In which cases must the high beams of cars not be used in Vietnam?

In which cases must the high beams of cars not be used in Vietnam?

In Article 5 of Decree 100/2019/ND-CP, there are regulations on penalties imposed upon operators of cars and car-like vehicles violating traffic rules:

1. A fine ranging from VND 200,000 to VND 400,000 shall be imposed upon a vehicle operator who commits any of the following violations:

a) Failure to comply with road signs and road markings, except for violations specified in Points a, d, g, h, i and k Clause 2; Points a, d, dd, e, k, l, o, r and s Clause 3; Points b, c, d, dd and i Clause 4; Points a, c, d, dd, e, g and i Clause 5; Points a and b Clause 6; Points a and c Clause 7; Point a Clause 8 of this Article;

b) Turning without yielding to the pedestrians and wheelchairs of the disabled that cross the street at crosswalks, or without yielding to non-motorized vehicles running in the cycle lane.

c) Turning without yielding to oncoming vehicles, the pedestrians and wheelchairs of the disabled that cross the street at other positions than crosswalks;

d) Stopping or parking without signaling;

dd) Occupying part of the roadway when parking on the street without placing a warning sign as prescribed, except for the violations specified in Point c Clause 6 of this Article and parking at permissible positions;

e) No placement of signs in front of the towing vehicle and behind the towed vehicle; operating a tractor-trailer without signs as prescribed;

g) Honking from 10 pm to 5 am in urban and residential areas, except for emergency vehicles on duty as per the law;

2. A fine ranging from VND 400,000 to VND 600,000 shall be imposed upon a vehicle operator who commits any of the following violations:

a) Changing lanes where prohibited or without signaling, except for the violations specified in Point g Clause 5 of this Article;

b) Operating the vehicle at a lower speed than that of other vehicles in the same direction without moving to the right of the roadway, unless the other vehicles are running faster than the legal limit;

c) Carrying more people in the cockpit than the legal limit;

d) Failure to comply with regulations on yielding at intersections, except for the violations specified in Points m and n Clause 3 of this Article;

dd) Operating a vehicle that involves in an accident without stopping the vehicle, protecting the crash scene, or giving first aid to the victims, except for the violations specified in Point b Clause 8 of this Article;

e) Operating an emergency vehicle without conformable warning devices or using warning devices without a license issued by a competent authority or without an unexpired one;

g) Stopping, parking on the roadway outside urban areas where the sidewalk is spacious enough; stopping or parking away from the right curb where the sidewalk is narrow or there is no sidewalk; stopping, parking against the traffic direction; stopping or parking on median barriers between carriageways; parking on a slope without choking the wheels; opening doors carelessly or leaving doors unsafely open;

h) Failure to stop the vehicle close to the sidewalk on the right side, or the right wheel is more than 0.25 m away from the side walk; stopping on the tramway or bus lane; stopping right above a manhole, cable duct opening, at a fire hydrant; getting out of the driving position or turning off the engine while stopping; stopping or parking at inappropriate positions where parking space is provided; stopping or parking at the crosswalk; stopping where a “Cấm dừng xe và đỗ xe” (No stopping and parking) sign is erected, except for the violations specified in Point i Clause 4 and Point b Clause 6 of this Article;

i) Making a u-turn in a residential area against the rules;

k) Making a u-turn at pedestrian crossings, on bridges, bridge approaches, in tunnels, under overpass, except for cases in which places for u-turn are established in locations above.

3. A fine ranging from VND 800,000 to VND 1,000,000 shall be imposed upon a vehicle operator who commits any of the following violations:

a) Exceeding the speed limits by from 5 km/h to under 10 km/h;

b) Continuously honking, revving up the engine, using air horns or high beam in an urban area or residential area, except for emergency vehicles on duty;

c) Turning without slowing down or signaling (unless going along a curved segment where there is no intersection);

d) Failure to obey the regulations on stopping or parking at intersection with the railway; stopping or parking within the railway safety perimeter, except for the violations specified in Point b Clause 2, Point b Clause 3 Article 49 hereof;

