Only in these situations are you allowed to honk or blink your light | Car

Flashing your lights is only allowed in the Netherlands ‘to avert imminent danger’. Only in dangerous situations can you use your high beam to warn people. What exactly falls under this is not precisely defined in the law, but the scope is clear.

You are therefore not allowed to do it to greet people, to warn that you are going to overtake or as a warning to other road users for, for example, a radar check. Blinking to attract attention is not allowed, even if someone is blocking the road or is not aware that the traffic light has changed to green. If you blink your lights incorrectly, you even risk a fine of 150 euros.

What is allowed, for example, is to warn an oncoming vehicle with a light signal because he or she has forgotten to switch on the lighting when it is dark. You may also warn an oncoming vehicle with light signals to dim its main light. And when a traffic jam suddenly appears, you can also warn the traffic behind by switching on your hazard lights.

All these rules also apply to the horn. So you are not allowed to honk to celebrate a football team’s victory, as a greeting when driving away after a visit to friends or if someone blocks the road and does not realize this. You are allowed to honk, for example, if a truck suddenly merges into your lane, or if a car in front of you accidentally rolls backwards.

“Unfortunately, honking motorists are sometimes fined for making unnecessary noise,” says a spokesperson for the website Traffic fines. “In that case, it is worth appealing, because a fine for incorrectly using the horn costs 95 euros instead of 260 euros.”