ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — On a cold winter morning, the last thing anyone wants to do is take the extra five to 10 minutes to brush snow and ice off their freezing cold car. Beyond brushing off your car for visibility and safety reasons, is it illegal to drive with snow and ice on your car?
In short, there is no law against driving with snow and ice on your car. According to the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), there is no specific law that establishes fines for uncleared snow or ice. However, under reckless driving law 1212, an argument can be made that ice falling onto another car could fall under that. The law states:
“Reckless driving shall mean driving or using any motor vehicle, motorcycle or any other vehicle propelled by any power other than muscular power or any appliance or accessory thereof in a manner which unreasonably interferes with the free and proper use of the public highway, or unreasonably endangers users of the public highway. Reckless driving is prohibited. Every person violating this provision shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.”
So, while there is no specific law for clearing snow and ice off your car, it is better to be safe than sorry. Not only for the safety of yourself and others, but you are also avoiding the chance of a possible reckless driving charge as well.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
