When should you lower your high beams?

Lowering your high beams is crucial for ensuring safety on the road and for maintaining the comfort of other drivers. The correct choice indicates that you should dim your high beams 500 feet from an oncoming vehicle and 200 feet from a vehicle that you are following.

This guideline is based on the principle of ensuring visibility while not blinding other drivers. High beams are designed to illuminate the road ahead farther than low beams, but they can create dangerous glare for oncoming traffic and for vehicles traveling in the same direction. By lowering your high beams within these specified distances, you not only prioritize safety but also adhere to traffic laws designed to minimize hazards.

Other options present either distances that are too great or don't account for the situation's specifics. For example, reducing high beams too far away from an oncoming vehicle could lead to reduced visibility for your own driving, while only dimming in urban areas doesn't take into account rural or suburban roads where high beams are often necessary for safe driving.