Is It Illegal to Flash Car Headlights in New York to Warn Drivers of Cops?

A scary moment on my commute to work in the early morning hours had me thinking of the legality of flashing your headlights at other drivers.

Do You Flash Your Lights To Warn Other Drivers?

When you're driving do you flash your headlights at other drivers to warn them of dangers ahead? For instance, earlier this morning I was driving to work and there was a deer hanging out in the middle of the other side of the road.

I saw a driver approaching and frantically flashed my headlights. The driver thankfully slowed down and the deer moved out of the way.

Do you flash your headlights to get a driver to move out of your way or to warn your fellow driver that a cop is ahead? Is that even legal?

Is It Legal to Flash Your Headlights To Warn NYS Drivers of Police?

It seems like it should be illegal, right? The cops are there to make sure people who are driving dangerously are stopped, warning them seems like a bad thing. Or am I alone in that thinking?

According to research by New10 in Albany, when it comes to flashing your headlights in New York State...it's perfectly legal!

News10 explains "In some states, it used to be illegal to flash your headlights to warn other drivers about a speed trap."  They added that the American Civil Liberties Union "stepped many times across the country representing individuals concerning this subject."

Jeffrey A. Mittman, who is the executive director of the ACLU in Missouri, states "The police cannot retaliate against drivers who have done nothing wrong and are simply exercising their right to communicate with other drivers."

Things That Are Actually Illegal in New York State

Now that we know flashing your lights to warn others that a cop is ahead isn't illegal, we figured we'd fill you in on all the other wacky New York State Laws.

Some of them are real head scratchers... take a look:

Here's a little refresher of the new laws that were put into place in 2024:

And did you know there were a set of laws just for the grocery store?! The more you know...