Traffic Lights Out During a California Power Shutoff: Who Is at Fault in a Crash?

Every fire season, Southern California drivers face the same hazard: wind, heat, and planned power shutoffs that can leave intersections with dark or flashing signals. This week is a clear example. The National Weather Service office in Los Angeles and Oxnard issued a Red Flag Warning for much of Los Angeles and Ventura counties, in effect from 6 a.m. Thursday, October 15, 2026, through 8 p.m. Saturday, October 17 (extended; see the October 15 update). The City of Malibu warned residents that Southern California Edison (SCE) may proactively shut off power on four Malibu circuits starting at midnight Thursday, and told residents to be prepared for traffic signal outages.

Shutoffs, wind damage, and ordinary outages all raise the same legal question when two vehicles collide at an intersection with no working signal: who had the right-of-way, and who is responsible?

In plain terms: When a traffic signal is dark or not working, California law requires every driver to stop at the intersection and go only when it is safe, much like an all-way stop. A crash at a dark signal is usually decided by who stopped, who had the right-of-way, and who used reasonable care. In some cases, a utility or a public agency may also be part of the claim, but those claims follow special rules.

This page is general information, not legal advice. It does not describe or assign fault in any specific crash.

If you were hurt in a crash at a dark or malfunctioning signal anywhere in California, Win Attorneys handles motor vehicle accidents and pedestrian and micromobility accidents statewide. Seek medical care first, even if you feel fine at the scene.

Talk to us at (562) 296-5380 or reach out through our contact page for a free case review. Office: 17291 Irvine Blvd., Suite 210, Tustin, CA 92780.

Update, October 15, 2026

These details come from official notices and local reporting checked the morning of Thursday, October 15, 2026, at about 8:15 a.m. Conditions are changing quickly.

Red Flag Warning extended. Santa Ana winds are back. The National Weather Service in Los Angeles and Oxnard extended the Red Flag Warning for most coasts and valleys of Los Angeles and Ventura counties, including the Malibu Coast. It now runs from 6 a.m. Thursday, October 15, through 8 p.m. Saturday, October 17, instead of ending Friday night. The weather service says winds should be strongest Thursday afternoon through Friday afternoon, with gusts of 45 to 55 mph and isolated gusts to 65 mph possible.
Topanga Canyon Boulevard restricted. Caltrans District 7 said it will limit Topanga Canyon Boulevard (State Route 27) to residents only, between Mulholland Highway and Pacific Coast Highway, from 6 a.m. Thursday, October 15, until 10 p.m. Friday, October 16. Caltrans cited the Red Flag Warning and high fire danger. NBC Los Angeles and the City of Malibu reported the same days and times. Old Topanga Canyon Road is also closed to non-residents between Mulholland Highway and Topanga Canyon Boulevard. Caltrans suggests Interstate 10, US 101, and Interstate 405 as alternate routes, and says sheriff’s deputies will staff checkpoints. Caltrans also says the schedule may change.
Malibu power shutoffs possible. The City of Malibu said at 7 a.m. Thursday that Southern California Edison (SCE) may shut off power to circuits in central Malibu. The city says shutoffs are possible over the coming days on six circuits in central and western Malibu: Cuthbert, Galahad, Maguire, Merlin, Serra, and Tuna. When we checked SCE’s outage map at about 8:15 a.m. Thursday, all six Malibu circuits were listed as under consideration for a shutoff, not shut off. SCE had already shut off power to a small number of customers elsewhere in Los Angeles County. SCE notes that its real-time data can be delayed, and circuits and timing change often.

If the signals are dark where you are driving, treat each intersection as an all-way stop. Expect detours and heavier traffic near closed canyon roads. For current conditions, check Caltrans QuickMap and SCE’s Public Safety Power Shutoff page.

If you were hurt in a crash during these conditions, seek medical care first. Talk to us at (562) 296-5380. Office: 17291 Irvine Blvd., Suite 210, Tustin, CA 92780. This update is general information, not legal advice.

What Was Announced This Week

These details come from official notices and local reporting as of October 14, 2026:

Red Flag Warning. The National Weather Service in Los Angeles and Oxnard issued a Red Flag Warning from 6 a.m. Thursday to 8 p.m. Saturday (extended) for most valleys and coasts of Los Angeles and Ventura counties, including the Malibu Coast, Calabasas and Agoura Hills, the San Fernando Valley, the San Gabriel Valley, Ventura County beaches and valleys, and nearby mountain areas.
Malibu shutoff notice. The City of Malibu said SCE notified it that SCE may shut off power on the Cuthbert, Galahad, Maguire, and Merlin circuits in central and western Malibu starting midnight Thursday, October 15. The city told residents to prepare for outages of power, cell service, and traffic signals, and to come to a complete stop at any malfunctioning traffic signal under California law.
Restoration time. The city said restoration may take eight hours or more after the winds subside, because lines and equipment must be inspected first, as the Santa Monica Daily Press also reported on October 14.
Ventura County. Ventura County’s emergency information site said the Red Flag Warning runs from 6 a.m. Thursday through 10 p.m. Friday (the weather service has since extended it to 8 p.m. Saturday) and that SCE was monitoring 70 circuits countywide for potential shutoff.

