Hybrid owners beware: Thieves taking stickers
04-23-07, 06:14 AM
#1
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Hybrid owners beware: Thieves taking stickers
KEYS TO CARPOOL LANES VALUABLE
By Gary Richards
Mercury News
Article Launched: 04/11/2007 01:31:56 AM PDT
Tanya Cecchin was cruising on Capitol Expressway, easily beating the commute traffic by driving in the carpool lane.
Then she noticed a San Jose motorcycle cop's flashing lights in the rear-view mirror of her sand-colored Prius. Silly officer, she thought. Doesn't he see my carpool-lane stickers?
No, he didn't, and for good reason. The stickers on her rear bumper had been stolen.
It may be California's newest crime: The Department of Motor Vehicles says it's receiving two to three dozen requests a month for replacement stickers from hybrid owners who say they've been ripped off. Thieves, these drivers theorize, are peeling off their yellow carpool decals in hopes of selling them.
"We knew it was only a matter of time," California Highway Patrol officer Mike Wright said.
That's right. The decals became more valuable after the state closed the door on hybrid-exemption stickers in January, stopping after 85,000 owners of the clean-burning, high-mileage vehicles were given access to fast-moving diamond lanes. Since then, it appears some crooks have found a new opportunity to make a few bucks.
Or maybe a few thousand.
Someone put an offering on eBay in February seeking $10,000 for an extra set of carpool stickers sent mistakenly by the DMV (there were no takers and the ad was removed). And a story last month in USA Today reported that hybrids with carpool stickers are selling for as much as $4,000 more than those without the decals.
Cecchin suspects the thieves struck while she was eating lunch near the Fairmont Hotel in San Jose on March 29. She may even have interrupted their dastardly act.
As she unlocked her car that day, the driver of an idling pickup asked if she was leaving, as if he wanted her spot. But as she left, she said, she never saw the pickup pull into her vacated space. She noticed two men standing nearby. Yet she did not notice that three of her four stickers were gone.
Until the next day when Cecchin, a fundraiser for a Campbell non-profit that provides meals for the needy, was heading to work on the expressway.
"I was kind of patronizing to the cop," said Cecchin, 39, of San Jose. "I thought, `You poor fool, didn't you see my stickers?'"
His reply: What stickers?
Ticket book in hand, the cop was ready to write a $360 ticket. She jumped out of her car.
"I told him I really had the stickers and he was saying prove it," Cecchin said. Neither of them noticed that a lone sticker remained on her front bumper.
Fortunately, she was carrying the DMV's carpool registration card. Proof positive. The cop put down his pen.
"He was so nice," Cecchin said of the officer. "He felt really sorry for me and advised me not to use the carpool lane until I had new stickers."
Thieves and even some would-be buyers could be in for a surprise. Just like plain ol' registration tags, the carpool stickers are treated chemically so they crumble apart if tampered with, DMV spokesman Mike Miller said. And, more stridently, the word "void" appears on the faces of stickers that get peeled.
"I doubt someone would be able to get them off intact," he said.
There were no scratch marks on Cecchin's Prius, nothing to indicate that thieves had a difficult time removing them. Some drivers might make easy targets.
Miller was following a Civic hybrid in Sacramento recently and noticed that two of the Honda's carpool stickers were only loosely attached. One was hanging over a wheel well and the other was placed on the edge of the car.
"Someone could have gone and torn them off without much effort," he said. "It's probably not wise to stick them on that way."
Cecchin wishes the DMV would let hybrid drivers place decals on the inside of their windows, as she suspects others might be victims, too.
How much would someone pay for a stolen sticker?
"I would first go to church and talk to my minister, get dispensation, and then offer $145.88 for it,' said Don Schmidek of Monte Sereno. "But I would not be surprised that some people would offer $1,000 for such a privilege."
Source: http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_5...nclick_check=1
By Gary Richards
Mercury News
Article Launched: 04/11/2007 01:31:56 AM PDT
Tanya Cecchin was cruising on Capitol Expressway, easily beating the commute traffic by driving in the carpool lane.
