People tint their cars for all sorts of reasons. Keeping the inside cool is one of them. Tinting also helps with customization i.e. someone gives a car a look that is personal and therefore intimate to them through amongst other things tinting it.
This of course goes back to the fact that individuals are free to own property and put it to use in ways that they see fit.
That right however, is limited usually with the objective of benefiting the interests of the public. For California’s case, a 1999 law is what stipulates what may or may not be done in regards to tinting. That legislation is Vehicle Code 26708.
It is important therefore, that as you think about tinting your car you are alive to what this law provides. This is exactly why I am writing to you today.
This piece tackles the different categories including the tinting darkness allowed, the degree of reflectiveness windows can have at maximum, exemptions to the general the general provisions etc.
Note that while your car might not be tinted, there can be actions whose effect creates similar scenarios that the tinting is meant to bar in the first place. This includes hanging opaque objects around the windows. These too are not permissible under the Vehicle Code.
Window Tint Darkness in California
Window tint regulations are majorly divided into two broad categories. The first is the one we will discuss here i.e. window tint darkness. As the name suggests, it is about weighing the degree of darkness in the car which will always be determined by the amount of light that is emitted inside.
The criteria undertaken hereunder is referred to as Visible Light Transmission also shortened as VLT. The higher the Vision Light Transmission percentage figure stated in a law, the more amount of light that is requisite. We will soon look at these figures.
It is also salient to note that laws may require different Vision Light Transmission percentages for different cars. This often accrues to a number of factors e.g. the potentiality of usage in crime.
That said, this factor does not exactly play out in California when it comes to private cars.
So you do not have to worry much about it. Otherwise, in some instances folks have to be sure that their car is not a sedan as opposed to say an SUV.
Lastly, Vision Light Transmission figures are also determined by the position that a given window occupies on the car. They will thus always be higher in regards to the front windows compared to other places. The reason is simple; that is the place used by drivers to see the road.
There is something to be said about windows on the front doors when it comes to viewing side mirrors but still, that is not so much of a big deal if it is to be compared to the latter screen.
Okay then, here are the specifics;
- Windshield: Tint is only allowed at the four uppermost inches. If this option is taken, then the tint should not be reflective.
- Front side windows: if the tint used is entirely dressed on the windows post buying, then a minimum of 88% Vision Light Transmission is allowed. If such tint is instead added onto tint that was manufactured in the windows, then a minimum of 70% Vision Light Transmission is allowed.
- Backside windows: there is no limitation on the tint’s darkness.
- Rear window: there is no limitation on the tint’s darkness.
One sees thus, that California prioritizes people’s choice, privacy amongst other concerns that fans of tinting embellish when choosing to color their car windows when it comes to window tint darkness.
As a matter of fact, the provisions in question are some of the most liberal to be found anywhere in the United States.
Window Tint Reflection
The second broad branch of car tinting regulations regards reflections. The whole idea centers on the amount of light that the tint applied on car windows reflects. Doing so is yet another subtle way of attaining the advantages of limiting the amount of light that enters one’s car e.g. keeping a cool atmosphere.
The challenge here however, is that when too much light is deflected, those rays can impede clear vision by the people around the car thereby easily occasioning unintended consequences an example of which is accidents. Laws therefore come in to balance these competing the competing interests.
Again, often the positions legislated upon will be determined by the model of the car as well as the positions of the windows.
Luckily enough however, California’s case provides a single criterion for all types of cars as wells as window positioning i.e. that the reflection should not be more than that of a standard window.
Do not know what a standard window is? No worries, the folks that you will go to tint will know.
Other Window Tint Regulations
While not being major concepts, Code 26708 goes ahead to provide for several more things beyond tint darkness and reflection that you ought to be aware of if you are considering tinting a car that is meant to be driven in the state. Here are some of them:
- Side mirrors: Like tinting, some people prefer to customize their cars by removing side mirrors. If you are going to tint the rear window however, this privilege is not present for you. You will as a must have to have two side mirrors.
Disabling both these features of the car would mean that there would no way for you to keep an eye on vehicles coming behind you thereby increasing the risk of accidents.
- Restriction on colors: Despite one’s fondness of some colours, it is the case that there are those whose employment would simply defeat the spirit of the code e.g. when they are overly reflective. California therefore, prohibits tinting a car in red, blue or amber.
- Certificates/stickers: If at all the tinting film on your car was applied post purchase, then you should ensure that you have a certificate or sticker granted by the manufacturer. These usually carry the company’s name and address and are meant to help with accountability.
Be sure to carry either on the road so you can explain yourself in the event that police stops you along the way. Stickers are often the best as they can be attached on the car itself so you one does not have to worry with book keeping.
- Medical exemptions. Notwithstanding the stated provisions under window tint darkness as well as window tint reflection, some drivers will be allowed to work with tinting that does not conform to either or both in instances where their medical situation requires it. Often, these are individuals for whom sun rays have a disorienting effect on.
Enforcement
We all know it is one thing to have a law and another to have it work. The working bit usually requires deliberate mechanisms put up to ensure the same. And so, it is the case that the Vehicle Code have enforcement measures. I will now share those which are most salient.
Penalties
The law has designated specific punishments for those who for one reason or another fail to adhere to the window tint regulations. These come in the form of fines as well as charging. Often what penalty an individual faces is determined by traffic police officers.
If an officer manning the road suspects a car to be in breach of the tinting provisions, they will stop the driver and then examine the windows with a tint meter to establish the Visible Light Transmission percentage.
Upon ascertaining that the VLT on the car windows falls below the requisite minimum, they will tell the driver about it and then go ahead to administer the penalty.
