The European Fee has questioned whether or not Spain’s new and obligatory V-16 emergency lights breach EU legislation, one other blow for the controversial system which 28 million drivers have been instructed to purchase for round €50 every.
Spain’s Basic Directorate of Site visitors (DGT) made it obligatory for all drivers in Spain to have V-16 emergency lights initially of 2026 as a substitute for the usual warning triangles, then asserting there can be a grace interval with out fines for many who hadn’t purchased the system but.
READ ALSO: Spain will not effective drivers with out V-16 mild for ‘cheap’ period of time
Nonetheless, European establishments have warned that the V-16 mild might not adjust to the EU directive on emergency signalling tools and are even contemplating vetoing the brand new rules for failing to adjust to EU legislation.
The beacon meant to be a safer choice than warning triangles as drivers do not need to get out of their autos and face oncoming site visitors when their automobiles have a breakdown, though there have been many doubts forged over it is effectiveness.
The V-16 system is a small yellow or orange LED mild that’s outfitted with geolocation connectivity and is able to emitting a high-intensity 360º mild intermittently and repeatedly for half-hour.
The problem is that Spain requires that the V-16 mild features a geolocation system and connectivity with the DGT 3.0 platform.
Based on varied stories printed in latest days, the EU believes that this requirement may violate the precept of free motion of products and EU rules.
Brussels is reportedly learning the compatibility of the brand new Spanish guidelines with EU legislation, which opens the door to a process that would power a overview and even the elimination of the requirement.
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This might be a blow to thousands and thousands of drivers throughout Spain who already bought the sunshine for round €50 when it grew to become obligatory and have had it of their autos for nearly two months already.
The European Fee has said that the Spanish Authorities didn’t notify the European Union of the continued implementation of the V-16 and the DGT’s 3.0 geolocation platform, as required by European laws.
The organisation’s govt vice-president Stéphane Séjourné defined that “the Spanish Royal Decrees haven’t been notified in line with the process of Directive (EU) 2015/1535.”
This regulation ensures that “EU nations should inform the European Fee of any draft technical regulation earlier than its adoption,” and from the date of notification, a three-month established order interval is established, throughout which the member state – on this case Spain – should chorus from adopting the technical regulation in query, permitting the Fee itself and different nations to look at the proposed textual content and reply.
READ ALSO: Spain’s V16 mild: All the pieces drivers have to know
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The V-16 mild permits the DGT to know precisely the place the breakdown or accident occurred. When switched on, data is shipped each 100 seconds about your location, till it’s deactivated.
Spain is the one EU nation to have made such a tool obligatory for drivers.
If Brussels guidelines that they violate EU rules, the federal government might be compelled to amend the foundations. This is able to have an effect on each drivers who’ve already bought the system and producers who’ve tailored their manufacturing strains.
Spain’s Inside Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska is scheduled to seem earlier than the Spanish Congress on Wednesday February twenty fifth to report on the complicated implementation of the V-16 emergency signalling beacon in Spain.
Marlaska has earlier defended the V-16 mild by stating that 25 individuals die every year in Spain on account of leaving their autos to position down emergency warning triangles.
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Spanish shopper watchdog Facua have been among the many greatest critics of the Spanish authorities for not correctly informing the nation’s 28 million drivers about which V-16 mild to purchase, main lots of them to waste cash on beacons they purchased on-line which are not formally recognised by the DGT.
In late 2025, Spain’s Civil Guard Police additionally criticised their effectiveness. They claimed that they’re not helpful on roads with a excessive variety of bends as oncoming drivers do not get the pre-warning {that a} triangle gives.
Additionally they pressured that the V-16 lights are usually not shiny or seen sufficient throughout daytime hours, rendering them nearly ineffective.
Moreover, there are articles within the Spanish press citing the inventors of this system, who apparently stated that they have been meant just for individuals with bodily disabilities, not for them to be obligatory for the whole inhabitants.
