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May 01, 2023

Lighting requirements for agricultural tractors and trailers

09 May 2023 Having lights that are obscured or not working, or using work lights

09 May 2023

Having lights that are obscured or not working, or using work lights on the road, can cause accidents. We've put together guidance on the what the laws says on lighting requirements for tractors and trailers to help you stay safe on the road.

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Tractors should have:

Vehicles built after 1986 and which travel over 15mph require dipped headlights, indicators and hazard warning lights.

Vehicles built after 1986 and which travel over 25mph need two red stop lamps.

Higher specification tractors known as Fast Tractors are permitted to travel at a maximum speed of 40mph. Such tractors are built to a higher construction specification including front and rear axle suspension and a braking efficiency of at least 50%.

They must have brake lamps, dipped beam headlamps, main beam headlamps, direction indicators, hazard warning signals and rear fog lamps.

There are also regulations covering the height of the lamps and reflectors from the ground, the distance from the side of the vehicle, separation distances and dimensions of lamps.

These will normally have been taken into consideration by the tractor manufacturer, but if you are unsure or you have modified the vehicle in some way or you need to fit lights to compensate for covered or obscured lights on the towing vehicle you can call NFU CallFirst on 0370 845 8458.

Amber beacons are required on any vehicle and trailers if they cannot exceed 25mph and are driven on an unrestricted dual carriageway.

Beacons must be capable of emitting a flashing or rotating beam of light throughout 360 degrees and every warning beacon must be fitted so that the centre of the lamp is not less than 1.2m above the ground.

The light shown by the beacon must be visible from any point at a reasonable distance from the vehicle or trailer drawn by it. This means it must be visible from the front, back and sides of a tractor or trailer.

Under no circumstances must a unidirectional light be fitted that could be mistaken for an indicator light.

Trailers need to have red rear position lights (tail lights), they should also have two red rear reflectors and a number plate light.

The trailer should also have indicator lights unless the trailer was built before 1 October 1990.

There isn't a requirement to have stop lamps (brake lights) fitted on trailers but these should be fitted if obligatory stop lamps on the tractor are obscured.

It is strongly recommended to have stop lamps and indicators fitted to the trailer and have them working regardless of the legal requirements. There are many accidents each year with drivers overtaking tractors failing to indicate when a trailer is about to turn right.

The trailer should have front position lights fitted if the trailer is more than 1.6 metres wide or is less than 2.3 metres in length and first used before 1 October 1985.

If the trailer is more than 5 metres long you should have side retro reflectors every 3 metres.

Motor vehicles should not be left standing on the road at any time between sunset and sunrise unless:

Tractors and trailers must face the direction of the flow of traffic and all obligatory lights (including front and rear position lamps and rear registration lamp) have to be lit when parked between sunset and sunrise. If the trailers are parked without the tractor they must have front and rear position lamps fitted and lit at all times between the hours of sunset and sunrise.

Transport rules – coroner's beacon warning

Once you have submitted your query someone from NFU CallFirst will contact you. If needed, your query will then be passed to the appropriate NFU policy team.

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