scare last night

Maybe you should look into getting some anti-glare driving glasses? I know most opticians do them - I have no experience with them but I'm sure someone else will be along soon who can tell you.

You can get glasses which cut the glare but perhaps you should take it as a warning that you are currently not fit to drive at night.

I don't drive but this drives my husband mad. Do you remember the public information film years ago telling drivers to 'dip, don't dazzle'? They should bring it back.

A pair of yellow-toned glasses like the ones we used to use for driving in fog, will cut the glare to a certain extent.

My experience with a cataract forming leads me to say, please do mention this at your next appointment, as it might have something to do with it.

Try dipping and flashing your lights at the oncoming cars that are so inconsiderately blinding you. That should tell them that you can't see for the glare of their lights.

I remember when my cousin developed cataracts she was unable to drive at night so that could well be the problem. I suggest you avoid driving in the dark until you’ve been to the eye treatment centre. A nuisance I know but better safe than sorry and if you were to have an accident even in daylight you might find your insurance doesn’t cover you if you haven’t told them about your eyesight problems so do check with them. You will probably find something in the ‘small print’ about notifying them of any changes. My cousin was fine after the cataracts had been removed.

I doubt very much that every driver coming towards you was driving on full beam, so I think the problem is your eyes. See an optician and get your eyes tested.

I agree that most of these lights were not on full beam but were the very bright white lights. Great when you are driving but dazzling when coming towards you at night.

This is a common symptom of cateracts. You should consult your opticians who may well say that you should avoid driving in the dark. You probably feel that would be for the best anyway. Once you have made that decision it becomes easier to manage and you won't have to stress about it.

I've never liked driving at night but I agree it does seem worse now. Maybe people just have so many fancy light settings they are using the wrong ones

Yes sometimes not full beam but still dazzling. I think it is getting older that has affected me like this. Have eye test every 2 years and will be mentioning this. Mum has wet and dry AMD so I keep an eye (excuse pun) on this.

I so sympathise with this, travelsafar as I have the same problem. Wretched modern headlights!
My cataract is ready for removal and I'm on a waiting list.
I'm convinced this is aggravating my dislike of night driving.
Normally I don't, but it was my grandson's birthday on Monday and we all went out for a meal in the evening. It was a nightmare driving home afterwards and I have vowed that I shan't go out in the evening again until next summer. And hopefully will have had the cataract op by then.
I'm ok by day though, and hope you are too.

I don’t drive in the dark for this reason, it also causes me problems if a car behind has the bright white lights too, they dazzle in the rear view mirror even when it’s adjusted.

It worries me that people suggest it’s the type of light or the ‘fancy’ light setting which causes their problems with night driving. Unless the lights are on full beam, and the odd one might have forgotten to dip their lights but not all of them, then I’m afraid the problem lies in your eyes and you need to have them checked to find out why this is happening. The modern xenon lights are bright but entirely safe for other drivers whose eyesight meets the legal requirements. I fear some are driving below that limit. Not only could you cause an accident, but as I have said upthread you may unwittingly be uninsured. Please take this seriously.

Possibly you are right Germanshepherdsmum, but I do think modern car lights are more annoying to the eyes these days.
I specifically asked if I can still drive, and was told yes, definitely, provided I always wear my new glasses.
And anyway, like I said, I won't drive at night at all through the winter.

You do need a medical check up on your eyes, to rule out anything there. Two friends who had cataracts couldn’t drive because of the dazzling.

Modern car lights can be very bright but I use the tip my father told me many moons ago - look away from the lights and towards the nearside of the road.

I have dry AMD and mild cataracts but I have been unable to drive in dusk and dark for many years-at least 12. It has changed my life but I am now very used to it.

I sympathise with you as I find motorway driving at night quite difficult because of the lights of oncoming traffic. It is recognised that night vision deteriorates with age for many drivers and glare can be a factor so you may not have anything wrong with your eyesight per se. It wouldn't hurt to have them checked though. I avoid driving at night and definitely avoid motorway driving at night.

I agree that you should get your eyes tested, just to be safe.

I don't know if they have these in the UK, but in Canada, we have white lines on the side of most of the roads, to indicate where the shoulder of the road is. When I was learning to drive, we were taught that if we were blinded by oncoming headlights we should look at the white line. It helps with the glare.

Every car we have had for many years automatically dip the headlights when approaching another vehicle. I expect all the SUVs have this feature as they are relatively new to the market.
Safer to stop driving than be responsible for an accident.

ginny

I agree that most of these lights were not on full beam but were the very bright white lights. Great when you are driving but dazzling when coming towards you at night.

