Chicago Provides City Vehicle Stickers That Lack One Important Feature

First New York’s vehicle inspection stickers lacked enough stickiness to actually stay stuck and now the disease has infected Chicago. Yes, it’s the same company making the stickers. I know. We’re shocked too. Who could have predicted this?

The good news: The city has extended the deadline to place a new vehicle sticker in your window by two weeks. The penalty for lack of sticker? $120.

From the Expired Meter:

SecureMark won the five year contract for Chicago’s city stickers by coming in $300,000 lower over the term of the contract than other bidders. However, SecureMark has had some problems with quality providing decals for the state of New York and the Clerk’s office wanted to continue to use their preferred vendor, The Standard Register Company.

In fact, when the bids came in back in early March, Chicago City Clerk Miguel del Valle wrote a letter to the Procurement Department asking them to ignore the low bid and award the contract to Standard Register.

“We are sympathetic with city budget issues,” says Williams of the contract. “But we were concerned with quality issues this vendor has had in the past. The quality and integrity of the Chicago city stickers is of utmost importance to us.”

The Clerk’s office will replace any faulty city stickers for free. Drivers can e-mail the City Clerk’s office at: cityclerk@cityofchicago.org or call 312-742-9200. Replacements will be sent in the mail.

Some City Stickers Not Sticking [The Expired Meter]
City Extends Sticker Deadline [Chicagoist]

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.