Drivers are dazzling other road users by illegally installing super-bright LED headlights on cars that were never designed to use them.
Motoring campaigners say the trend to replace worn-out halogen bulbs with LED “upgrades” may be a key factor in the epidemic of blindness incidents on British roads.
An investigation by the RAC, which has been calling for a government inquiry into the safety risk, reveals that one in 20 drivers have reported a near-collision due to headlight glare.
According to the charity campaign Lightaware, evidence shows that drivers are swapping older halogen bulbs for LEDs simply “to have brighter headlights on public roads.”
It warns: ‘Halogen headlights use reflectors to create beam patterns, while LEDs use projectors.
“If an LED bulb is placed in a halogen housing, it will be difficult to replicate the beam pattern and the resulting misalignment of the beam could cause glare to other drivers.”
A Mail On Sunday analysis of the headlight bulb replacement market has revealed huge online demand for LED replacements.
More than 2,600 packages were purchased on Amazon’s UK site alone in the last month.
According to charity campaign Lightaware, evidence shows that drivers are swapping older halogen bulbs for LEDs simply “to have brighter headlights on public roads” (File image)
Experts say many drivers who make the switch may not even know they have acted illegally until their car fails its MOT (File Image)
They are marketed as LED “halogen replacements” or “halogen upgrades” and can only be legally sold for use in vehicles on private land.
This is Money has included it among the four main factors that have caused an increase in complaints from drivers about being dazzled by the lights of other road users.
These include the rise in popularity of SUVs with higher-positioned headlights that can shine directly into drivers’ line of sight over more conventional hatchbacks, which are lower to the ground.
The new car market’s transition to whiter LEDs and drivers’ failure to adjust their lights accordingly is also causing problems.
This is Money analysis highlights the four main factors contributing to the increase in glare complaints to other road users
Experts say many drivers with older cars with halogen lights and who buy LED replacements may not even be aware that they have acted illegally until their car fails the MOT.
RAC spokesperson Rod Dennis said: “We are very concerned about this growing trend.
‘Many online retailers do not make it clear that post-installed LED bulbs can only be used legally off-road.
‘Drivers like them because they are cheap, plug-and-play and brighter than old-style halogen bulbs. But the quality of the cheapest ones is usually terrible.
“They are not designed for halogen housings and, as a result, the intensity and direction of the light can dazzle other drivers.
‘We need more research to understand what is happening and we are pleased the government has commissioned it.
“Drivers who install these bulbs may be unknowingly causing a much bigger problem than has been recognized so far.”
In the RAC’s survey of 2,000 drivers, 91 per cent said they had been dazzled while driving and 74 per cent said it happened regularly.
Nearly seven percent said they were so affected by headlight glare that they avoided driving at night, a figure that doubled for those over 65.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency says LED bulbs can only be legally used on public roads if they are fitted as standard to a new car.
The same principle applies to high intensity discharge (HID) lamps found in many new models.
A spokesman said: “Fitting the wrong bulbs in a vehicle will result in an MOT failure.”