ST. LANDRY PARISH — For many drivers, Louisiana’s vehicle inspection stickers are a frustration.
“I hate them. I hate them so much I don’t even get them anymore,” said driver Paul Noel.
Others question their purpose.
“It’s just a money grab for the state, sorry,” said Jody Nida.
But not everyone agrees.
At Al’s Tires, co-owner Louay Salam says complaints about inspection stickers are common among customers. Still, he believes the inspections play an important role in keeping vehicles safe.
“Honestly, I know a lot of people — customers — who get annoyed by them,” Salam said.
The shop performs thousands of inspections each year.
“On average, throughout the whole year, I would say we do about four or five thousand. We do a lot of inspection stickers,” Salam said.
While inspections bring in some business, Salam said they do not significantly impact profits. Instead, he believes the process encourages drivers to make sure their vehicles are safe.
“Inspection stickers force you to get all that stuff checked and make sure everything is safe on your vehicle,” Salam said.
Driver Albert Avilla said many people only think about inspections when they receive a citation.
“No one ever really thinks about them until you get a ticket,” Avilla said.
Now, the long-running debate over inspection stickers is resurfacing.
On Monday, Gov. Jeff Landry announced a proposal that could reshape the system by replacing traditional stickers with a QR code.
“We are finally building a transportation system that moves at the speed of Louisiana’s economy and delivers the results our people deserve,” Landry said in remarks announcing the idea.
Landry said the debate over inspection stickers has continued for years and argued that new technology could provide a more efficient solution.
“The traditional inspection sticker process is annoying, inconvenient, and serves little value to the safety of our roads and to the state agencies that interact with our motorists,” Landry said.
Under the proposal, drivers would place a QR code sticker on their vehicle that could be scanned by law enforcement.
“A QR code sticker, for only $6, placed by you upon your vehicle besides being cheaper than waiting in line to pay $10 is capable of providing instant information to law enforcement about ownership, year, make, model, and eventually insurance coverage information,” Landry said.
Landry said he believes the time has come to eliminate the current system.
“I believe it is time to retire the inspection sticker,” he said, adding that the proposal is based on the idea that “government should work for the people, not waste their time or money.”
Some drivers say the idea makes sense.
“They can just go and scan it if you get pulled over or if you are just parked anywhere. I think that would be a good idea actually,” Noel said.
But Salam is not convinced the new system would be an improvement. He said the current color-coded stickers make it easier to identify vehicles with expired inspections.
“It’s been around for a while and it’s working. I don’t see the reason to fix something that’s not broken,” Salam said.
He also worries the change could lead to more stops for drivers.
“Unless they come up with something better, I don’t think the QR code will be a good idea. It will just be another way for people to get pulled over and be bothered,” Salam said.
The proposal has not yet been implemented, but the idea has renewed debate about the future of vehicle inspections in Louisiana also the Legislature would have to approve any changes to the inspection sticker process.
