e-Help Report: To Tint Or Not To Tint

Is it illegal to have tints on your car window? Lots of people like the effect, but it might cost you in more ways than one.

In many cases, it's legal to tint the windows on your car within certain limits, but those limits may vary wildly from state to state. In New York State you have to allow at least 70% of light to be transmitted. In New Jersey you cannot have any tint at all. In Connecticut, you windows must allow just 35% of light to be transmitted.

That means that though you may have the legal tint on your car in Connecticut, once you drive to New York or New Jersey you're breaking the law. You can get a ticket for it... depending on your particular police officer and what he feels like doing on any particular day. So remember, don't tempt them, people!

According to Triple A's Robert Sinclair, police officers don't like tinted windows. "That's probably the main reason we have state regulations", says Sinclair. "A traffic stop is a very dangerous situation for a police officer. If they're coming up on a vehicle that has tinted windows, they might not know 'til they're right on the vehicle that somebody is holding a gun on them, so there is that safety aspect that tends to be the overriding concern."

Sinclair says, "The car places that are putting these tints on your car are often breaking the law and they know it." Be aware of the jumble of different standards out there. You might like the look, but is it worth the cost of getting tickets?

For more information, visit this website for the rulres and regulations in the states you drive in.

http://public.findlaw.com/traffic-ticket-violation-law/traffic-ticket-a-z/window-tint-laws-state-info.html