For most of the time, if there is nothing fishy with the driver’s conduct or about the car to say, impute a deliberate effort to use tinting as a mechanism of averting law enforcement, then the policeman or woman will only issue the individual in question a fix-it-ticket before letting them drive on provided they are first time offender.
This is because police is aware that most people do not intend bad and that more often than not, their actions would be as they are because they were unaware of what the law says. On top of ticket thus, the officer might help explain why the VLT numbers are illegal.
Things will be different if the person in question is a second, third, or serial offender. Police will adopt harsher measures depending on their situation.
A second offender will be fined $25 as well as being ordered to remove the window (s) in contention while one who continues to drive their car whilst disregarding the Code despite the initial and second time encounters with law enforcement will be fined $200 and charged with infraction too.
Application for medical exemption
For a person to benefit under the medical exemption criterion as intimated upon already, they are to follow a couple of steps stated in the law first. It is not enough that their health is compromised.
This is because while the state is desirous to help such individuals, it is the case that leaving an open vacuum would make it easy for those without sound claims to exploit it.
First, the said persons should obtain documentation from a health professional certified to practice in California attesting to their condition. This may be a surgeon, dermatologist, optometrist etc. depending on what exactly is the issue that they are suffering from.
Thereupon, they are to apply to the state’s department of Motor Vehicles attaching their physician’s attestation along. The department will thereafter review the documents sent, verify them and then grant the applicant permission to drive a car that admits a less percentage of Visible Light Transmission than allowed for everyone else.
Film manufacturers
We have already mentioned the fact that a manufacturer should on top of giving out tinting film share certification to the driver too with particular details. The said certificate should equally also indicate the VLT percentage of the film in question.
Should police find that they lied about this number, it is possible that the law will catch up with them.
All manufacturers selling film in the state should have also been certified to carry out this particular job. Make sure thus, that you establish first from whom you are buying this product.
Conclusion
There are a couple of things that you will find that you want to know about how tinting plays out in car relations which though not found in California’s Vehicle Code are incidental to it.
- Insist on being provided with tint regulations compliance. As drivers will know, there are things that one always looks out for when it comes to car relations. You cannot afford to walk away with a car upon buying it prior to reception of its card. As things to monitor pile however, many tend to be complacent including with tinting. As we have seen though, the percentage of tint of window tinting can be a source on unnecessary convenience for one.
Common examples of people from whom you should double-check with when it comes to this issue includes sellers (whether companies or individuals) and mechanics. It is especially important that you are sure about the Visible Transmission Light Percentage when the person/company from whom/which you are buying or relying for repair resides/is located in a different state in the United States later on another country as laws always differ from place to place. Dealers in California will mostly already know.
You will usually be able to examine these numbers by looking at company certifications.
- Victims of bad tinting. Just like I am sure that you know already that inconveniences on the road whether they result into accidents (in the extreme case that is) or not result from all sorts of reckless behavior not least driving whilst drunk as well as over speeding, it is important that you add to this list bad tinting too (if you did not already) now that you are reading this article.
This means that you should modify both your habits as well as look out for fellow road users who might be engaged in this practice so you can avoid direct negative implications on your driving experience. You might have slow down for example, if you find that a driver ahead of you has tinted their car in a way that reflects so much light towards you thereby distorting your vision of the immediate surroundings.
There have in fact been cases tried in court where the jury finds that an accident resulted from bad tinting. Usually this is enabled by the extraction and watching of the videos of these incidents.
About California
Located on the West Coast of the United States of America, California is the most populous state in the country i.e. it is home to over thirty nine million people.
This means that one in every eight Americans stays in this state. Indeed, eight of its cities come up on the list of the top fifty states with the highest number of inhibitors.
These are; Long Beach, Sacramento, San Diego, Oakland, San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Jose, and Fresno. Los Angeles has the most number of people of the eight.
California’s capital is Sacramento and in terms of land mass, it sits on approximately 423,000 km sq.
Here are some more cities in California; Palo Alto, Santa Monica, Cupertino, Berkeley, Carmel-by-the-sea, Laguna Beach, Eureka, Orange, Newport Beach, Palm Springs etc.
California is predominantly a blue state, that is to say that it is a political base for the Democratic Party in most elections.
Cities in California: Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Sacramento, San Jose, Oakland, Santa Barbara, Mountain View, Pasadena, Anaheim, Beverly Hills, Berkeley, Monterey, Long Beach, Palm Springs, Santa Monica, Hollister, Malibu, Fresno, Bakersfield, Palo Alto, Big Sur, Calabasas, Irvine, Newport Beach, Cupertino, Huntington Beach, Napa, Temecula, Modesto, Torrance, Santa Cruz, Laguna Beach, San Luis Obispo, Riverside, Sunnyvale, Stockton, Pleasanton, Ontario, Ventura, Fremont, Menlo Park, Orange, Carmel-by-the-Sea, Carlsbad, Burbank, Santa Rosa, Solvang, Eureka
Counties in California: Alameda, Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, Contra Costa, Del Norte, El Dorado, Fresno, Glenn, Humboldt, Imperial, Inyo, Kern, Kings, Lake, Lassen, Los Angeles, Madera, Marin, Mariposa, Mendocino, Merced, Modoc, Mono, Monterey, Napa, Nevada, Orange, Placer, Plumas, Riverside, Sacramento, San Benito, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Francisco, San Joaquin, San Luis Obispo, San Mateo, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Solano, Sonoma, Stanislaus, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, Tulare, Tuolumne, Ventura, Yolo, Yuba
Tint Law References:
Medical Exemption Info:
Assembly Bill no. 1303 (September 2017) – amended medical exemptions