Pennsylvania § 4524 - Windshield obstructions and wipers.

§ 4524. Windshield obstructions and wipers.

(a) Obstruction on front windshield.--No person shall drive any motor vehicle with any sign, poster or other nontransparent material upon the front windshield which materially obstructs, obscures or impairs the driver's clear view of the highway or any intersecting highway except an inspection certificate, sticker identification sign on a mass transit vehicle or other officially required sticker and no person shall drive any motor vehicle with any ice or snow on the front windshield which materially obstructs, obscures or impairs the driver's clear view of the highway or any intersecting highway.

(b) Obstruction on side and rear windows.--No person shall drive a motor vehicle with any sign, poster or other nontransparent material, including ice or snow, upon the side wings or side or rear windows of the vehicle which materially obstructs, obscures or impairs the driver's clear view of the highway or any intersecting highway. The placement of a registration permit upon the side or rear window of a vehicle shall not be considered a material obstruction.

(c) Other obstruction.--No person shall drive any motor vehicle with any object or material hung from the inside rearview mirror or otherwise hung, placed or attached in such a position as to materially obstruct, obscure or impair the driver's vision through the front windshield or any manner as to constitute a safety hazard.

(d) Windshield wiper systems.--The windshield on every motor vehicle other than a motorcycle or special mobile equipment shall be equipped with a wiper system capable of cleaning rain, snow or other moisture from the windshield, and so constructed as to be controlled or operated by the driver of the vehicle.

(e) Sun screening and other materials prohibited.--

(1) No person shall drive any motor vehicle with any sun screening device or other material which does not permit a person to see or view the inside of the vehicle through the windshield, side wing or side window of the vehicle.

(2) This subsection does not apply to:

(i) A vehicle which is equipped with tinted windows of the type and specification that were installed by the manufacturer of the vehicle or to any hearse, ambulance, government vehicle or any other vehicle for which a currently valid certificate of exemption has been issued in accordance with regulations adopted by the department.

(ii) A vehicle which is equipped with tinted windows, sun screening devices or other materials which comply with all applicable Federal regulations and for which a currently valid certificate of exemption for medical reasons has been issued in accordance with regulations adopted by the department.

(3) A certificate of exemption shall be issued by the department for a vehicle which is:

(i) Registered in this Commonwealth on the effective date of this subsection and is equipped with a sun screening device or other material prohibited under paragraph (1) on the effective date.

(ii) Equipped with tinted windows, sun screening devices or other materials for a physical condition that makes it necessary to equip the motor vehicle with sun screening material which would be of a light transmittance or luminous reflectance in violation of this section.

(A) A certificate of exemption for medical reasons shall be issued only if the owner or registrant of the vehicle, or a person residing in the household of the owner or registrant who regularly drives or is driven in the vehicle, suffers from a physical condition determined by the department, in consultation with the Medical Advisory Board, to justify the exemption.

(B) Any person requesting an exemption for medical reasons shall have his physical condition certified to the department by a licensed physician or optometrist.

(4) A certificate of exemption issued under this subsection shall be carried in the vehicle and displayed on request of a police officer.

(5) Upon the sale or transfer of the vehicle to any person who does not qualify under paragraph (2)(ii), the exemption shall be null and void. Prior to the sale or transfer of an exempt vehicle, it shall be the sole responsibility of the owner or seller of a formerly exempt vehicle to remove all sun screening or other materials from the vehicle. At the time of the sale or transfer of a formerly exempt vehicle, the owner shall remove and destroy the certificate of exemption for physical reasons and provide the purchaser with a notarized statement setting forth the name and address of the owner or seller, the vehicle identification number, year and model, and the business entity and process used to remove the sun screening or other material.

(f) Exception.--This section does not apply to mobile video recording equipment installed in a vehicle exclusively used for official police purposes.

(Feb. 15, 1980, P.L.12, No.8, eff. imd.; Dec. 8, 1982, P.L.842, No.234, eff. Apr. 1, 1983; July 10, 1984, P.L.679, No.146, eff. 60 days; Nov. 21, 1990, P.L.556, No.137, eff. 180 days; June 22, 2001, P.L.559, No.37, eff. 60 days; June 11, 2002, P.L.370, No.53, eff. imd.)

2002 Amendment. Act 53 added subsec. (f). Section 3 of Act 53 provided that subsec. (f) shall apply upon the enactment of a statute providing for the intercepting and recording of oral communications under 18 Pa.C.S. § 5704. Act 52 of 2002, effective June 11, 2002, added provisions relating to the intercepting and recording of oral communications under 18 Pa.C.S. § 5704.

2001 Amendment. Act 37 amended subsec. (b).

1990 Amendment. Act 137 amended subsec. (e).

Cross References. Section 4524 is referred to in section 8117 of Title 74 (Transportation).