just distracting to other drivers.
This. If you're driving down a lonely country road, then hazard lights could make sense because someone may not be expecting to meet another car, but when I'm on a 6 lane interstate, you can not tell who is changing lanes because they hazard lights PREVENT your blinker from working! You changing to the left or right lane, or not at all, who knows? Also, some hazards are the same lights as their brake lights. When there are 75 cars around you, it's UNSAFE for everyone to be driving with hazards on. We know we're on an interstate with other cars...

Next time it's raining so hard you feel the need to turn on your hazards, just pull over on the shoulder and wait it out....Hazards don't help your visibility anyway.
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Old 05-04-2018, 03:20 PM
 
17,297 posts, read 13,042,795 times
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I live in Ohio.

Ohio law says headlights on when wipers are used.

That said, I turn on flashers when really heavy rain and I have to slow below speed limit
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Old 05-04-2018, 03:23 PM
 
9,952 posts, read 6,565,849 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dd714 View Post
Hazard lights while raining is a specific irritation since 1.) the person coming up behind you may assume you are stopped and change lanes when they don't need to, 2.) granted one must slow down in bad weather, but usually it gives the person that is using the hazard lights an excuse to drive SLOWER than is safe on an interstate highway, 3.) if weather is so bad that you need hazard lights to indicate a car is there, you shouldn't be driving in the first place.

Yeah we see these all the time in Florida although it is illegal, usually from tourist and snowbirds that can't drive in the rain and fail to realize we get thunderstorms every afternoon in the summer. For me it's like seeing a flashing light going on and off from the other drivers with him saying "I am an Idiot, I am an Idiot, I am an Idiot...." over and over.

Anyways the article indicates the "hazards" of using hazard lights while driving, and the surprising number of states where such usage is illegal:

https://clark.com/cars/illegal-use-h...ights-in-rain/
Yes, but in some storms, it is not safe to drive 50mph on the interstate in FL because you cannot see 5 ft in front of you. It is not always an option to pull over, particularly on stretches of highways where there are large areas of construction with limited shoulder areas. I have been in many areas where people are going 20 or where there is puddling. I had one coworker even total her car one time when I-10 flooded and the visibility was too bad for her to actually see how badly it had puddled.
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Old 05-04-2018, 04:23 PM
 
14,984 posts, read 23,754,305 times
Reputation: 26468
Quote:
Originally Posted by RamenAddict View Post
Yes, but in some storms, it is not safe to drive 50mph on the interstate in FL because you cannot see 5 ft in front of you. It is not always an option to pull over, particularly on stretches of highways where there are large areas of construction with limited shoulder areas. I have been in many areas where people are going 20 or where there is puddling. I had one coworker even total her car one time when I-10 flooded and the visibility was too bad for her to actually see how badly it had puddled.
So who says you shouldn't slow down when raining? Slow down, keep your hazard lights off, if you can't drive and can't pull over then drive slow for a few miles until you can pull over. No problem.

Simple enough - it's illegal in Florida to drive with flashing hazard lights. No you probably won't get a ticket but contrary to the belief that you are safer, it's actually more dangerous to both you and the other drivers.

Look at this facebook page from a Police Department:
https://www.facebook.com/JohnsCreekP...747305684579:0
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Old 05-04-2018, 04:50 PM
 
Location: NC
3,441 posts, read 2,777,383 times
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As many people who claim it's dangerous and confusing, I have yet to see "using hazard lights in the rain" as a cause of any accident I have ever read about.

Usually, when it happens and it's pouring rain and visibility is bad, the first vehicle to drive into the heavy rain turns on their hazards and pretty much every single other driver follows suit. Because it makes them more visible to other drivers. It's silly to gripe about something that makes other drivers more visible to you for a very short distance, since those type of downpours don't last for very long. It's much more dangerous to pull over on a highway when visibility is almost zero, that's actually a good way to ensure getting run into by another vehicle whose driver can't seen through the rain.

Go ahead and think I (and lots of other drivers) am an idiot. I don't care. I'd rather be seen and thought to be an idiot by someone who has no clue than to be a sitting target for some fool who is driving recklessly at or above speed limit and doesn't see me until it's too late.
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