While you can drive with a broken headlight during the day indefinitely, it is not always safe to do so—and you will not be able to pass a vehicle inspection until you repair the damaged parts.
A broken headlight will not affect your car’s engine or its ability to carry you down the road. However, it is unsafe to drive with a bad headlight during some weather conditions, like rain or fog. And the police might pull you over and issue a fix-it ticket
. Because of these reasons, you should prioritize fixing your headlight as soon as possible. And fortunately, we put together this convenient car repair
guide to help you understand everything you need to know about driving with a broken headlight during the day. 
4.7/5 rating on the App Store | Trusted by 5+ million customers and 7 million cars4.7/5 app rating | Trusted by 5M+ drivers Is it safe to drive with a broken headlight during the day?
It is generally safe to drive with a broken headlight during the day—however, that’s only under ideal weather conditions. It can quickly become unsafe to drive with a broken headlight during the day if there’s fog, rain, snow, or other inclement conditions.
The majority of U.S. states legally require cars to have two functioning headlights in use between sunset and sunrise. And some states have laws requiring the daytime use of headlights during rain and other weather events or on certain roads. Driving without your headlights—or with only one functioning headlight—in these areas puts you at risk of being pulled over by the police and receiving a ticket.
Even outside of these areas, you might be pulled over by the police if your headlight is visibly damaged. If that happens, you’ll likely receive a fix-it ticket instructing you to repair the damaged light and obligating you to pay a court fee.
The bottom line is that even though you can probably get away with driving with a broken headlight during the day, it can be unsafe to do so, and you might end up receiving a fix-it ticket.
How long can you go without replacing your headlights?
You can generally expect the headlight bulbs in your car to last between 2,000 and 3,000 hours, which typically translates to around 7-10 years of use.
However, headlights can and do fail before reaching that age. Other factors, like the quality of the bulbs and your driving habits, play a role in how often you’ll need to replace your headlights. And, of course, if you’re involved in a crash or accident that damages your vehicle’s front end, there’s a good chance you’ll need to replace not only your light bulbs but the headlight housing and lens as well.
Can a bad headlight cause further vehicle damage?
Generally speaking, a bad headlight bulb will not directly cause further damage to your car. However, if you drive with a bad headlight—especially at night or during adverse weather conditions—you run the risk of getting into a severe accident, which most likely will cause extensive vehicle damage.
Furthermore, if, in addition to a bad bulb, your headlight lens or housing is broken, you could experience further vehicle damage due to moisture or debris entering the light casing, which can lead to damage to wiring connections and electrical components.
How to tell if your headlight is broken
You’ll typically know you have a bad headlight when you try driving at night and notice half the road appears much darker than normal. However, if you’re driving on a well-lit highway or your bulbs are only starting to fail, look out for these signs that you need to replace your headlights:
The lights are flickering. Flickering headlights are a good indicator that you’ll need to replace the bulbs soon, but they can also signify electrical issues unrelated to the light bulbs’ condition.
One headlight is out. If one headlight is completely out, you’ll need to replace that bulb at the minimum. However, it is recommended to replace your car’s light bulbs in pairs because when one fails, the other usually follows shortly thereafter.
How much does a headlight replacement cost?
The exact cost to replace the headlight bulbs in your car will depend on your location and the type of bulbs your vehicle needs. However, you can generally expect a simple headlight bulb replacement to cost between $115 and $140.
On the other hand, if you need an entire headlight housing replacement, the price will climb significantly. And you can expect the price to fall somewhere between $250 and $1,000.
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