Unfortunately most new cars have these white lights, I bought a new Ford Puma recently which has them and as it is a small SUV, the lights are a little higher than a saloon car.

As I dislike the glare in my eyes, I was rather dismayed to realise I will be adding to the problem. I bought some cheap anti glare glasses at a petrol station which cuts out the glare totally but as they are not prescription ones, I do look a bit daft with them perched on top of my driving glasses!

Incidentally, the difficulty in seeing with the white glare is not because of a problem with my eyes, I’ve just had a eye test and I don’t have cataracts or any other condition. I do have some minor loss of vision as a result of a TIA but that does not affect my issues with the glare.

When I finally get my new prescription, still under eye hospital for more tests, I’m going to ask about getting proper night time driving glasses,

Esspee

Every car we have had for many years automatically dip the headlights when approaching another vehicle. I expect all the SUVs have this feature as they are relatively new to the market.
Safer to stop driving than be responsible for an accident.

Mine dip if on full beam but not when on normal headlights so won’t help with the glare.

Do you think some cars have headlights that blind and dazzle other drivers?

With the advancement of technology in the motor industry, we’re seeing added comfort, convenience and safety in our cars each year. However, not all change is good.

Although roads are being lit more effectively with new technology, it sometimes comes at the cost of blinding other drivers.

Are Modern Car Lights Too Bright
So, are headlights these days just too bright? Everyone and their grandmother has experienced the modern-day dazzling that leaves us dazed and confused as if we had just experienced part of the effect of a flashbang grenade. There’s certainly no end to anecdotal evidence that suggests indeed, yes, modern LED lights may be too bright or angled too high.

The two main experiences that we know of are having lights shine brightly from the car behind us reflect in our mirrors, therefore rendering them useless and in more severe cases, a hindrance to our driving. The second being the lights coming from a car in front of us travelling in the opposite direction, with the flash of light hitting our eyes directly as you cross paths with the other car.

Are Modern Car Lights Too Bright
Some report the lights from the car behind being so bright that they actually cast a shadow of your vehicle in front of you, despite your headlights also being on. The stories you hear are utterly unacceptable and motorists should surely not have to tackle the hazard of another car’s extra bright lights whilst also combatting potholes, cyclists, pedestrians, junctions, wildlife, large puddles and so on.

Are Modern Car Lights Too Bright
One recurring culprit that comes to mind, for me at least, is the Mini, with the Countryman being the worst. The lights are not only bright and powerful but also seem to be angled too far up and with the Countryman being a little higher up than the other Mini models already, it makes for a terrible combination. Let us know if you’ve noticed any particular cars that have lights that are particularly annoying.

The RAC polled their Driver Opinion Panel of around 1,200 participants in 2019 and found that 91% of them found at least ‘some’ cars had lights that were ‘too bright’ and 54% of them said they were being dazzled by them more regularly currently (in 2019) than they were the year prior. In a more dramatic turn, a whopping 70% believe some cars’ lights are so bright that they represent an accident risk.

Are Modern Car Lights Too Bright (4)
Now, although it may seem like this is still a valid complaint to have, in the future this will hopefully cease to be an issue. With the new matrix LED light technology that actively blocks out light in sections so that it is not shone on other oncoming vehicles, the problem is being eradicated as we speak. That being said, this state-of-the-art lighting is currently exclusive to high-end vehicles such as the Audi A7 but eventually, will trickle down to more affordable cars in 5 or 10 years’ time.

Germanshepherdsmum

It worries me that people suggest it’s the type of light or the ‘fancy’ light setting which causes their problems with night driving. Unless the lights are on full beam, and the odd one might have forgotten to dip their lights but not all of them, then I’m afraid the problem lies in your eyes and you need to have them checked to find out why this is happening. The modern xenon lights are bright but entirely safe for other drivers whose eyesight meets the legal requirements. I fear some are driving below that limit. Not only could you cause an accident, but as I have said upthread you may unwittingly be uninsured. Please take this seriously.

That’s not the case according to my optician, it’s down to the harsh white lights rather than softer yellow ones. Cataracts might affect ability to drive at night but people can suffer from glare impairing vision temporarily without having cataracts, especially if the on coming headlights are incorrectly set. Drivers sometimes mess about with the height settings in order to improve their view of the road without realising the problems it causes for oncoming traffic

My article was copied from Motor Vision.