Drivers have been urged to take note of an important Highway Code rule regarding lights during bad weather.
'Daytime running lights' or DRLs are required for all new cars in the UK. These are activated automatically as soon as the car is switched on and they improve visibility during the day in a bid to reduce road accidents.
In most cases, they only come on at the front of your car rather than the back - but drivers could be hit with a £1,000 fine if they only rely on the DRLs instead of dipped headlights, Somerset Live reports.
If you're caught by the police without your proper headlights on and rely only on your DRLs, you could face a hefty penalty.
According to the Highway Code, you must activate these when visibility is "seriously reduced" either through light conditions, rain or fog - and generally when you can’t see for more than 100 metres (328 feet).
Graham Conway, managing director at Select Car Leasing, says: "DRLs have been helping to improve road safety for more than a decade now. But I'd urge motorists to understand precisely how they work and what job they're supposed to do.
"Here at Select, we've heard countless reports of people failing to illuminate their headlights and taillights while driving in poor visibility in recent weeks, and there's a fear motorists might mistakenly believe that their DRLs are sufficient in those sorts of conditions. They're not!
Graham explained that in order to be seen by other cars on the road, you need to have your headlights on.
He added: "We had a rash of reports during last week's rain storms, with drivers taking to spray-engulfed motorways with just their DRLs lit - which is obviously incredibly dangerous. And it would clearly be extremely foolish to rely on DRLs when the sun goes down, too."
"The requirement in law is for every vehicle to have working headlamps, rear lamps, registration plates lamps and side marker lamps," added Dominic Smith, director at Patterson Law, the UK's largest road traffic offence specialist.
He continued: "All such lamps must be unobscured and lit during the hours of darkness and during seriously reduced visibility. Hours of darkness are defined as between sunset and sunrise.
"'Seriously reduced visibility' is not defined, but would be a question of fact. Examples could include fog, snow, heavy rain or spray conditions and badly overcast weather, just to name a few."
He explained that failure to have working lamps on your car could result in a £1,000 fine if caught by police - and this includes if you've only got the front lights on and not the back.
And if no lights are on and the conditions are severe enough that the police think it poses a danger to other road users, then drivers could fall under the offence of dangerous driving and may face a year-long disqualification.
Don't miss the latest news from around Scotland and beyond. Sign up to our daily newsletter here.
