In fog, which headlights should you use?

• A. Low-beam headlights; avoid high beams.
• B. High-beam headlights for best visibility.
• C. Use hazard lights instead.
• D. Turn off headlights.

Answer: (A)

Fog scatters light, so you want lighting that keeps illumination focused on the road ahead without creating glare. Low-beam headlights do this best in fog: they illuminate the road just in front of you and make your vehicle visible to others without bouncing back off the moisture and blinding you. High-beam headlights, by contrast, reflect off fog droplets and create a bright, blinding glare that actually reduces visibility for you and for drivers coming toward you. Hazard lights aren’t meant for normal driving in fog because they don’t light the road ahead and can confuse following drivers; turning off headlights makes you nearly invisible to others, which is unsafe. If your car has fog lights, they can be used to supplement low beams, but the standard practice in fog is to use low beams.