License plates starting with "HI"

Grumbler

Grumbler

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Have been thinking that ordinary license plates starting with "HI" to as to denote "Hearing Impaired" followed by numbers would be well worth considering by the deaf community, and state/province DMVs.

Most of us cannot hear ambulance/fire/police sirens, and there have been incidents where LEOs get upset when deaf drivers/motorcyclists fail to pull over when they don't see the lights, especially during daylight hours, nor hear the sirens. When they notice the "HI" license plate, they'll relax, and give us time to notice them. It's hard to lipread LEOs at night, even more so when they're stressed-out.

Also, motorists would think twice about honking at us. :giggle:

Any thoughts on whether this is a good thing or not?
 
Not a bad idea...all for a very good cause and reason....whether or not states would approve such an idea, this is something that can be initiated by people like yourself, members here...spreading the word whereas it can reach our congressmen and to those who may be best equipped to voice such an idea. ;)




~RR
 
Ummm, I don't know. It really doesn't solve the problem for emergency vehicles trying to get around the vehicle "blocking" the way. It can assist a LEO who pulls over such a person. At least at that point, they have an idea what they will be dealing with communication wise.

A better bet would be to equip the vehicle with a warning device of some sort indicating to the driver that there is an emergency vehicle around nearby. It could key in on the frequencies of the sirens or a signal emitted from the emergency vehicle. In the case of being pulled over, the driver license can indicate that the person is hearing impaired and thus warn the LEO on communication issues.

My two cents...
 
I think the best solution to the problem is that emergency services provide us free warning devices for the cabin of the car that tell us the emergency vehicle is incoming about 1/4 of a mile away or less.

I almost got hit by a firetruck few years ago because I couldn't hear the siren and it came up real quick. It's hard to hear the siren when the windows are closed. Deaf people cannot hear as well as hearing people do.
 
Grumbler said:
Have been thinking that ordinary license plates starting with "HI" to as to denote "Hearing Impaired" followed by numbers would be well worth considering by the deaf community, and state/province DMVs.

Most of us cannot hear ambulance/fire/police sirens, and there have been incidents where LEOs get upset when deaf drivers/motorcyclists fail to pull over when they don't see the lights, especially during daylight hours, nor hear the sirens. When they notice the "HI" license plate, they'll relax, and give us time to notice them. It's hard to lipread LEOs at night, even more so when they're stressed-out.

Also, motorists would think twice about honking at us. :giggle:

Any thoughts on whether this is a good thing or not?
Click to expand...

Only in Arizona offers it.
 
Not a good idea. If that happens then the people on the road will spot a weakling and rob them or do something to them.
 
i concur with kippe, nO i will not get a licence plate stating i'm deaf, NO NO NO reasons obvious im not going to be a target for carjacking or highway robbery screw that.... if you are concerned about emergency vechiles, then get a larger mirrors on ur rearview mirrors or side mirrors this will incidate you that there is a emergency vechiles coming up, common sense prevails ( without offending anyone) use the mirror thats what it's for not to put make ups on or check for zits. i use it constantly, and i always am the first to pull over before anyone else does, sometimes ona RARE occcasion someone will be right behind me so i would need to pull over FAST otherwise law states u need to have ALL visablity available for emergency vechiles and backing ur cute vechiles up, thats what those mirrors are for....

I'm not going to be a victim to a carjacking or robbery, common sense prevails :)
 
Then how do you know that emergency vehicles are coming up at the intersection and you can't hear the sirens? Sometimes they don't stop completly. That's how I almost got in accident with a firetruck at a intersection.
 
I had someone unexcept pass in front of me. I was piss off but notice their plate license said "SOWHAT"

that give me a rolling eyes. lol - but that's not nice.
 
Nah I dont want that on my license plate but rather have the proper equipment inside my vehicle and have information on my driver license. That is good enough for me. Yea I did have a son in my truck one day and he told me that there was a siren so I pulled over. What a great way of having a wonderful son who let me know but again he may not be with me 100 percent of the time. That the sad part.
 
seq thats what the rearview mirrors and side mirrors are for, I dont check my face on there, I constantly check the mirrors every 30 seconds to 2 minutes, to ensure my own safety AND my passgeners safety, if a cop is right behind me happen turn on the sirens i'll move to the side really quickly. sometimes we can't pull over due to no place to pull over, BUT they give up a 2 minute warning to move out of the way or be cited for failure to yeild to emergency vechiles here in hawaii, as for you, the bad luck was upon you its not your fault, because they were on the side, i wait 30 seconds before i pull out of the turn lane to prevent myself from red light runners and from emergencies. this is why i practice safety, its now been 4 years since i got into a fender bender and i have been heeding the safety protcol, i don't want to rear end a beemer ( BMW) or any cars. I do want to be safe than sorry.

Anyhow... we need to use those mirrors more often, and its not about techolgies. its about using the old noggin ( brain)
 
Interesting story. I heard that when you buy a new car, the company is required to provide you a small strobe light device for your new car without a fee. It warns you that there is a siren in back of your car... you know the rest of the story.

If the company does not know about it, then we have to look it up on ADA or a policy to show the dealer's boss. I think that it started 5 years ago. It does not allow you to get one if you buy a used car at a car dealer.

I am not so sure about that, but it seems a good idea. Any pros or cons?
 
Nah, that would only invite trouble. I know several states like Tennessee have license plates for the hearing-impaired/deaf, but you aren't required to get one if you don't want one.
 
I agree with kippe hexe and Javapride... What's wrong with our eyes? We can see sirens, etc back of our car with the help from mirrors.

I'm not for label "Hi" or "Deaf" signal on my car.
 
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