$248 Fine for Forgetting My Headlights

TightBum on 21/07/2021 - 10:52
Last edited 22/07/2021 - 00:17

Hey Guys,

I got pulled over by the cops and received a fine for forgetting to turn my headlights & backlights on at night which I understand is dangerous and was genuinely a mistake on my part and I thought I had them on, I even saw the cops pull up behind me when I was at the red lights so if I knew they were off I would have turned them on.

I confused my start light with my headlights, the car I was driving has a headlights which come on when you start the car, which I thought were the actual headlights at the time, they don't look all that different until you're in a not so well lit area and I had just started to drive on the main road where it was really well lit.

Given I have never been fined for this before, I thought I'd at least get off with an official warning so I tried challenging this for an internal review when I received the fine but I had no luck with that. So now I can either pay the fine or challenge it in court.

I understand how dangerous it was but getting a fine for genuinely confusing my 2 headlights when I have a good driving record seems a bit extreme. The cop who fined me seemed like he was having a bad night, I was been pretty responsive and compliant through the whole exchange and he got super defensive pretty aggressive when I was surprised that my backlights weren't on.

Has anyone had any experience challenging fines in court? Or should I just fine pay the fine and get over it.
Maybe next time I'll get a car that has auto lights to avoid this experience all together..

Update:

Thanks everyone for your input. After reading the comments, I clearly didn’t know the difference between a DRL and headlights before this incident. I feel like people assume I forgot to turn on my headlights when I got confused by the two. I do always check for my headlights even during the day when I drive as I’ve had a near collision with someone in the past because they didn’t have their lights on. The car I was driving that night wasn’t my car, it was my first time driving it and I thought they were my headlights as they’re pretty bright for DRLs. The police didn’t even pick up on my headlights when they pulled me over they thought my taillights were broken until I played around with the lights to see what was going on. In hindsight, I should have asked the owner of the vehicle before I took off.

I’m obviously in the wrong for not having the correct lights on and I was just asking if anyone had any luck challenging it as the fine isn’t huge but still a fair amount for someone who lost their job to Covid. From reading the comments there seem to be payment options so this seems like a fair option.

I do hope for those of you that thinks that the punishment should have been harsher receive some compassion when you do something wrong because of an honest mistake in the future. Y’all making it out like I’m driving recklessly going 40kms over the speed limit while running reds.

Automotive

Comments

  • umoddbro on 22/07/2021 - 19:41

    I'm sure now you will never forget to turn your lights on everytime you drive at night. Lesson learned, just think of it as paying your tuition.

  • hasher22 on 22/07/2021 - 20:28

    Sorry OP it sucks, though you won't win in court unless you play dumb or something.

    I would pay it and cops are pulling over everyone and anyone now since half the country is in lockdown.

    I was on the way to woolies and saw three cop cars talking to people pulled over within a 2-3km distance. Cops must be having a field day with fines

  • eek on 22/07/2021 - 22:39
    +1

    Chances are if your car has DRLs and an illuminated dash even during the day, it likely has automatic headlights too. I often see people in relatively modern cars that I KNOW have automatic headlights yet drive around with no lights on at night.

  • nuttapillar on 23/07/2021 - 04:01

    I guess I got lucky. I always just use auto lights and don't think about it. But after my car got repaired, I got pulled over for my lights not being on. I was in a well-lit area, so didn't notice. I guess the mechanic mustve turned them off, for some reason. I explained this to the cop, and he just said he'd send me a warning via email. I never even received the email, lol.

    And a while before that, in another incident, I was driving home, then a cop followed me, and flashed their lights just as I was pulling into my driveway. They said my rear lights weren't working. But my headlights were. So I turned them off and back on again, and all was working fine, it was strange. they didn't give me a fine or warning, but told me to get it fixed. But it never had that issue again, so I didn't worry about it. But I had only just recently got the car, so wasnt very familiar. Maybe I accidentally had it on Daytime lights or something and didnt realise? They only followed from behind, so mightnt have noticed if my headlights were dull, and only worried about the rear, and perhaps when i fiddled with it after they stopped me, I finally got it into the right setting.

  • jerjergege on 23/07/2021 - 07:59

    Leave it on Auto, you'll never forget to turn on or off.