Shutoff plans change quickly. Check SCE’s Public Safety Power Shutoff page and your county’s emergency alerts for the current status where you live.

The Rule: Stop at an Inoperative Signal

Vehicle Code section 21800(d) covers intersections where the signals do not work:

Stop first. The driver of any vehicle approaching an intersection with official traffic control signals that are inoperative shall stop at the intersection, and may proceed with caution when it is safe to do so.
Arriving at the same time. When two vehicles enter the intersection from different highways at the same time and the signals are inoperative, the driver on the left yields to the driver on the immediate right, except that a driver on a terminating highway yields to a vehicle on the continuing highway.

Many public agencies describe this as treating the intersection like a four-way or all-way stop. The statute’s own words are “stop” and “proceed with caution when it is safe to do so.”

Who Goes First

Section 21800(a) adds that a driver approaching an intersection must yield to any vehicle that has already entered it from a different highway. So at a dark signal, the general order is:

Stop.
Yield to vehicles already in the intersection.
If you arrive at the same time as a vehicle on a different road, yield to the vehicle on your right.
Go only when it is safe.

Left Turns

Section 21800 does not apply when vehicles are approaching each other from opposite directions and one is making a left turn. Vehicle Code section 21801 covers that situation: a driver turning left must yield to vehicles approaching from the opposite direction that are close enough to be a hazard during the turn.

Flashing Red and Flashing Yellow

During outages, some signals switch to flashing mode on backup power before going dark. Vehicle Code section 21457 sets the rules:

Flashing red works like a stop sign. The driver must stop at the limit line, or before the crosswalk, or where the driver can see cross traffic, and may then proceed under the rules that apply after stopping at a stop sign.
Flashing yellow means the driver may proceed through the intersection only with caution.

Pedestrians at Dark Signals

Pedestrian signals usually go dark along with the traffic signals. The crosswalk rules still apply:

Drivers yield in crosswalks. Under Vehicle Code section 21950, a driver must yield to a pedestrian crossing within any marked crosswalk or within any unmarked crosswalk at an intersection, and must use due care and slow down or take other action as needed.
Pedestrians use due care too. The same section says a pedestrian may not suddenly leave a curb into the path of a vehicle so close that it is an immediate hazard.
Outside a crosswalk. Under section 21954, a pedestrian crossing outside a crosswalk must yield to vehicles so near as to be an immediate hazard, but drivers still must use due care for any pedestrian on the roadway.

Cyclists and scooter riders at a dark intersection face the same uncertainty, often with less visibility.

Who Is at Fault in a Dark-Signal Crash?

Fault depends on the facts. Common questions include:

Did each driver stop before entering?
Who entered the intersection first?
If both arrived together, who was on the right?
Was one driver turning left across oncoming traffic?
Was anyone speeding, distracted, or impaired?
Were headlights on and visibility affected by dust, smoke, or darkness?

Comparative Fault

California uses comparative fault, which means more than one person can share responsibility and an injured person’s recovery can be reduced by their own percentage of fault. A driver who failed to stop at a dark signal may carry most of the fault, but another driver who saw the danger and did not take reasonable care could share it. Insurers often argue about these percentages, which is why evidence matters.

For more on how weather affects crash claims, see our guide to rain and El Niño car accidents in California.

Downed Lines, Debris, and Wind Damage

High winds can bring down power lines, tree limbs, signs, and other debris. If you see a downed wire, stay away from it and anything touching it, and call 911. Do not drive over lines.

Debris crashes raise separate questions. A tree or limb on private property may involve the property owner. A fallen pole or line may involve the utility. A signal, sign, or tree on public property may involve a city, county, or the state. Each has different rules.

When a Utility or Public Agency May Be Part of a Claim

Most dark-signal crashes are decided between the drivers. In some cases, another party may share responsibility. We want to be careful here: a shutoff or outage alone does not make anyone automatically liable.

The Utility

A utility like SCE is not a public entity for Government Claims Act purposes. Claims against a private company generally rest on ordinary negligence. Civil Code section 1714 provides that everyone is responsible for injury caused by their want of ordinary care in managing their property. Whether a utility could be responsible for a crash depends on facts such as what equipment failed, why, and what the utility knew. Planned shutoffs are a safety measure, and proving a utility caused a particular crash can be difficult.

