There is one, admittedly relatively small, study which indicates that the triangular set up of auxiliary lights and main headlight is more conspicuous than a single light. But how far, ie bright, can you go when it comes to legally lighting up?
“a light which causes ‘undue dazzle’ is illegal”
Auxiliary lights make you appear bigger and wider which is legal, but a light which causes ‘undue dazzle’ is illegal. The test is not numerical, ie wattage or lumens, it is about the angle and brightness of your light and whether your foglight, headlight or brake light causes undue dazzle. Which means massive off-road style Baja lamps are likely to be illegal, while correctly set but powerful lights are unlikely to get you into trouble.
The human eye is drawn to movement, or changes of light, which would reasonably lead you to think that a police bike displaying powerfully strobing blue lights is next to impossible to miss. However, all motorcycle coppers and blood runners have stories about cars pulling out on them.
Crucially the use of flashing lights attached to regular bikes ridden by regular riders is illegal, yet flashing lights attached to clothing are legal. A belt, helmet or a jacket with LED lights is legal, and they can flash too.
If you want to rock the Christmas tree look, you will have the twin benefits of moving lights, and the lights potentially making out a human shape, another thing which the human eye is drawn to. You might not look uber cool, but you can flash without breaking the law.
“the test is do the lights ‘automatically flash’?”
It is possible to buy lights which flash and can easily be wired into a motorcycle but, as mentioned before, these are not legal. However, the test is do the lights ‘automatically flash’? The only lights on a motorcycle which can automatically flash are the indicators.
When interpreting statutes words are given their ordinary and natural meaning, so a flash would be a sudden and short burst of light. Auxiliary lights which do not dazzle nor flash, but glint, by use of fast modulation are, in my opinion, wholly within the law.
So, you can lawfully light yourself up on a motorcycle by the use of solid auxiliary lights, flashing lights not affixed to the bike but affixed to your clothing and finally by modulating lights which do not flash but appear to flicker.
“A strobe or flashing light will get you nicked”
Stretching your motorcycle lighting beyond these three additions to your standard lighting is likely to get you into trouble with the law. And despite the law being reasonably technical on this point any road traffic copper will know it. A strobe or flashing light will get you nicked. Piercing xenon lights may well be ignored as the test is a subjective one.
Andrew Dalton
Bike Magazine May 2017
Thanks for the response Andrew
I think, Reece, a proper reading of the regulation would make these illegal. The idea that you have a wide spread of light at car driver’s eye height is a good one. In solid white light these would be legal.
I have blue LED running lights on my knuckle guards – I cannot seem to find a clear law as to whether these are legal or not. I researched before installing them, and on the basis of “Legal until it’s stated it’s not”, I went ahead. I have been stopped once in the 2.5 years I’ve had them on and been advised you need to “dig deep but they are illegal”. I’ve since covered them of course, but they really raise awareness of my presence, and winter is coming…
Thank you!
your reply was much appreciated,thanks
Alexander and Bob, Alexander especially, my apologies for not coming back to you. Alexander, so long as the lights are not otherwise illegal (ie prescribed colours, do not flash and do not glare) then no offence is being committed. At the risk of getting jurisprudential, in common law systems (such as England and Wales, Ireland, both the North and the Republic, the US, but not Scotland) unless something is illegal it is legal. Adding to this undergraduate law seminar, in a civil code, such as most of Europe and Scotland, and pretty well the rest of the world, an act is illegal until it becomes legal. So in English law, unless there is some specific law which stops you doing something, as a matter of law you can do it. In, for example French law, additional lights would need to be permitted to be lawful. In English law, to be unlawful they need to be proscribed in law.
i have an led strip light on right side of bike fairing,and under windshield.both are led strips about 4 inches long,are white lights that do not flash but do illuminate the front side of my bike enough to be seen from the sides even tho they are facing up/down not towards the sides-am guessing then that since do not flash,are bright without being glaring,are not illegal to have lit at night?
“The only lights on a motorcycle which can automatically flash are the indicators.”
https://www.visordown.com/news/general/are-flashing-brake-lights-legal
So, does this apply to the led kits that have become popular on motorcycles? I am referring to the ones tucked behind panels that light up the frame and c wheels but the led light are not directly visible; they have the ‘breath ‘ function where they change brightness very slowly and have almost endless colour schemes.
Thank you