Ciarán Ahern (Dublin South West, Labour)
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289. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his views on the UK's review of the brightness and hue of modern LED headlights and associated safety concerns; if he will consider conducting a similar review in respect of vehicles on Irish roads; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [61298/25]

Seán Canney (Galway East, Independent)
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Light Emitting Diode (LED) headlights and High Intensity Discharge (HID) headlights are known to provide greater brightness, improved colour rendering, increased efficiencies and, in the case of LED in particular, longer performance life.

The use of LED and HID headlights in vehicles across the EU is regulated by the European type-approval system under Regulation (EU) 2018/858, transposed by SI 556/2020 - European Union (Road Vehicles: Type-Approval and Market Surveillance) Regulations 2020. This system establishes the technical and safety standards required to place a vehicle or a vehicle component on the market and enter it into service within any EU Member State. To acquire type-approval, the headlight components and technology must meet specific safety standards. Accordingly, if a headlight has been type-approved and entered into service it is considered safe to use within the EU.

During roadworthiness testing (NCT and CVRT), the lighting system in a vehicle is tested to ensure it is in full working order and correctly aligned for the safe performance of the vehicle. Factors which can contribute headlamp glare include misaligned aim, dirty or damaged headlamps or the use of incorrect bulbs.

As the standards for these lights are regulated for at EU level, the Department currently has no plans to review their use in the State.