ST. LOUIS – You might be tempted to decorate your car with Christmas lights to embrace the holiday spirit. But keep in mind: Depending on how it’s done, it might not be the safest or most legal way to celebrate.
While there are no federal laws that explicitly prohibit decorating cars with Christmas lights, using them could pose safety challenges by potentially obstructing visibility, lighting, or other essential vehicle functions, which indirectly may make it illegal .
That said, in regards to Christmas lights on cars, laws are left up to states and local municipalities.
For Missouri and Illinois, the two states of the St. Louis metropolitan area, there are also no clear-cut laws that expressly outlaw Christmas lights on cars, but violating certain conditions of both states’ driving codes through extra lighting could land one in trouble.
Missouri
According to Missouri Statute 307,100 , “Any lighted lamp or illuminating device upon a motor vehicle other than headlamps, spotlamps, front direction signals or auxiliary lamps which project a beam of light of an intensity greater than three hundred candlepower shall be so directed that no part of the beam will strike the level of the roadway.”