Car shades: Summer in India is a long and treacherous affair. Driving in extreme heat is an additional challenge. In extreme heat, the car ac gives up and fails to cool the interiors as expected. To support the airconditioning, many car owners install car shades to keep the sun rays away. 

However, there are some legal angles associated with the use of such car shades and how ignoring the government guidelines can attract a fine. 

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Government guidelines related to car shades

According to the Central Motor Vehicle rules 1989, 50 percent of visibility on the side glasses is allowed in the vehicles. The interiors of the car must be visible. This was passed to discourage illegal activities to be conducted from inside the vehicles. 

The visibility at the front and rear glass of the car must have at least 70 percent visibility. These guidelines are passed by the government for the welfare of the people. 

In 2012, a ruling was passed by the Supreme Court, that forbade the use of tinted glass and any other objects that obstructed the visibility of the inside of the vehicle. The ruling also covered the use of sun films and any such pasting. 

The only exception, according to this ruling is, when the car is designed and manufactured with tinted glass, with all due permission. Also, in some cases, when the vehicle users have special needs to use a car shade, then permission is granted by the home ministry and related authorities. 

Bottomline regarding the use of car shades

It is common to see traffic police personnel issuing challans to users of car shades and sunshade films. Still many car owners use these shades and somehow escape the fine.

The question arises if the use of car shades is not allowed then why are they commonly available in the market and online stores?

The bottom line is that these car shades can be deployed when the car is parked and not being driven around. The car shade can be used to block the sun’s rays when the car is parked in sunlight. Once the car is required to be driven around, these shades must be removed.

This way you can have the best of both worlds! 

Also read: 5 sustainable sunglasses to make you look cool