When Honking Your Horn Can Land You a Ticket
When Honking Your Horn Can Land You a Ticket – blog submitted by ticketbust.com, helping drivers contest and dismiss their traffic tickets.
Did you know that you can get a ticket for using your horn? That’s right; the California Vehicle Code prohibits “unnecessary” horn use. Here’s what California Vehicle Code Section 27001 says about it:
- Subdivision (a), “The driver of a motor vehicle when reasonably necessary to insure safe operation shall give audible warning with his horn.”
- Subdivision (b), “The horn shall not otherwise be used, except as a theft alarm system which operates as specified in Article 13 (commencing with Section 28085) of this chapter.”
So when should and when should it not be used. Here are some tips from the Department of Motor Vehicles Driver Handbook, Safe Driving Practices:
When to Use Your Horn:
- Only when necessary, to avoid collisions.
- To try to get “eye contact” with other drivers. You may tap your horn to alert another driver who might turn in front of you and cause a collision.
- On narrow mountain roads, where you cannot see at least 200 feet ahead of your vehicle.
When You Should Not Use Your Horn:
- If a driver or bicyclist is going slowly, and you want him or her to drive faster or get out of your way. The driver or bicyclist may not be able to safely go faster, due to illness, being lost, intoxication, or having mechanical problems with the vehicle.
- To alert other drivers that they made a mistake. Your honking may cause them to make more mistakes or to become angry and retaliate.
- Because you may be angry or upset.
- To honk at pedestrians, bicyclists, or motorcyclists unless necessary to avoid a collision. Remember that your horn sounds much louder outside a vehicle.
The DMV also cautions that, honking your horn may startle other drivers and that it is generally safer to slow down or stop, instead of honking your horn. – blog submitted by ticketbust.com, helping drivers contest and dismiss their traffic tickets.
If you get cited for a red light photo ticket, contact us at www.TicketBust.com or call us at (800) 850-8038. For Spanish, please visit www.Combatesuticket.com or call (818) 584-3689. For more information on how TicketBust.com can help to beat your cell phone ticket, visit www.fightcellphonetickets.com or call (800) 850-8038.
This blog was written to provide information related to traffic tickets in California, is based on opinion only, is not legal advice, and is for informational purposes only.
Leave a comment
How to Beat Traffic Tickets 
What about UPS trucks driving in neighborhoods especially in retirement communities where people are old and need to sleep sometime during the day. We have UPS drivers who honk all day driving to our neighborhoods shouldn’t it be against the law?
I am always frustrated when drivers are moving well under the the posted speed limit… it is not unusual to encounter one or two drivers a day on the freeway or the surface streets going 10 – 15 miles under the speed limit and much much slower than everyone in traffic! A motorcycle cop and I had an exchange of words today as a man was driving in undetermined lanes with no signal about 12 miles an hour in a 40 MPH zone… than eventually maneuvered a left turn s l o w l y into a gas station…. I was honking…
Hello Roger . As a former UPS driver , our methods require us to tap the horn as we pull up to a delivery stop , It gets the attention of the customer receiving a package coming to their front door. Many vehicles servicing their communities have certain sounds emitting from them ( ups , post office , trash trucks , police and fire and rescue ) so as to alert people of their presence, mainly for safely reasons . Many parents will secure children from running into the street when they hear these sounds , I understand it can be annoying to we woken up by a horn or beeping sounds , but unfortunately , it comes with the territory living in a neighborhood community . Most communities have a 10 PM noise curfew. Hope that helps .