More Rain?! Remember Massachusetts, It’s Illegal to Do This While Driving in the Rain

Massachusetts residents are known for many things and more often than not their reputation proceeds them. Loud, aggressive, and sometimes aggressive are three adjectives that are often mentioned when describing a stereotypical Massachusetts resident, and while that's certainly not the case for everyone, there are some of us who fall into those categories, especially when it comes to our driving.

Massachusetts drivers may carry a certain reputation, however, it's not exactly easy to get a drives license in the Bay State. A recent study reports that the Massachusetts driver's test is one of the hardest to pass in the nation. The second hardest in fact. There are a lot of rules on the road to remember, and some of us don't even know half of them.

Since the majority of Western Massachusetts has seen nothing but rain, rain, and more rain, it serves as a good reminder to drivers.

For the past eight years, in Massachusetts, it's required of drivers to turn on their headlights, when the vehicle's windshield wipers are deemed needed. Furthermore, Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 85 Section 15 also states that headlights should be in use for a half-hour before sunrise and a half-hour after sunset or when visibility is under 500 feet. In short, it's illegal to drive in Massachusetts in the rain, without your headlights on. If your wipers are on, your headlights better be too.

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When the law was originally passed in April of 2015 the new 'Lights On, Wipers On"  would not only earn you a ticket, but it was also a surchargeable offense, meaning your insurance could go up because of it. Shortly after the original law was passed, the Massachusetts Senate voted to remove the insurance surcharges related to violations, but it will still earn you a fine.