Glass Profile

Don’t put any labels on your car’s windscreen if you value your privacy, says our senior writer.

The company decal prevents employees’ cars from being wheelclamped or towed away.

My taste in music has been characterised as that of an old soul’s, while my thinking has been politely described as old school (read: outdated). On several occasions, I’ve been called a dinosaur.

One example of me not “getting with the times” is how I’ve stopped posting anything on my Facebook page. I don’t feel like telling everyone how I feel, or showing them where I’ve gone, or sharing what I’ve eaten.

I enjoy living my life in the real world, not the online one. So I only utilise my account when I need to post something on Torque’s Facebook page.

However, there is one “profile page” that I struggle to keep private: my car windscreen.

I think that my windshield’s decals have turned it into an automotive profile page of sorts. The road tax disc, for instance, shows how much money I owe the LTA annually.

The condominium parking label might make people think that I’m well-off , until they see the HDB season parking disc.

I live in a HDB flat, but I keep the former decal so that I can leave my vehicle at my mum’s place overnight without it getting wheel-clamped.

I’ve been told that so long as my HDB season parking is valid, I can park in the allocated spaces without getting fined, since the “saman” uncle/auntie can always check my IU or number plate.

My mum tells me that I can park my car at her place sans label and not get wheelclamped, since she knows the condo’s management.

And my editor says I can keep my road tax disc at home because neither the Traffic Police nor the LTA will bother to check if it’s displayed and/or valid.

But I display my road tax disc because it’s only proper. I keep the condo label because I don’t want to bother my mum should my car get wheel-clamped.

I also wouldn’t want to spend time appealing to HDB in case I’m mistakenly fined. After all, the letter accompanying the disc said that it should be prominently displayed on my windscreen.

I’m old school and a bit kan cheong, I guess. 

JEREMY DREAMS OF THE DAY HE CAN FINALLY REMOVE ALL HIS WINDSCREEN LABELS AND TAKE HIS “PROFILE PAGE” OFFLINE.