It’s Illegal to Drive From CT to NY With a Mask Hanging From Your Rearview Mirror

It's become a sign of the times today. A mask is something that everyone carries around with them, but is it OK to hang it from your cars rearview mirror?

I'm sure you've seen a lot of people on the road with masks hanging from their cars rearview mirror. It's taken the place of the graduation tassel, the fuzzy dice, or air freshener, but is it against the law to have it hanging there?

Here in Connecticut, thanks to a law passed ten years ago, you are actually allowed to have something hanging from that rearview mirror. Here's a look at the verbiage from an August 2010 archived article from boston.com.

Hanging an object from a car's rearview mirror is acceptable under Connecticut law as long as it doesn't distract the driver or impede the view, a divided state Supreme Court ruled in a recent decision.

If you're driving from Connecticut into New York, you better take that mask down. According to traffictickets.com, it's illegal to have anything hanging from your cars rearview mirror in the Empire State.

Under VTL 1213 Driver’s View Obstructed, any time a person can’t see out of the windshield, side view or rearview mirrors, he/she can get hit with a summons for having an obstructed view.

If you do get pulled over for this particular violation, the fines can sting a bit:

A ticket for an obstructed view means facing a fine of up to $150 with an NYS surcharge of $88 or $93 (depending on where the ticket was issued) and 2 points on one’s license. A second offense in 18 months can mean a fine of up to $300 fine and a third offense costs as much as $450.

Your best bet is not take any chances in either state. Store your mask in your glove compartment or in your car seat organizer.