Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes
75 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 4524
§ 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).
Retranscribed by: Todd L. Sherman/KB4MHH
Last updated: May 11, 2012.
Mobile Scanner & RADAR-Detector Laws In The U.S.
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