Studies Show Old Headlights Can Lead To More Accidents

Every vehicle on the road has headlights, but can the quality of a person’s lights affect your business? According to a recent AAA study, having older headlights increase the possibility of impairing a driver by limiting the range of vision they have during darker times in the day. This can mean more auto glass repairs for you and your shop if drivers get into more accidents as a result of limited visibility.

Compared to new headlights, clouded headlights only produce about 20 percent of light needed, according to AAA’s report. Over time vehicle headlights can start to lose its color and fade from sunlight damage from driving during the day. Both the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and AAA found high numbers of car accidents that happened at night. Visibility was a main concern for NTSB, in fact, the organization held a meeting at the end of September discussing its results from a highway safety report.

“Vehicle headlight systems require an evaluation that is more advanced than bench testing of bulb output. Motor vehicle safety standards should not limit advanced vehicle lighting systems that have been shown to have safety benefits,” a section from NTSB highway investigation report reads.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety Highway Loss Data Institute also found poor headlights to be a serious issue for drivers. It did a study on 2018 models and found just over half of the vehicles examined gave an adequate amount of light.

“Consumers shouldn’t have to buy a fully loaded vehicle to get the headlights they need to safely drive at night,” David Aylor, IIHS active safety testing manager, said in the report.

AAA’s study compared two sedans’ headlights, both vehicles were 2007 models. The results showed when compared to new headlights lights in the older model were only performing at a fifth of the rate, making it clear older headlights need to be replaced in order to keep visibility consistent with newer models.

Now when customers come into your shop you can educate them on some of the dangers of not replacing older headlights.