Federal regulators say they will rewrite vehicle lighting rules in response to a growing number of complaints about glaring LED headlights. Nothing has been banned, and no new limits have been proposed.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced this week that it will consult industry stakeholders and safety advocates on how modern headlight technology may be adding to glare. The agency said it will examine ways to improve LEDs, dusk sensors, and automatic high beams.

NHTSA Administrator Jonathan Morrison said current standards don’t allow automakers to deploy the latest safety-improving lighting technologies, and the review aims to modernize them. In other words, the same outdated rulebook may be limiting the fixes drivers are asking for. Brightness standards have not changed since 1997. In 2022, NHTSA approved a rule allowing carmakers to install systems that dim the parts of a headlight beam aimed at other vehicles.

The agency is using a process called negotiated rulemaking. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy will appoint up to 18 participants from lighting manufacturers, motor vehicle equipment associations, safety organizations, research institutions and engineering groups.

Most new cars now come with LED headlights, which are far brighter than the halogen bulbs they replaced, according to Reuters. Regulators also point to the growing popularity of taller SUVs and trucks as a possible factor in the complaints.

The safety data are more modest than the complaints. According to Reuters, headlights are blamed for only a small number of nighttime crashes. A 2025 Insurance Institute for Highway Safety study found glare cited in one or two of every 1,000 nighttime crashes from 2015 through 2023. Drivers older than 70 appear to be most affected.

NHTSA has not said when it expects to propose new rules.

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