Window tinting is a common aspect of modern day car aesthetics. It makes sense therefore that states ensure that these endeavors go on in a way that is not self-harming later on destructive to the public at large.
Florida is therefore not alone in passing a law as window tinting law is a local preserve under the United States government set up.
The first law in this regard was passed in 1991 but a couple of amendments have ever since been followed it up thereby making this field of law quite murky to appreciate for an ordinary person. Lucky enough, my research is mindful of this aspect and so I have ensured that I do my research and deliver a package that leaves out the requirements that have since been repealed or replaced on the one hand while highlighting those that now occupy their place.
The specifics that you can expect relate to general standards on window tinting darkness and window tinting reflection, exemptions to these rules, enforcement provisions etc.
Towards the end, I share practical insights in the tinting field itself because experience has taught me that laws do not operate in a vacuum.
You can also expect comparisons with the general trend for several of the issues tackled which is my effort to place the Florida window tinting laws with those passed elsewhere.
As usual, this article is written in very simple and accessible language so you do not have to have gone through law school to appreciate the essence of the message being communicated.
Florida Window Tinting Darkness Laws
Window tinting darkness is the most known aspect of window tinting. It works through blockage of light by the shades of tint film that will be dressed on the car windows.
That said, different tinting shades will block varying light levels. This is captured through the concept of Visible Light Transmission also VLT. VLT is measured in percentages with the highest amount being indicative of film that allows more light in the car e.g. a car that has its windows attached with tinting that is 90% VLT will have more light on the inside than one with 40% VLT.
Law makes generally rely on two factors when determining what VLT percentage to ask of cars. The very first regards the car type itself especially when it comes to the purpose of the car as well as its structure. In the case of cars that are often only employed for private purposes therefore, window tinting laws often easily accept less lighting since they usually carry their owners who would only tint them so dark when they have a good reason.
Of course there is a catch-22 situation here since criminals can always exploit such presumptions. This is where law enforcement comes in however. Otherwise, restraining liberties on grounds of what bad people can and cannot do only goes too far.
The second intervening reason is the position of windows on the cars. If you look keenly, you will realize that whilst different windows may be on the same car, their roles are never similar.
There might be some that share function but it cannot be all. If anything, one car may have its window functions categorized into at the very least three different uses.
Tinting laws will thus be more restrictive on the ones whose capacities are reliant on emitting more light (which is not always a thing for windows. Some are simply there to provide protection from the wind.). A common example in this regard is the windshield which is the place that the driver directly interacts with other road users.
Suffice it to say, it is not always the case that states will heed to both these requirements. At times they may consider only one of them while in other cases they might leave them out altogether.
In the case of Florida, both of them have been taken into account as we shall now proceed to see.
- Sedans
Windshield: tint is only allowed above the manufacturer’s AS-1 line.
Front side windows: a minimum of 28% VLT must be heeded to.
Backside windows: a minimum of 15% VLT must be heeded to.
Rear window: a minimum of 15% VLT must be heeded to.
- SUVs
Windshield: tint is only allowed above the manufacturer’s AS-1 line.
Front side windows: a minimum of 28% VLT must be heeded to.
Backside windows: a minimum of 6% VLT must be heeded to.
Rear window: a minimum of 6% VLT must be heeded to.
It must be said that these percentages are way below the VLT percentages that are often required elsewhere. Florida is therefore liberal in that sense.
Florida Window Tinting Reflection Laws
Window Tinting Darkness is the less known aspect of tinting. This does not meant however, that it is less effective. In fact, this attribute is better that window tinting darkness in some aspects. Perhaps you should try it out if you have not and see for yourself.
Unlike window tinting darkness which basically blocks light from entering the car, window tinting reflection works by diverting lighting coming towards a window to someone else.
Notice that this very nature raises a problem that especially calls for regulation under window tinting reflection.
