HONOLULU (KHON2) — Have you ever wondered why every vehicle in Hawaiʻi has the same black and white inspections stickers?
The information is not all that easy to locate. There are the incidents from 2014 when inspection stickers were easily alterable. Legislators had to quickly respond that.
So, KHON2.com did a deep dive to find out why; and this is what we discovered.
Hawai‘i switched to black-and-white vehicle inspection stickers in 2013. The goal was to save money, cut confusion and stop fraud.
Before, the state used pre-printed stickers in different colors. But printing and shipping those cost more. Now, inspectors print stickers on demand using black ink on white labels. This works for all counties and all years.
It’s not about looks. It’s about keeping it simple. A black-and-white sticker is easy to read and hard to fake. The format helps police spot valid stickers quickly during checks.
Each sticker shows your vehicle identification number and license plate. This makes it harder for someone to steal a sticker and use it on another car.
In 2014, a report showed the ink could be wiped off with nail polish remover. That raised red flags about security. But the state decided to stick with the system. It still works well most of the time.
Even with some concerns, the state values how the system works. The inspection process is faster, and the cost is lower.
There is no law that says stickers must be black and white. But for now, it remains the standard.
“Cost-effective and efficient,” the Hawai‘i Department of Transportation said in a public statement. “The change made inspections quicker and printing easier.”
You can click here to investigate for yourself.
For drivers, the change may seem small. For the state, it was a big move.