Are backup cameras required on cars?
Reviewed by the Skyview Auto Glass technical team — NWRD-, ASE- and DINITROL-trained technicians · Updated November 2026
Quick answer
In the United States, new passenger vehicles built from May 2018 must have a rearview camera. Older vehicles are not required to be retrofitted. The camera is at the rear of the vehicle, not the windshield, so a windshield replacement does not affect it. Keep the lens clean so the view stays clear.
When backup cameras became mandatory
In the United States, federal rules require a rearview camera on new passenger vehicles built from May 2018 onward. The rule sets a field of view behind the vehicle and requires the image to show on a display the driver can see. Vehicles built before that date are not required to be retrofitted, though many older cars already had one.
The backup camera is mounted at the rear — in the trunk lid, the liftgate, or the license-plate area — and it looks backward, not through the windshield. That means a windshield replacement does not affect it, and it does not need recalibration when the front glass is changed.
Common myths about backup cameras
Every car on the road must have a backup camera.
Only new passenger vehicles built from May 2018 must have one. Older vehicles are not required to be retrofitted, though many already had a camera.
A windshield replacement affects the backup camera.
No. The backup camera is at the rear of the vehicle, not behind the windshield, so changing the front glass does not touch it.
Keeping the backup camera working
- Wipe the lens with a soft cloth, because dirt and water spots blur the image.
- Clear snow and ice from the lens in winter before you reverse.
- Check that the display lights up when you shift into reverse.
- If the camera is mounted in liftgate glass, a back glass replacement reconnects it.
- A black screen or a blurry image usually points to the lens, a fuse, or the wiring.
More questions about backup cameras
Are backup cameras required?
In the United States, new passenger vehicles built from May 2018 must have a rearview camera. Older vehicles are not required to be retrofitted.
When did backup cameras become mandatory?
The federal rule took effect for new passenger vehicles built from May 2018. Vehicles built before that are not required to add one.
What year did cars start having backup cameras?
Many vehicles had them well before the 2018 rule, as options or standard features. The rule made them required on all new passenger vehicles from that date.
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