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Here in New York you have a registration and inspection sticker on the windshield that needs to be transfered from the damaged windshield to it's replacement. How would you remove these stickers without damaging them?
Use heat gun or blow torch.and then use a new razor blade all the time and will transfer over with no problems.And just to let you know.All stickers are transfered as a courtesy to customers.If they do void its the customer responsibility to get replacements and we are not responsible for them.
I was scolded many years ago by an inspection officer that it was illegal to remove a Texas State inspection sticker from the original windshield that it was applied to unless it was made to be not reusable. He had asked me for a quote on a windshield at one of my fleet accounts and also asked me what about the sticker. I told him I would remove the sticker and leave it in the car and he could put it back on his windshield. He told me that the sticker was the property of the State of Texas and the fee that was paid to have that car inspected was for the service. He was mighty proud of the authority he had to give me that scolding. Never have seen this law enforced unless the sticker was transferred to a different car but I know that guy is still lurking for the chance.
PA requires you to cut the glass around the stickers and give to the customer so that he can return to place that inspected it to get replacements.Can you imagine if the customers gets cut from that service.Who is responsible for the law suits????
Technically you are supposed to be licensed in NY State to move inspection stickers from one w/s to another. There is a test you take & if you pass you get licensed. I know of only 1 Shop who has done this.
In Washington we do not yet have inspection stickers (not yet). But we do have DOD stickers for military bases. If these appear to have been tampered with it's shoot first and work out the details later. I would remove the stickers, tape them onto a piece of cardboard and inform the customer they would have to see about getting replacements on their next visit.
We had a tech get busted at a dealer for doing this and they let him go but told him it was a $5,000 fine next time and $10k the next and third prision.
I did have a Texas state trooper tell me I had to make my tech move the sticker from the old w/s to the new. I explained to him what we had been told and he said " I am the law do as I say, It takes us 3 weeks to get a new sticker" I told my tech leave the broken windshield and let the trooper remove it. Had the tech write a note and made the trooper sign it with his car# and badge #.
Other than that we dont remove them period. I had a guy in Oklahoma end up in jail for 2 years for removing stickers. Now Oklahoma dont have them so it not a problem their.
We (by state law) are required to re-write a new sticker.So we keep last years colors and this years,along with a variety of numbers.They cost a pretty penny also.They went from .50 to 4.00 each sticker(20 per book) from one year into the next.
As for out of state stickers most seem to come off
one way or another.If they void out,the customer has an invoice from the replacement.
We also used to cut the corners and edge the glass many years ago.Wrapping or a box will take alot of that "cut fear"away.
Here we have state inspection stickers and city/county decals. Technically they are supposed to be void if they are removed from the orginal windshield, but I've gotten so good at getting them off you can't even tell its been moved.
Now when I work on cars from out of state I always take the sticker off and give it to the customer and tell them to use it at their own risk.
I rarely even bother trying to get the DOD stickers off of the windshield. They have to get new ones anyways. If they really insist they need it back then I put it on a sheet of paper for them.
those with DOD stickers are expected to turn in the old ones before new ones are issued. They also are expected to be destroyedif the car is sold or otherwise made unusable (ie. totaled). The DOD is very clear that the sticker not be available to be used by anyone other than the person to whom it was originally issued to.
In Texas it's a misdemeaner to remove a sticker and place on another w/s with between a 500 and 1000 dollar fine. Local DPS people said it was legal to leave corner of old w/s with stickers attached in car after job was done and could be carried until they expired.
At one time we could issue replacement inspection stickers. The RMV sold us a booklet of inspection stickers and we could issue a replacement sticker as long as we attached the used sticker to the page we where the new sticker was taken from. To establish a paper trail. We also had to record the mileage. We were allowed to charge the cost of the sticker. We could not do any inspections or issue stickers under false pretenses. We were audited from time to time. Never had any problems.
The law for stickers in Texas are fuzzy and changes from shop to shop and town to town. Local DPS says one thing State says another .... So we just dont do seeing how they all agree its a no no.
Transfer of most decals is a really simple process. apply tape over the decal use a razor, heat if needed, and go slow. Works really well on DOD decals, hard to tell they were transferred. Although DOD decals are becoming pretty rare because all DOD bases are now practicing 100% ID Check. Crystal Clear Duct Tape is best but blue 3M works just as well.
Best way to move a sticker without revealing a void symbol is to use goo gone, let it soak in with the heat of the sun or a heat gun. It will literally peal itself off after a few minutes. Bring a flat razor blade incase . After a few minutes, the stickiness is still intact and will stick to your new windshield....easy peasy..your welcome.
Torch-heat the glass on the outside until the lamination inside the glass bubbles, take a new Razor Blade scrape off the colored square one. then go along the edges of the white rectangle one, never do it with out heat it will just say void on it.