Think my window tints are illegal

[uplight12345]

I just bought a car from a dealership. The back window and the 2 back side mirrors are basically opaque you cannot see inside the car at all however I believe it doesn’t matter how tinted these windows are.

The ones I’m worried about are the front side ones. From the outside you can only just about make out the steering wheel. I have a feeling that they are too dark but I have no way to tell. I like to think the dealership wouldn’t have sold me the car if they weren’t legal but they didn’t seem to know.

There are no window tinting specialists anywhere near me to get an expert opinion. Any ideas?

[paradigital]

“Didn’t seem to know”. They knew.

Almost any additional amount of tinting forward of the B pillar will make windows foul the regulations, this is why you tend to only get manufacturer installed “privacy” glass at the rear.

[Dave.]

They're not checked at during the MOT, but....


https://www.gov.uk/tinted-vehicle-window-rules

"It’s illegal to fit or sell glass (or a vehicle already fitted with glass) that breaks the rules on tinted windows."

[uplight12345]

paradigital said:

“Didn’t seem to know”. They knew.

Almost any additional amount of tinting forward of the B pillar will make windows foul the regulations, this is why you tend to only get manufacturer installed “privacy” glass at the rear.

What do you suggest I do?

I have a mechanic mate who, from pictures, believes they are factory tinted and therefore cannot be illegal. But to me they just seem far too dark. Should I just peel it off?

[thebraketester]

paradigital said:

“Didn’t seem to know”. They knew.

Of course they did… what they meant is “we don’t want to have to faff about removing the illegal tints”

[Dave.]

If they're factory, they won't peel off.

And if they do peel off, it's a proper bd of a job getting the glue off.

Depending on the car etc, probably easier to change the glass from a scrappers

[uplight12345]

That will definitely all be getting billed back to the dealership. I just don’t want to make a scene until I know for sure that they’re illegal

[nunpuncher]

As mentioned above. Most cars have a very slight tint to the windows anyway. This is usually at the legal limit for the UK so any tint over and above this on front side windows will be illegal. I would be very surprised if any car sold in the UK had factory tinted front side windows that were illegal.

Many years ago I bought an S3 that had very slight tint added to the front windows. I never got any bother from plod. However, I eventually removed it by using a heat gun then scrapping the remaining glue off with a Stanley blade. It was a of a job.

Edited by nunpuncher on Thursday 9th February 17:48

Edited by nunpuncher on Thursday 9th February 17:50

[anonymous-user]

What type of car is it?
How does it compare to pics of the same model via searches?

[uplight12345]

James6112 said:

What type of car is it?
How does it compare to pics of the same model via searches?

It’s a 65 plate Astra SRi

I have a Vauxhall Combo van parked right next to it and the difference between the shades is huge. The van is pretty much transparent and you can see all the interior but the Astra you can hardly make out the steering wheel

[kambites]

The front side windows need to let through at last 70% of the light which hits them; ie the huge majority. Typical "anti-UV" glass as fitted to modern cars already blocks somewhere around around 15% of visible light. If the tint is obvious, it's almost certainly too dark.

If you find somewhere local which tints windows they should be able to measure it for you (for a fee, I'm sure).

[V 02]

Rear windows , any tint is allowed including “limo” and completely opaque (makes sense to me)

Front tint, this is a bit of a grey area. Front windows must let 70% of light through, and the windscreen 75%. However most cars have a factory tint to the glass which usually lets in around that amount of light already, therefore if your car has this kind of tint then no tint is legal.

However as said above, Plod don’t really care unless you are taking the piss. Light tints wont get you any bother, ceramic included.


“Chameleon” tints are another grey area. There are many legal chameleon tints out there due to tint%, however the overly showy ones might get you bothered by police or MOT testers. A light UV resistant ceramic tint to the legal limit is a nice addition if visibility is not affected.


Sounds obviously from the OP your car is illegal.

FWIW I have 0 aftermarket tints but a factory tint , 35% to the rear. I like it, I think most cars with clear glass all round look like silly fishbowls.

We are lucky to have fairly lax tint laws, across the pond in some states tints are looked upon like the devil’s work (that doesn’t seem to stop some of them running blackout tints all round)

I want to explore fully legal, UV attenuating ceramic very light tints to the front windows and windscreen to reduce the need for cooling the car so much in warm weather and to protect the interior. A/c hacks the range on my PHEV. I think it might already have the legal percentage already though.