Then she noticed a San Jose motorcycle cop's flashing lights in the rear-view mirror of her sand-colored Prius. Silly officer, she thought. Doesn't he see my carpool-lane stickers?
No, he didn't, and for good reason. The stickers on her rear bumper had been stolen.
It may be California's newest crime: The Department of Motor Vehicles says it's receiving two to three dozen requests a month for replacement stickers from hybrid owners who say they've been ripped off. Thieves, these drivers theorize, are peeling off their yellow carpool decals in hopes of selling them.
"We knew it was only a matter of time," California Highway Patrol officer Mike Wright said.
That's right. The decals became more valuable after the state closed the door on hybrid-exemption stickers in January, stopping after 85,000 owners of the clean-burning, high-mileage vehicles were given access to fast-moving diamond lanes. Since then, it appears some crooks have found a new opportunity to make a few bucks.
Or maybe a few thousand.
Someone put an offering on eBay in February seeking $10,000 for an extra set of carpool stickers sent mistakenly by the DMV (there were no takers and the ad was removed). And a story last month in USA Today reported that hybrids with carpool stickers are selling for as much as $4,000 more than those without the decals.
Cecchin suspects the thieves struck while she was eating lunch near the Fairmont Hotel in San Jose on March 29. She may even have interrupted their dastardly act.
As she unlocked her car that day, the driver of an idling pickup asked if she was leaving, as if he wanted her spot. But as she left, she said, she never saw the pickup pull into her vacated space. She noticed two men standing nearby. Yet she did not notice that three of her four stickers were gone.
Until the next day when Cecchin, a fundraiser for a Campbell non-profit that provides meals for the needy, was heading to work on the expressway.
"I was kind of patronizing to the cop," said Cecchin, 39, of San Jose. "I thought, `You poor fool, didn't you see my stickers?'"
His reply: What stickers?
Ticket book in hand, the cop was ready to write a $360 ticket. She jumped out of her car.
"I told him I really had the stickers and he was saying prove it," Cecchin said. Neither of them noticed that a lone sticker remained on her front bumper.
Fortunately, she was carrying the DMV's carpool registration card. Proof positive. The cop put down his pen.
"He was so nice," Cecchin said of the officer. "He felt really sorry for me and advised me not to use the carpool lane until I had new stickers."
Thieves and even some would-be buyers could be in for a surprise. Just like plain ol' registration tags, the carpool stickers are treated chemically so they crumble apart if tampered with, DMV spokesman Mike Miller said. And, more stridently, the word "void" appears on the faces of stickers that get peeled.
"I doubt someone would be able to get them off intact," he said.
There were no scratch marks on Cecchin's Prius, nothing to indicate that thieves had a difficult time removing them. Some drivers might make easy targets.
Miller was following a Civic hybrid in Sacramento recently and noticed that two of the Honda's carpool stickers were only loosely attached. One was hanging over a wheel well and the other was placed on the edge of the car.
"Someone could have gone and torn them off without much effort," he said. "It's probably not wise to stick them on that way."
Cecchin wishes the DMV would let hybrid drivers place decals on the inside of their windows, as she suspects others might be victims, too.
How much would someone pay for a stolen sticker?
"I would first go to church and talk to my minister, get dispensation, and then offer $145.88 for it,' said Don Schmidek of Monte Sereno. "But I would not be surprised that some people would offer $1,000 for such a privilege."
Source: http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_5...nclick_check=1
04-23-07, 07:10 AM
#5
Super Moderator
We have a similar issue in Mexico City and the adjoining Mexico State with emissions stickers. As of July 1st last year, if you don't pay your annual car taxes, known as a tenencia (tax made to pay for the 1968 Olympics, but it kept going), you cannot get emissions tested. As far as I known, without this sticker, since it is obligatory for locally-plated vehicles, you can't drive either.
There is both theft and counterfeiting going on in order to get these small holograms (I have one for my RX300...since it gives you some positive driving benefits...you get to drive as a foreign-plated vehicle every day out of the week, otherwise you can get stopped by police on a certain day depending on the last digit of your plate...tourists are not exempt!).
