Care guide · High-visibility
A hi-vis vest is the only garment in the wash basket with an expiry counter printed on the label. EN ISO 20471 certification is tested up to a maximum number of washes — past that count, or past a certain amount of fading, the garment is workwear-shaped but no longer hi-vis in law.
The idea
High-visibility clothing earns its EN ISO 20471 badge with two materials: fluorescent background fabric that reacts with daylight, and retroreflective tape that returns headlight beams. Both are consumables. Every wash, every month of UV, every scrape takes a little performance off each — and the standard certifies the garment only up to a stated number of care cycles.
That's why hi-vis care is different from ordinary laundry: the goal isn't keeping it looking nice, it's keeping it legally conspicuous. The routine below protects both materials; the checklist after it tells you when protection has run out.
The routine
Alongside the care icons is a maximum wash-cycle number — 25 is typical, some heavier garments carry 50. Certification was tested at that count. For kit washed every week, that's an expiry measured in months — keep rough track.
Open velcro in a drum shreds retroreflective tape faster than anything else on this page. Close the strips, zip up, turn inside out so the tape rides against the garment's own lining.
Wash at the label temperature — usually 40 °C or lower — on a gentle cycle. Skip bleach, fabric softener and "whiter-than-white" detergents with optical brighteners: they strip fluorescent dye or leave films that dull both fabric and tape.
Heat is the enemy of tape adhesive and fluoro dye alike. Line-dry where possible, tumble only cool and only if the label allows, and never run an iron over retroreflective strips.
Hold it next to a newer garment outdoors. The background should still jump out; the tape should be unbroken and brilliant. If either fails the eye test, it fails the road test.
Retirement
Each of these is a compliance failure, not a cosmetic one.
| What you see | Why it fails | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| Fluoro faded toward grey or pastel | Below the standard's colour performance — invisible by day | Retire |
| Tape cracked, peeling or dull | Retroreflection gone — invisible at night | Retire |
| Past the label's max wash count | Certification tested only to that count | Retire |
| Rips, burns or missing panels | Minimum visible area no longer met | Retire |
| Oil or paint staining that won't wash out | Stains mask fluorescence exactly where it's needed | Retire |
Questions
Check the garment label — EN ISO 20471 certification is tested to a stated maximum number of wash cycles, commonly 25. Beyond that count the garment's performance is no longer certified, even if it still looks reasonable.
Softener leaves a film that dulls the fluorescent dye and coats the retroreflective tape, cutting both daytime and night-time performance. Bleach and optical-brightener detergents damage the dye directly. Plain detergent, cool wash, gentle cycle.
When the fluorescent colour has visibly faded toward grey, the tape is cracked, peeling or dull, the garment is ripped or heavily stained, or it has passed the wash count on its label. Any one of those alone is enough — the certification depends on all of them holding.
Only if the label allows it, and then only on a cool setting. Heat degrades both the fluorescent dye and the adhesive bonding the retroreflective tape, so line-drying is the safer default — and never iron over the tape.
When care can't bring a garment back to compliance, replace it — certified hi-vis and weatherproofs from stock, with embroidery for teams.