This is because, any defaults under darkness are usually encountered by the car owner, blurry vision for instance because the windows are too dark.
The thing with window tint reflection is that too much of it has problems of its own as well though they are met on other people instead.
When lots of light is reflected thus, it is people looking at the car from outside that will be affected and if there was to be an accident resulting from poor reflective tinting, then it will be them to face the consequences.
As a result, car owners have no immediate incentive to heed to do good tinting unless they are good people or their intentions are quelled by law.
And obviously, you cannot make a policy based on the presumption that people will be good.
Whereas window tinting darkness is measured through VLT, window tinting reflection is by the amount of light that a particular window reflects.
The higher the percentage reflected, the more light in real time that is reflected. Often, law makers will want to ask for as minimal amounts of light reflections as possible under their circumstances.
And similar to window tinting darkness, the factors of the positioning of windows as well as car types come in handy as the legislature goes about determining these figures.
In the case of Florida however, only the aspect of window positions are considered. It does not matter what car it is that you drive. Here are the real numbers asked:
Front side windows: there must not be more than 25% light reflection.
Backside windows: there must not be more than 35% light reflection.
Other Florida Window Tinting Laws
With provisions on window tinting darkness and reflection in your pocket, you pretty much have the gist of Florida window tinting laws.
At the same time, there are provisions that either bring more clarity or nuance to what we have covered already such that going before you know them still leaves your glass half full.
What we will here then is do a quick combing through them.
- Restriction on colors: majority of folks out there think that tint can only be dark. If you are among them, then you should know that you can actually find tint films in almost any color that you know of.
Florida however, allows people to only use black tint. This is a little extreme if contrasted with most states but yeah, it is what it is. Usually the colors that are banned even by the most liberal states on this issue are red and amber known for their overly reflective properties.
- Dual side mirrors requirement. In Florida, it is a must for all cars whose rear windows are tinted to install side mirrors on both sides of their vehicles. The idea is that if one tints the back of their vehicle, then their visuals for what is coming behind them are hugely interfered with.
Indeed, most states will have this requirement too though it is usually mandatory especially for incidents including vehicles whose rear windows are blocked off completely.
- Certificates and Stickers: certificates in regards to window tinting law are documents that manufacturers issue affirming that the film sold to a given person complies the requirements of the law applicable in a particular state. Think of it as a way to remove responsibility from one’s self if any future eventualities arise with contestations on the VLT or reflective levels of the tint in question.
Some states mandate that manufacturers issue these certificates though Florida does not. Instead, the state asks that manufacturer’s give out stickers instead. The difference in this case is that stickers are less bulky and can in fact be attached on a window so a driver does not have to worry about losing them.
Drivers that have installed tint on their cars must place the stickers on the inside of the window on the side of the driver.
- Police exemptions: the VLT and window tint reflection percentages discussed thus far has been waived for law enforcement in Florida. This is because these personnel sometime engage in missions that require that employ different attributes of dark tint. Note that we are talking here not about the private vehicles owned by police officers but rather the ones employed whilst on duty.
- Medical Exemption: another category of persons that is excused from the general window tint reflection and darkness requirements is persons whose health situations would be exacerbated if they the alternative happened. In most cases, these are folks with skin and eye defects with these parts of their bodies having to be protected from too much UV light. Common cases in this category include; lupus and albinism.
Should you be one of these individuals, then the process to obtain special permission for you starts with reaching out to a medical profession to obtain documentation that attests to your condition. Thereafter, you can apply to the Department of Motor Vehicles. Once you have obtained the authorization, be sure to keep the papers in your car whenever on the road so as to avoid scenarios in which police officials may think of you as a fraud.
All that has been said on this point notwithstanding, it is crucial to notice that transparent tint itself blocks out UV rays to a significant degree. Add to the fact that the VLT percentage requirements in Florida are quite understanding and you may actually find that the general standard will work for you just fine even when you are a part of the persons with medical complications described.
