The Real Hazard Lights Function

13 July, 2018

Hazard means something causing unavoidable danger. On cars these lights are placed on the front and rear sides and will make the turn signals blink when activated. However, the control button is separated from that of the turn signal lights. The common symbol used for hazard is the red triangle and in cards this button is located somewhere near the head unit for easy access for both the driver and the passenger.

The use of this lights, which is to inform other drivers around you that your car is experiencing a malfunction, is taught at driving schools and is part of the driving test at the police offices. One simply needs to push the button with the red triangle and the turn signs, both front, rear, right, and left sides will blink in unison.

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Once your car is experiencing a breakdown or malfunction, you need to push this button and drive to the side of the road and stop to check thoroughly on what is actually happening. Below are some of the situation when you are allowed to use your hazard lights:

When your car is experiencing a malfunction
When an accident is happening in front of you and the people/drivers behind you cannot see, such as car crash, landslides, stopping due to direction from traffic officers
When you need to drive/stop at one side of the road where you are not supposed to be driving at
When your car is being towed due to malfunction such as flat tire, engine breakdown, etc.
When you are driving a police car, ambulance, firefighter, and only in conditions where a prompt action is required, or an emergency is happening.

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However, unfortunately there are still many people who don’t know when to actually use these lights—read on to find out more:

You are not encouraged to turn on the turning lights during raining, because you will confuse other drivers and make them think something bad is happening to you. Additionally, you will not be able to activate the turning signs when you need to actually make a turn on the road.
When entering a tunnel, hazard lights are not required, because there is no use for that. You only need to use the headlamp to make the road ahead more visible. Again, you wouldn’t want to confuse other drivers, especially the ones behind you.
When driving in a foggy road, you only need to turn on the fog lamp to help you see clearer. The same confusion as the above is something we want to avoid.
When you are driving in a convoy, please do not turn on the hazard lights. You are only required to do that when you are driving within a group of police officers and heading for an important event, such as driving to the crime scene or when escorting the head of the nation.
Lastly, it is a futile attempt to notify drivers behind you when crossing ahead on an intersection by turning on the hazard lights. One simply needs to just go ahead. If the situation is already dark at night, then you only need to turn on the headlamps.