Can drivers flash their headlights at other drivers? What Florida law says about that

Flashing your headlights at another driver? Might be the last thing you want to do in South Florida.

Drivers can take things wrong, and the Miami area does seem to be the capital of road rage, after all

Or, on the bright side, maybe the drivers getting beamed will be grateful that you flashed them to warn of a speed trap ahead or that you plan to pass.

Regardless of intent, flashing your headlights has been legal in Florida since 2013.

READ MORE: Can you blow your horn at other drivers for any reason?

Here’s what to know:

Flashing your headlights at another driver

Background: In 2013, a new Florida law took effect allowing the practice of flashing headlights at another driver, for any reason, although it all started with a case involving warning others on the road of nearby police speed traps. According to a report by The Associated Press, by the time the law was passed in March, the Florida Highway Patrol already had ordered state troopers to stop issuing tickets for high-beam flashing after being hit with a lawsuit.

Can you still get ticketed for flashing your headlights?

Traffic code: Police still can use other sections of Florida’s traffic code to ticket drivers for flashing their headlights. Those include prohibitions against using high beams within 500 feet of an oncoming vehicle or within 300 feet of a vehicle ahead.

What to know about the headline-flashing lawsuit

Showdown on the road: In 2011, Erich Campbell thought he was just being helpful the night he flashed his headlights on a busy Tampa highway to warn drivers of a police speed trap ahead. The Florida Highway Patrol didn’t appreciate the help, the Miami Herald reported at the time. Officers pulled Campbell over and ticketed him. Flashing your lights is illegal, they said. Claiming no such law exists, Campbell, 38, of Land O’Lakes, got angry. So he filed a lawsuit on behalf of every other driver in Florida ticketed for the same violation over the past six years, accusing police of misinterpreting state law and violating drivers’ free speech rights. Capt. Mark Welch, a spokesman for the FHP at the time, cited a law that says “flashing lights are prohibited on vehicles” except for turn signals. The lawsuit estimated that 2,400 motorists in Florida were cited for headlight-flashing between 2005 and 2010. Campbell’s lawyer noted that a different section of law allows drivers to flash their headlights at night when they’re passing another vehicle. “Visible blinking of the headlamps,” is how the law put it. A Pinellas County judge dismissed Campbell’s $115 ticket.

This story was originally published November 10, 2023 at 10:23 AM.