7 Things Alabama Drivers Can Get Ticketed for That Feel Completely Legal
You switch on the wipers when the rain picks up and figure that’s all you need to do.
But Alabama law requires lit headlights anytime your wipers are in use because of rain, sleet or snow.
These are the things Alabama drivers can get ticketed for that feel completely legal.
Note: This is general information, not legal advice. Traffic laws and fines are subject to change, so confirm the current requirements with the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA).
1. Flicking a Cigarette Butt
A cigarette butt flicked out your car window is litter under Alabama’s traffic code, which bars throwing litter from a car onto or beside a highway.
The same section names cigarettes and cigars outright and lets an officer write you a ticket on a uniform traffic citation.
Criminal littering is a Class B misdemeanor, and a first conviction brings a fine of up to $500.
Cigarettes and cigars add an extra fine of up to $500 per violation.
Repeat convictions bring either a fine of up to $1,000 plus up to 100 hours of litter pickup, or a fine of $2,000 to $3,000.
2. Dark Window Tint
Dark window tint on a passenger car is illegal in Alabama once it lets less than 32 percent of light through the side and rear windows.
You can’t drive with mirrored film that reflects more than 20 percent of light.
On your windshield, only the upper six inches may carry tint.
Many drivers assume a professional shop wouldn’t install film that goes too dark.
The law bars shops from installing film past those limits, but it still bars you from driving with it.
A first conviction under the tint law carries a fine of up to $100, up to 10 days in jail, or both.
The Fine Print on the Tint Rule
Alabama’s tint rule builds in a measurement tolerance of at least 3 percent.
For side and rear windows, the same section requires a light-meter reading before you can be charged.
An officer has to be equipped with that meter before stopping you.
On a multi-purpose passenger vehicle, the 32 percent limit covers only the front seat windows, with darker tint allowed behind the driver as the manufacturer permits under federal law.
The law exempts factory-tinted glass and vehicles not registered in Alabama.
If a medical condition requires you to be shielded from direct sunlight, you can apply to ALEA for an exemption backed by a statement from an Alabama physician.
If ALEA approves it, you get a decal that goes on the windshield of each vehicle you operate.
3. Wipers On, Headlights Off
A rainy drive can turn into a traffic stop when your wipers are running and your headlights are off.
Alabama’s lighting law requires lit headlights anytime your windshield wipers are in use because of rain, sleet or snow.
The rule doesn’t apply when your wipers run only now and then for misting rain, sleet or snow.
The same law requires lit headlights from half an hour after sunset to half an hour before sunrise.
Florence police have reminded drivers that it’s state law to turn on your headlights when your wipers are in use.
If you skip them, an officer can pull you over and write you a ticket.
4. Vaping With Kids in the Car
Smoking or vaping with a child 14 or younger in your car has been illegal in Alabama since Aug. 1, 2023, whether the car is moving or parked.
A lot of drivers figure a cracked window makes it okay.
It doesn’t.
The law applies whether your windows are up or down.
A violation carries a fine of up to $100.
It’s a secondary offense, so you can be ticketed for it only after an officer stops you for another violation.
Psst! How much do you know about driving in Alabama? Take our quiz and see if you can ace it.
Quiz
Alabama Road Rules IQ
Answer nine questions on Alabama’s rules of the road. We bet you can’t get them all right. Prove us wrong?
Under Alabama law, you can drive over a fire department’s unprotected hose only with whose consent?
5. A Passenger's Open Container
A passenger's open container can get you, the driver, ticketed under Alabama's open container law.
The law bars passengers, as well as the driver, from having alcohol in an open container in a vehicle's passenger area on a public highway.
A container counts as open once it's no longer in the manufacturer's sealed condition, so a half-finished beer qualifies.
A drink in a trunk, luggage compartment, truck bed or cargo compartment is exempt.
You're exempt as the driver only if you don't know about an open container in the passenger area and can't reach it.
The fine is capped at $25, with no court costs added.
A conviction isn't a moving violation, so it adds no points to your license.
6. Passing a Church Bus
Alabama's law on passing a stopped bus covers a church bus the same way it covers a school bus.
A first conviction brings a fine of $150 to $300.
A second conviction adds at least 100 hours of community service and a 30-day license suspension, while a third means at least 200 hours and a 90-day suspension.
If you meet or overtake either bus while its visual signal is operating, you have to come to a complete stop before you reach it.
You stay put until the bus moves again or its signals shut off.
On a divided highway with at least two lanes each way, you don't have to stop for a bus stopped on the opposite side.
7. Parking Against Traffic
Parking against traffic on a two-way street breaks Alabama's parking rules.
Your right-hand wheels have to sit parallel to the right curb and within 18 inches of it.
That leaves you facing the same direction as the traffic in the lane beside you.
Demopolis police have warned downtown drivers that cars parked against the flow of traffic can draw a citation.
The code bars parking within 20 feet of a crosswalk at an intersection and within 15 feet of a fire hydrant.
State law makes breaking any of these rules a misdemeanor, with a fine of up to $100 for a first conviction.
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