whats the score with the law & window tints now

i know the police can tell you to remove them if they block more than 25% of the light or summat and if you dont within 24hrs you get a fine

but what if you got tints done a few years ago to the legal limit then? can they still do you for it?

my RST tints are well dark, but when i had them done, they were to the legal requirement, where do i stand? cos they can get fucked if they think im gonna take it off

 

Just because they were legal then, it doesnt mean they are legal now!
Thats like saying I used to drive 70 down this road, now its a 50, but because I used to drive at 70, its still legal now LOL

 

nah you cant compare it to that, for starters i have physically purchased something then they changed the law,

its like, catalystic converters, they became mandatory after 1992 but if you have a pre '92 car you dont have to go out n fit one
(ok you cant really compare it to the either but its a bit similar)

 

does it apply for all the windows?? you see all the cars from the manufacturer with rear tints... they look well dark aswell... so is it only for the windscreen, rear and front side windows? not too sure...

but if you get stopped... then they can ask you...

...its like saying...

 

its just the windscreen & front side windows

well they never stop me anyway cos the car never comes out!

 

Anything other than a factory tint is illegal. Thats what i was told by vosa when they did me for my light tints in my Lexus.

£30 fine for the first time your caught, then a hefty fine if caught again, then an even bigger fine and points if caught a 3rd time.

 

and the fact that it looks silly anyway - I would ring the local MOT station mate, they should be able to advise you

 

my mate has his own window-tinting business, here's what he posted on our local forum:

"just a warning to all those with front tints, recently there have been a few guys that have been caught with 35% tint on the fronts,in the past the police have been lenient and have given the driver/owner of the vehicle 10 days to remove it and no more will be done but...

it looks like they've had enough and now theyre instantly fining them £60 and giving 3 points.

bit unfair for all those drivers still driving about with tints that were installed before the law changed.

there is a rumour going about that their is a new law coming in but that is simply untrue according to the dept of transport its simply down to the police taking a more firm approach to this situation.

to clear things up, just stay legal and dont get front tints, whether or not you 'think' its legal the plain and simple rules state that it isnt legal. you can skirt about the laws using 70% but thats a grey area if the police are going to use a zero tolerance approach due to certain vehicles already having glass thats over the stupid 70% vlt laws."

 

bollox

we'll unless they give me my £200 back i aint removing them

cheers for that smudge

 

Dont forget its not just because the driver has reduced visibility. Its there to protect us all, so the police can see whose in the car.

If you dont remove it when they ask mate, it'll cost you more than £200 anyway. Its annoying yes, but you got to see both sides of it really mate.

 

Lukcy my Zafira has 70% etched on the windows as it had tinited glassa already. Obviously not dark enough for me so I had them done darker.

 

i read something just the other day about this and the front side windows must allow 70% of light through.

The rear side and rear windows can be whatever you like. Obviously NO tint on the windscreen LOL

 

A friend of mine has a mk4 golf in black with all windows tinted more or less pitch black. He knew that the front's were illegal to get them done so dark but he still went and done it anyway. This was about 8 months ago.

I don;t understand though why tinting places offer such a tint when legally they are not allowed??

 

simple, they KNOW people want it, and like dodgy plates, are sold with the sipulation that they are for show use only, which is fair enough really - people are adult enough to know if they want to break he law or not

 

err duh

Why wouldnt they? They are only there to make money not lay down the law!

Why do people sell "show" number plates if they arent allowed on the road?

 

For shows of course!

 

Mine are dark dark out of Japan and can be a bit tricky to see at night but if ever in doubt, I put the window down. We had our subaru tinted also as the regs are fairly relaxed on tinting here due to the intense sun. That said, I think 35% is the min and can be measured by the police with a laser if needed.

 

Some of our lads ran an operation yesterday regards tints. We've had a message from up high that our 'lenient approach' has to stop.

We've had a couple of new measuring devices that tell us the level of light.

You get stopped now with illegal tints then you have to remove em then and there, if not, you get a prohibition order banning you from moving you car until you do.

Not sure of exact details but I recall a recent fatal where it was dusk and the tints were so bad he could not have seen the pedestrian he killed!

So, for over my way at least, avoid tints.

 

if you have dark/limo black ont he rear screen and rear quarters, and then a light smoke on the front it still looks dark inside anyway.

i tinted my old mk4 esc with dark black, coulnd see shit at night so took em off and replaced em with light smoke.

car still looked the same, but i could still see out the windows lol

 

Just had my Escort Estate tinted yesterday! They're really strict up here wih tints, but it looks fairly legal so time will tell!

Limo tint on the rear 3 windows
Dark smoke on the rear doors
Light smoke on the front doors

Had it done mainly so I can fill it with stuff without everything being on show....... and it looks pretty smart

RS bits to be fitted next

 

Even light smoke is illegal. As said, anything other than factory tint is illegal.