[V 02]

uplight12345 said:

What do you suggest I do?

I have a mechanic mate who, from pictures, believes they are factory tinted and therefore cannot be illegal. But to me they just seem far too dark. Should I just peel it off?

Why don’t you put a pic of the front windows. Rears are irrelevant as they will be legal

[uplight12345]

V 02 said:

Rear windows , any tint is allowed including “limo” and completely opaque (makes sense to me)

Front tint, this is a bit of a grey area. Front windows must let 70% of light through, and the windscreen 75%. However most cars have a factory tint to the glass which usually lets in around that amount of light already, therefore if your car has this kind of tint then no tint is legal.

However as said above, Plod don’t really care unless you are taking the piss. Light tints wont get you any bother, ceramic included.


“Chameleon” tints are another grey area. There are many legal chameleon tints out there due to tint%, however the overly showy ones might get you bothered by police or MOT testers. A light UV resistant ceramic tint to the legal limit is a nice addition if visibility is not affected.


Sounds obviously from the OP your car is illegal.

FWIW I have 0 aftermarket tints but a factory tint , 35% to the rear. I like it, I think most cars with clear glass all round look like silly fishbowls.

We are lucky to have fairly lax tint laws, across the pond in some states tints are looked upon like the devil’s work (that doesn’t seem to stop some of them running blackout tints all round)

I want to explore fully legal, UV attenuating ceramic very light tints to the front windows and windscreen to reduce the need for cooling the car so much in warm weather and to protect the interior. A/c hacks the range on my PHEV. I think it might already have the legal percentage already though.

It’s not just the Police I’m worried about. In the event of an insurance claim my insurance would be voided if the tints are found to be illegal.

I just need advice on how to go about verifying the legality of the tints as there are no specialists near me

[kambites]

uplight12345 said:

It’s not just the Police I’m worried about. In the event of an insurance claim my insurance would be voided if the tints are found to be illegal.

It would not void your insurance. I'm pretty sure the insurance could only refuse to pay out if they could put together a reasonable argument that the loss was caused by the illegal tints. So you might be in trouble if you failed to spot something through your side windows at night, but otherwise it will make no difference and you certainly wouldn't be guilty of driving without insurance or anything like that.

I'd certainly get them sorted out though! If there's no tinters around you, you could try approaching the local police to get their thoughts although to be honest they probably have more serious things to spend their time on!

[cootuk]

Why not ask a road copper? They carry the official tester light.

[Red9zero]

uplight12345 said:

It’s not just the Police I’m worried about. In the event of an insurance claim my insurance would be voided if the tints are found to be illegal.

I just need advice on how to go about verifying the legality of the tints as there are no specialists near me

Call your local police station. Hopefully they will test them without nicking you. As for removing them, I'd take it to somewhere that fits them, as it will be a horrible job to remove them yourself.

[V 02]

kambites said:

uplight12345 said:

It’s not just the Police I’m worried about. In the event of an insurance claim my insurance would be voided if the tints are found to be illegal.

It would not void your insurance. I'm pretty sure the insurance could only refuse to pay out if they could put together a reasonable argument that the loss was caused by the illegal tints. So you might be in trouble if you failed to spot something through your side windows at night, but otherwise it will make no difference and you certainly wouldn't be guilty of driving without insurance or anything like that.

I'd certainly get them sorted out though! If there's no tinters around you, you could try approaching the local police to get their thoughts although to be honest they probably have more serious things to spend their time on!

Mostly this. Besides , even if insurance tried to play games when claiming, they would be more likely to simply reduce the difference of if you had declared tints from your payout, which is likely to be marginal. If you declare the tints online today, I don’t think they would even add anything on, and you can always remove the tints as a mod from insurance once you’ve got them off.


Disagree with going to police, its very trivial and wasting their time and you are just asking for an FPN if you have a jobsworth looking at it. Speak to a mod shop instead, like a tint specialist who can steer you towards legal options and remove them professionally. I would be keeping the rears on for the time being and just removing the fronts.

[Heathwood]

You could buy a VLT meter and test it yourself.

[Red9zero]

Heathwood said:

You could buy a VLT meter and test it yourself.

Looks like there might be a few apps that do it.