Gardaí in Donegal issue warnings to drivers over tinted windows

Stephen Maguire

Gardaí in Co Donegal have put a number of drivers "in the shade" during a blitz on tinted windows in cars.

Gardaí stopped a number of drivers over the window and issued warnings because of "over tinted windows" in vehicles.

Officers from the Donegal Town Roads Policing Unit stopped dozens of cars as a part of a crackdown on the offence.

Gardaí utilise technology to determine the level of light that passes through the windows to determine their legality.

They said that many of the vehicles they stopped over the weeknd fell below legal light limits.

A Garda spokesperson said "The vehicles' light transmission levels were measured and fell well below the expected light transmission rate."

They' have also issued a warning to motorists about the dangers of having too much tint on their vehicle's windows.

They also issued a warning that using such heavy tinting on car windows can be dangerous for driving.

The spokesperson added "The excessive tinting of windows creates enforcement issues for gardaí in relation to driver recognition, the detection of driving offences such as driving while disqualified, the use of mobile phones, the non wearing of seatbelts and other criminal activity.

"The tint restrictions only apply to the vehicle’s windscreen and front side windows. These windows must have a minimum light transmission rate of 65% in order to pass the NCT."

"Excessively tinted windows are dangerous as visibility is greatly reduced, particularly for night time driving and during times of low light.

"All automotive glass is manufactured with a tint so adding any aftermarket tint will almost always make the windows illegal."