- Penalties: Violating tint regulations in Florida is generally considered a misdemeanor. When it comes to the real punishment that one will face when found to be guilty of such cases however, things differ from county to county. You might want to check your local area to be sure what’s up. You can expect though that you are going to be ordered to remove the tint film that has been ruled to be illegal. The variations will mainly be about the amount of fine that you will be asked to pay. It is important to also note that paying a fine does not exonerate one from further consequences should they fail to remove the tint in question from their car only for them to be pulled over again.
Different from most states, Florida police will not stop you on the road just because they suspect that you did not heed to the window tinting law standard. Instead, these issues will only arise if you have been asked to pack on account of committing some other traffic offence. This is what is termed as secondary offences. This certainly does not mean that you tint your car as you wish because the consequences are real should you be found in violation eventually.
Others
Having explored the laws, we now turn to some important facts which I am sure you will agree go hand in hand with what we have covered already once you have read them.
- Children: children are more susceptible to the risk of sunburn than adults. I thus advise that you always have them sit in the backseats shielded by the windows that are allowed the least VLT percentage levels.
- Car temperatures can get especially high: regulation of heat is an important function of tinting since it does not take long for the inside of a vehicle to get hot by degrees that surpass the outside by far. It is estimated thus, that if packed in an environment where the temperature is 95 Fahrenheit degrees, it will take only an hour for a car without tint to shoot to 45 degrees higher.
- Car tinting protects a car from aging: UV rays have the effect of wearing out a car if at all they are not moderated through say, tinting. Common parts to be affected include the upholstery as well as the electronics. This is for you by the way even when you intend to sell off your car by the way lest you will be paid less money for it.
Florida State Info
Florida is one of the states that make up the Southeastern region of the United States of America. Her neighbors include Georgia and Alabama. The state occupies roughly 170,000 km sq making it the 22nd largest in the country.
Florida’s capital is Tallahassee though the biggest city is Jacksonville. Other cities there include; Sunrise, Vero Beach, Sarasota, Jupiter, West Palm Beach, Port St. Lucie, Boca Raton etc.
Cities in Florida: Miami, Orlando, Tampa, Fort Lauderdale, Jacksonville, Key West, Sarasota, Naples, Fort Myers, Tallahassee, St. Petersburg, Miami Beach, St. Augustine, Destin, West Palm Beach, Boca Raton, Pensacola, Daytona Beach, Clearwater, Kissimmee, Gainesville, Bradenton, Hollywood, Palm Beach, Cape Coral, Marco Island, Ocala, The Villages, Port St. Lucie, Sanibel, Delray Beach, Panama City Beach, Panama City, Vero Beach, Lakeland, Cocoa Beach, Melbourne, Pompano Beach, Winter Park, Sunrise, Venice, Punta Gorda, Fort Myers Beach, Jupiter, Coral Gables, Everglades, Stuart, Pembroke Pines, Clearwater Beach, Islamorada
Counties in Florida: Alachua, Baker, Bay, Bradford, Brevard, Broward, Calhoun, Charlotte, Citrus, Clay, Collier, Columbia, DeSoto, Dixie, Duval, Escambia, Flagler, Franklin, Gadsden, Gilchrist, Glades, Gulf, Hamilton, Hardee, Hendry, Hernando, Highlands, Hillsborough, Holmes, Indian River, Jackson, Jefferson, Lafayette, Lake, Lee, Leon, Levy, Liberty, Madison, Manatee, Marion, Martin, Miami-Dade, Monroe, Nassau, Okaloosa, Okeechobee, Orange, Osceola, Palm Beach, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk, Putnam, Santa Rosa, Sarasota, Seminole, St. Johns, Sumter, Suwannee, Taylor, Union, Volusia, Wakulla, Walton, Washington
Tint law references:
Florida 2016 Statutes sections 316.2951 through 316.2956: (see sections 316.2951 to 316.2956)