dd) Stopping or parking on the left side of a one-way road, on a curved road or near the top of the slope where view is blocked, on a bridge, under an overpass, parallel to a stopping or parking vehicle, at an intersection within 05 m from the edge of the intersection, at a bus stop, in front of or within 05 m beside a gate of an organization that has car way, on a road that is wide enough for only one lane; stopping or parking in a manner that block road signs; stopping or parking at median barriers;

e) Failure to stop the vehicle close to the sidewalk on the right side, or the distance from the right wheel to the sidewalk exceeds 0.25 m; stopping on the tramway or bus lane; stopping right above a manhole, cable duct opening, at a fire hydrant; parking on the sidewalk against the law; parking where a “Cấm đỗ xe” (No parking) sign or “Cấm dừng xe và đỗ xe” (No stopping and parking) sign is erected, except for the violations specified in Point i Clause 4 and Point b Clause 6 of this Article;

g) Failure to turn on the lights or using insufficient lighting from 7 pm to 5 am or in a foggy or bad weather when visibility is short; using the full beam when facing oncoming vehicles;

h) Towing another vehicle or object (except for a trailer, semi-trailer, car, or heavy-duty vehicle that cannot run itself); operating a car pushing another vehicle or object; towing a trailer or semi-trailer and another trailer or another vehicle or object; failure to safely connect the towing and towed vehicles;

i) Carrying passengers on the towed vehicle, except for the driver;

k) Making a u-turn at a level crossing; making a u-turn at narrow section of the road, on a slope, on a curve section of the road with limited sight or at location erected with the sign “Cấm quay đầu xe” (No u-turn allowed);

l) Causing a collision with the vehicle ahead due to failure to keep a safe distance; failure to keep the safe distance in accordance with the “Cự ly tối thiểu giữa hai xe” (Safety distance) sign, except for the violations specified in Point g Clause 5 of this Article;

m) Failure to reduce speed and yield when joining the traffic from an alley or when moving from a small road to a major road;

n) Failure to yield to vehicles in the emergency lane or on the major road at an intersection;

o) Reversing the vehicle on a one-way road or a road where a “Cấm đi ngược chiều” (No entry) sign is erected, where stopping is prohibited, at a crosswalk, at an intersection with another road or railway, where view is blocked; reversing the vehicle without observation or without signals; except for cases specified in Point a Clause 8 of this Article;

p) Failure to fasten seat belt while operating the vehicle;

q) Carrying passengers who fail to fasten the seat belts (if available) while the vehicle is running;

r) Failure to turn on low beam while operating the vehicle in a road tunnel;

s) Operating the vehicle at a lower speed than the lowest permissible speed.

4. A fine ranging from VND 1,000,000 to VND 2,000,000 shall be imposed upon a vehicle operator who commits any of the following violations:

a) Using a cell phone with hands while operating the vehicle on public roads;

b) Entering prohibited areas, roads erected with signs prohibiting entry of operated vehicles, except for violations specified in Point c Clause 5, Point a Clause 8 of this Article and emergency vehicles on missions;

c) Failure to stop vehicle ineligible for free-flow tolling from entering lanes for free-flow tolling at toll roads;

d) Stopping or parking on the left of one-way street or on the left (along direction of motion) of dual carriageway; on curve section of the road or near top of slopes where vision is obstructed; on bridges, under overpass, parallel with another parking or stopping vehicle, except for violations specified in Point b Clause 6 of this Article;

dd) Stopping, parking, making a u-turn against the rules and thus causing traffic congestion;

e) Using warning devices for emergency vehicles on a non-emergency vehicle;

g) Failure to take safety measures when the vehicle breaks down at an intersection with a railway;

h) Failure to yield overtaking vehicles provided safety conditions are satisfied;

i) Backing up or making a u-turn in road tunnels; stopping, parking or overtaking in road tunnels where such activities are not permitted.

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Thus, according to the above regulations in Vietnam, when operating a car, the driver must not use high beams in cases in urban areas, in densely populated areas, when avoiding vehicles going in the opposite direction.

Best Regards!