Europe has decided that as from 7 February 2011 new types of passenger cars and delivery vans shall only be approved when fitted with lights that automatically switch on when the car is started. As from 7 August 2012 this also applies to new types of lorries and buses in order to receive a registration number. Using daytime running lights (DRL) increases the visibility and recognizability of road users and thus reduces the risk of a crash.
Research has shown that road users who do not use headlights during the daytime, pedestrians and cyclists, can also benefit from Daytime running lights . If nearly every driver had their headlights on during the daytime, close to 30 road deaths and 500 serious road injuries per year could be saved in the Netherlands. Daytime running lights ‘s negative consequences, which are a higher fuel consumption and – consequently – larger CO2 emissions, are limited considerably by using energy-efficient lamps.