Now that the clocks have gone back and darkness arrives well before most people are even thinking about heading home, a familiar seasonal problem is back in focus: headlight glare. And according to new research from the RAC, it’s bothering drivers more than you might expect.
The figures are striking. The RAC found that 83% of drivers are worried about the effect of headlight glare now that it gets dark earlier. That’s not a vague unease either. Half of those affected say overly bright headlights make it harder to spot hazards on the road, and a similar proportion say they struggle to see road signs and markings clearly. Nearly half, 47%, find it difficult to judge the position of oncoming traffic when dazzled, and 43% struggle to judge speed and distance accurately.
Most concerning of all, one in seven drivers affected by glare say they’ve narrowly avoided a collision as a result. It’s a genuinely sobering statistic, and it’s clearly affecting people’s habits: one in five drivers say they now plan to drive less in the evenings simply because of how dazzling oncoming headlights have become.
Part of the issue is that modern headlights, particularly LED and xenon units on newer cars, are simply brighter than the halogen bulbs most of us grew up with. Combine that with wet roads reflecting light back at you, and a windscreen that’s picked up a layer of grime over the summer, and it’s easy to see why so many drivers feel on edge once the nights draw in.
The RAC’s practical advice is refreshingly simple. Keeping your windscreen properly clean, inside and out, makes a genuine difference to how much glare affects your vision, so it’s worth giving it a proper clean rather than relying on the wipers to deal with built-up dirt and smears. If you do find yourself dazzled by an oncoming car, resist the urge to stare back at it. Easing off your speed where it’s safe to do so and glancing briefly towards the kerb or the edge of the road, rather than directly at the lights, helps your eyes recover faster and keeps you oriented on the road ahead.
Beyond that, a few general good habits go a long way at this time of year. Get into the routine of switching your own headlights on a little earlier in the afternoon rather than waiting until it feels properly dark, and make sure they’re clean and correctly aligned, since misaligned headlights contribute to the glare problem for other drivers too. If you’re doing a longer drive in the dark, taking a short break every couple of hours helps keep your eyes fresh and your reactions sharp.
It’s also a reasonable moment to think about your own car’s lighting, particularly if you’re due an MOT or considering a change of vehicle. Many newer cars now come with adaptive headlight technology that automatically dips for oncoming traffic, which can make a real difference on unlit roads. It’s a small detail, but if you’re already weighing up your next car, it’s one worth asking about.
Either way, with several more months of early darkness ahead of us, it’s worth taking the RAC’s findings seriously rather than just accepting dazzled, uneasy drives as the price of autumn and winter.