The operation of vehicles is prohibited if:

Explanation

In both cases; both a horn that does not work and the absence of the windows provided for in the vehicle's structure.

The horn is on the list of mandatory equipment and its failure alone prohibits operation of the vehicle. The horn is your only audible warning device, and its lawful use is exactly that: preventing a collision, not expressing displeasure. At the moment a pedestrian steps onto the carriageway without looking, or the driver alongside begins to change lanes without seeing you, an audible warning is the fastest way of conveying the message — faster than any manoeuvre you could perform.

The absence of the windows provided for in the vehicle's structure is independently an offence too. A windscreen is not merely a window: in a rollover it contributes to the roof's strength, in an impact it prevents the occupant being ejected, and in normal conditions a sound windscreen together with the wipers is the only thing preserving your vision in rain and dust. Driving with an empty window frame means wind, water, gravel and insects entering the driver's face directly at road speed.

A rule to repeat throughout this chapter: any equipment "provided for in the structure" must be both present and working; deliberately removing it is just as much an offence as its being broken.

• A faulty horn really does prohibit operation, but choosing it alone ignores the missing windows fault. • The absence of the windows provided for in the structure is an offence on its own too, but it is not the only fault raised in the question.

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