  • keejoonc on 23/07/2021 - 10:54
    +1

    I can't stand idiots who only have their DRLs on at night. If they are that oblivious to not notice something isn't quite right, they shouldn't be driving.

  • YBAF Pilot on 23/07/2021 - 13:38
    +1

    I feel like we need a standard template for these questions. They crop up at least once a month if not more sometimes.

  • Ciderfizz44 on 23/07/2021 - 13:54

    Pay the fine, learn the lesson. Better than getting in a car accident due to your own negligence.

  • striker5950 on 23/07/2021 - 17:02

    pay the fine, don't be caught slippin next time

  • E4xtream on 23/07/2021 - 18:39
    +1

    Pay the fine, buy a second hand car with auto headlights.

  • nobro25 on 23/07/2021 - 20:13

    This thread actually made me remember an accident that happened to me in 2014. It was early morning and I had shift work finishing at 4 am. I was driving home on the Harbour Bridge, this was a Saturday morning during Easter Long Week end.
    I believe the speed limit was 60-70 /he.
    I was on the bridge going probably 100km/HR and was constantly checking mirrors and for other cars. During that time there was no cars at all.
    After about 5 mins at my speed, I checked the rear mirror and noticed a faint silhouette of a car behind me and it had no lights on at 4:15 in the morning obviously there's no daylight and the streets were sparse and was dim.
    The car kept inching closer and closer and finally realized it was a police car.
    Obviously I got fined and got double demerits and almost lost my license.
    The main point was that later the Police told me that he had been following me way before the Harbour Bridge and was in city. Thoughout the stretch of road they didn't have their lights on. Probably for a good 5 Kms or so. Then I guess you can argue that there's no other cars around so it's really dangerous.

  • Dodgy Bob on 23/07/2021 - 20:40
    +2

    Hey OP, don't beat yourself up, it happens. I took my car in for service yesterday and not only did they muck up my seat and mirror positions they also turned off the auto headlights. I didn't realise the headlights weren't on until I was almost home and turned into a dark street. I'd been driving since dusk on we'll lit major roads without realising.

    Had I been pulled over I would have felt ripped off, but I'd also cop it and pay the fine as the number of times I've seen idiots (like me) driving without lights does my head in.

    Lesson learned - never assume, always check.

  • [Deactivated] on 23/07/2021 - 23:57
    +2

    I had the same thing happen as dodgy bob

    Been driving for almost 20 years no issues my cars were always older models with manual lights. Recently got a car that has automatic head lights which I have on by default

    One Saturday got my car serviced in the morning went home thought nothing of it , mind you I rarely drive at night as I'm almost always home with a young family. This particular Saturday night I was out driving in a well lit area stoped by rbt blew 0 however one cop noticed my lights were not the proper full driving lights and he came over to the car and gave me the biggest absolute spray I've ever received in my life tore shreads off me verbally and yelled at me like I was the scum of the earth. I sat there in silence and let him vent … I just apologised and explained what happen he was very angry but didn't fine me but honestly I've told many people since that day I would have rather been fined… Never been spoken to by anyone in my life in that manner

    Never forgot to check after that even before I drive off from service … in the day

    • Prizm on 24/07/2021 - 09:34

      "I sat there in silence and let him vent"
      [Pulls out phone, starts recording]

    • TightBum on 24/07/2021 - 11:26
      +1

      I swear we may have had the same cop…

      To be fair, I probably wouldn’t have felt so bad about the fine if it was told respectfully that I did the wrong thing and had been given the fine. Instead of being yelled at and treated like I murdered their family for being surprised my lights weren’t on. I pretty much shutdown after that and answered whatever question they asked and had to pull over afterwards to take a breather because I got so anxious over the whole situation. When I’ve usually been fine dealing with cops pulling people over doing rbts.

      It’s was a pretty eye opening experience. I can’t imagine what it’s like for people who are targeted by the cops frequently. I don’t have a problem with them doing their jobs at all but speaking in that manner wasn’t helpful.

  • wtfnodeal on 24/07/2021 - 00:44

    I was pulled over driving at 41km/hr during the school zone hours. Luckily I was given a warning only.

  • Prizm on 24/07/2021 - 09:26

    Just get used to turning your lights on every time you drive, even if it's day.

    It's safer as it makes your car more visible to other drivers and pedestrians.

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