Rear Fog Light Symbol: Front and Rear Fog Light Symbols Explained

The rear fog light symbol is an amber (orange or yellow) dashboard light showing a lamp shape facing right, with 3 straight horizontal lines coming out of it, crossed by a single wavy vertical line. The front fog light symbol is green, faces left, and its lines slope downwards. If the amber one is lit, your rear fog light is on.

Both symbols follow the international convention for vehicle controls and tell-tales (ISO 2575, used in UN Regulation 121), so they look broadly the same on almost every car, van and tractor sold in the UK. Exact drawing styles vary by manufacturer, but the colour and the direction of the lines always tell you which is which.

What the Rear Fog Light Symbol Looks Like

The rear fog light symbol has 4 parts:

• The lamp: a D-shaped outline, with the rounded back on the left and the flat lens face on the right. The lamp faces right, which stands for “towards the rear”.
• The beam: 3 straight lines running horizontally out of the flat face, to the right. Straight, level lines mean a lamp that shines straight out behind the vehicle.
• The fog: a single wavy line running vertically through the 3 beam lines.
• The colour: amber, orange or yellow on the dashboard.

What the Front Fog Light Symbol Looks Like

The front fog light symbol is the mirror image, with a different beam:

• The lamp: the same D shape, but facing left.
• The beam: 3 lines coming out of the lamp to the left, angled downwards, because front fog lamps throw a low, wide beam onto the road.
• The fog: the same wavy vertical line through the beam lines.
• The colour: green on the dashboard.

Which Way Does the Fog Light Symbol Face

The rear fog light symbol faces right, and the front fog light symbol faces left. The easiest way to remember it is by the lines rather than the lamp: straight lines pointing right is the rear fog light; sloping lines pointing left is the front fog light.

Feature	Rear fog light symbol	Front fog light symbol
Dashboard colour	Amber / orange / yellow	Green
Lamp faces	Right	Left
Beam lines	3 straight, horizontal	3 sloping downwards
Wavy line	Yes, vertical through the lines	Yes, vertical through the lines
Lamp colour on the road	Red	White or selective yellow
Legally required?	Yes, on most vehicles first used from 1 April 1980	No, optional

Do not confuse the front fog symbol with the dipped headlight symbol. Dipped beam is also green with sloping lines, but it has no wavy line through it. Main beam is blue with straight lines and no wavy line.

Why the Rear Fog Light Symbol Is Amber

The rear fog light symbol is amber because the dashboard colour code uses amber for “caution, check this”, and a rear fog light left on is a hazard to other drivers. Green tell-tales mean a system is working normally (indicators, dipped beam, front fog lamps), so a green rear fog symbol would be easy to ignore.

A rear fog lamp is roughly as bright as a brake light. Left on in clear weather it dazzles the driver behind and makes it harder for them to see when you brake. The amber light is a deliberate nag to switch it off once the fog lifts. The tell-tale is also a legal requirement: the Road Vehicles Lighting Regulations require a circuit-closed tell-tale for an obligatory rear fog lamp, and a missing or dead tell-tale is a major MOT defect.

What Each Colour of Dashboard Light Means

Colour	Meaning	Lighting examples
Red	Danger or a serious fault. Stop safely and check	Brake system or charging warnings (not normally a lamp tell-tale)
Amber / yellow	Caution, a fault, or a function that needs your attention	Rear fog light on, bulb failure warning
Green	A system is on and working	Front fog lights, dipped beam, sidelights, indicators
Blue	Main beam on	Main beam headlights

How to Switch Fog Lights On and Off

Fog light controls are usually in 1 of 3 places. On most cars the rear fog light only works once the dipped headlights (or front fog lights) are on.

Rotating Ring on the Indicator or Light Stalk

Many cars have a twist ring on the left or right stalk. Turn the main collar to dipped beam first, then turn the fog ring 1 click for front fog lights and a second click for rear fog lights, or 1 click for the rear only on cars without front fogs. The ring springs back, and you twist it again to switch the fog lamps off.

Rotary Headlight Switch on the Dashboard

Common on European cars and vans. Turn the switch to dipped beam, then pull the knob out 1 click for front fog lights and 2 clicks for rear fog lights. Push it back in to switch them off.

Separate Push Buttons

Some cars, most vans and many tractors have dedicated fog light buttons on the dashboard or a switch panel, each marked with its symbol. Press once for on (the tell-tale or a light in the button comes on) and again for off. On tractors the rear fog switch is often on the side console with the other road lighting switches.

On many cars the rear fog lamp switches itself off when you turn off the headlights or ignition, and stays off when you restart. Others remember the setting, so always check the dashboard when you set off.

When to Use Rear Fog Lights

Use rear fog lights only when visibility is seriously reduced, which the Highway Code describes as generally when you cannot see further than 100 metres, and switch them off when visibility improves (rules 226 and 236). Our guide to rear fog lights covers the law, fitting rules, bulbs and MOT in full, and our guide on when to use fog lights in the UK explains front fog lamps too.

If you are fitting fog lamps to a tractor, trailer or older vehicle, browse our fog lamps and rear lamps, and pick a switch with the correct symbol from our switches range so the control is easy to recognise.

Frequently asked questions

Is the rear fog light symbol amber or green?

Amber (shown as orange or yellow on some dashboards). The front fog light symbol is green. If the amber symbol is lit, your rear fog lamp is on.

How do I tell the front and rear fog light symbols apart?

Look at the lines. The rear symbol has straight, horizontal lines pointing right; the front symbol has lines pointing left and sloping downwards. Both have a wavy line through the beam.

Why won’t my rear fog light switch on?

On most cars the rear fog light only works with dipped headlights or front fog lights on. If it still will not work, check the bulb, the fuse and the switch. A dead rear fog lamp is an MOT failure on most vehicles first used from 1 April 1980.

Why is my fog light symbol on when the fog lights are off?

The rear fog lamp has probably been switched on by mistake, often by knocking the ring on the light stalk. Turn the ring or press the button again. If the symbol stays lit, it may be a switch fault, so check the lamp at the back.