Public Agencies

Traffic signals are typically owned and maintained by cities, counties, or Caltrans. Claims against public entities face added limits:

Dangerous condition. Government Code section 835 allows liability for injury caused by a dangerous condition of public property if the plaintiff proves the condition was dangerous, caused the injury, created a foreseeable risk of that kind of injury, and either a public employee created it or the entity had notice in time to fix it.
Signal immunities. Government Code section 830.4 says a condition is not dangerous merely because of the failure to provide regulatory traffic control signals or stop signs. Section 830.8 says public entities generally are not liable for failing to provide traffic or warning signals, signs, markings, or devices, unless one was necessary to warn of a dangerous condition that would not be reasonably apparent to a careful driver.
Six-month claim. Under Government Code section 911.2, a claim for injury or death against a public entity generally must be presented within six months.

These rules make public entity claims at dark signals uncommon and fact-specific. Recent changes to how fault is shared with public entities are covered in our post on what SB 577 changes for California public entity injury claims.

Evidence to Save After a Crash at a Dark Signal

Photos and video of the signal heads showing whether they were dark, flashing, or working.
The time of the crash, which can be compared with outage records.
Outage notices and alerts you or others received.
Dash camera and phone video, including from witnesses.
Business and home camera footage nearby, requested quickly.
The police report number and the names of responding officers.
Medical records from the first visit forward.

Deadlines

The general deadline to file a personal injury or wrongful death lawsuit in California is two years under Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1. If a public entity may be involved, the six-month claim deadline under Government Code section 911.2 comes much sooner.

Talk With Win Attorneys

Win Attorneys helps people injured in crashes across Los Angeles, Ventura, Orange, and the rest of California from our Tustin office. If a dark signal, a power shutoff, or wind damage played a part in your crash, we can help sort out who may be responsible. Our office is fluent in Spanish and Vietnamese; say so when you call.

Talk to us at (562) 296-5380, write through our contact page, or visit 17291 Irvine Blvd., Suite 210, Tustin, CA 92780. The case review is free.

Dark Traffic Signal Crash FAQs

What does California law require at a traffic light that is out?

Vehicle Code section 21800(d) requires the driver of any vehicle approaching an intersection with inoperative traffic signals to stop at the intersection and proceed with caution only when it is safe. Many agencies describe this as treating the intersection like an all-way stop.

Who has the right-of-way at a dark traffic signal?

After stopping, a driver must yield to vehicles already in the intersection. If two vehicles from different roads arrive at the same time, the driver on the left yields to the driver on the right, with a special rule for terminating roads. Left turns across oncoming traffic follow section 21801.

What do flashing red and flashing yellow signals mean?

Under Vehicle Code section 21457, a flashing red light works like a stop sign: stop, then proceed under stop sign rules. A flashing yellow light means proceed through the intersection only with caution.

Do drivers still have to yield to pedestrians when the signals are out?

Yes. Vehicle Code section 21950 requires drivers to yield to pedestrians crossing in a marked crosswalk or an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection. Pedestrians must also use due care and may not step suddenly into the path of a vehicle that is too close to stop.

Can I sue the power company if the lights were out because of a shutoff?

Possibly, but it is not automatic. A claim against a utility generally rests on ordinary negligence under Civil Code section 1714 and depends on what failed, why, and what the utility knew. Most dark-signal crashes are decided between the drivers involved.

Can a city or county be responsible for a crash at a dark signal?

Only in limited situations. Government Code section 835 covers dangerous conditions of public property, but sections 830.4 and 830.8 limit liability related to traffic signals and signs. A claim against a public entity generally must be presented within six months under Government Code section 911.2.

How long do I have to file a lawsuit after a crash at a dark signal?

The general deadline for a personal injury lawsuit in California is two years under Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1. If a public entity may be involved, a government claim generally must be presented within six months.

Who is at fault for a crash near a road closure or detour during a Red Flag Warning?

The same rules apply as at any other time. Drivers must obey closure signs, checkpoints, and detour directions, and must stop at any dark signal. Fault usually turns on who failed to use reasonable care. Agencies that set up closures can sometimes be involved, but claims against them follow special rules and a six-month government claim deadline.

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For deadlines, steps and exceptions in claims against cities, counties, Caltrans and transit agencies, see our California government and Caltrans claims guide.
Crashed in Tustin? See our Tustin car accident lawyer page.

Disclaimer

This page is general information for educational purposes. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Weather and shutoff details are attributed to the National Weather Service, the City of Malibu, Ventura County, and the Santa Monica Daily Press as of October 14, 2026, and may change. Outcomes depend on the facts of each matter. Seek medical care for injuries. Consult a licensed California attorney about your situation.