BTW, are stickers are on the inside, but that doesn't stop people from smashing windows or using glass cutters. The thieves are so good they will touch up the silver that remains on the window when you remove them.
There is both theft and counterfeiting going on in order to get these small holograms (I have one for my RX300...since it gives you some positive driving benefits...you get to drive as a foreign-plated vehicle every day out of the week, otherwise you can get stopped by police on a certain day depending on the last digit of your plate...tourists are not exempt!).
BTW, are stickers are on the inside, but that doesn't stop people from smashing windows or using glass cutters. The thieves are so good they will touch up the silver that remains on the window when you remove them.
04-23-07, 07:26 AM
#6
Advanced
Yes, I'm glad to! I had a few stickers stolen off my cars when we used to have them on the license plates, and they were so easy to peel off. No problems since we moved them to the inside of the windshield.
04-23-07, 09:53 AM
#7
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Yeah, I find it really strange that the cop would pull over a Prius, of all cars lol.
What, did he think that Prius had the optional V-8 thrown in??
People's lack of knowledge really suprises me.
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04-23-07, 10:16 AM
#8
In California a Hybrid needs a sticker to go in the carpool lane. Not all Hybrids get the sticker, California only issues a certain amount each year.
04-23-07, 10:27 AM
#9
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So the situation could arise where a Prius isn't able to get one but a LS600hL does. The LS600hL only gets a couple more MPG's more than the regular LS460 so it isn't screaming efficiency. If anything, it should be based on a certain EPA rating if it's limited. For example, I would set it at 40 MPG highway. This would pass some small cars that aren't Hybrids like the Corolla.
But the most important thing is that it push's people to get the most efficient cars and not just hybrids.
04-23-07, 11:45 AM
#10
Lexus Test Driver
One thing what about, RFID the hybrid cars for the car pool lane? True the state police and what not would need new tech stuff in their cars to spot the violators and what not
04-23-07, 11:59 AM
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i bet the thiefs either used some special chemical or a hairdryer to help remove the stickers
04-23-07, 12:28 PM
#12
Lexus Connoisseur
The Hybrid Carpool decals here in CA need to be visible at all angles of the car. There are a total of 4 issued. Three for the rear bumper facing left, right and rear, and one for the front bumper. Window decals wont work on cars with factory tinted glass on the sides and rear like with minivans, suvs and wagons. It's been thought of but not a viable option.
04-23-07, 12:35 PM
#13
Lexus Connoisseur
That sounds pretty stupid. So WHO get's the stickers.
So the situation could arise where a Prius isn't able to get one but a LS600hL does. The LS600hL only gets a couple more MPG's more than the regular LS460 so it isn't screaming efficiency. If anything, it should be based on a certain EPA rating if it's limited. For example, I would set it at 40 MPG highway. This would pass some small cars that aren't Hybrids like the Corolla.
But the most important thing is that it push's people to get the most efficient cars and not just hybrids.
So the situation could arise where a Prius isn't able to get one but a LS600hL does. The LS600hL only gets a couple more MPG's more than the regular LS460 so it isn't screaming efficiency. If anything, it should be based on a certain EPA rating if it's limited. For example, I would set it at 40 MPG highway. This would pass some small cars that aren't Hybrids like the Corolla.
But the most important thing is that it push's people to get the most efficient cars and not just hybrids.
http://www.arb.ca.gov/msprog/carpool/carpool.htm
Here's more info on the Clean Air decal program. It's only limited to a certain amount.
http://www.dmv.ca.gov/vr/decal.htm
California law allows single-occupant use of High Occupancy Vehicle (HOVs) lanes by certain alternative fuel, clean hybrid, and full-electric vehicles. Hybrid vehicles are currently limited to a maximum of 75,000 vehicles. An additional 10,000 vehicles will be permitted starting January 1, 2007. Use of these lanes with only one occupant requires an identification sticker issued by the California Department of Motor Vehicles.
