What is this strange sticker and what does it do? Rescue Card QR codes

Automotive manufacturers are always looking at interesting ways to use technology in their cars, and CarAdvice reader Melissa has found a clever use of QR codes in her new Mercedes


A reader asks

Q: I’ve just bought a new C-Class and there is a funny barcode under the fuel flap. What is this – have I won something?

A: That is called a QR code and Mercedes-Benz is using them to help provide important information to emergency services in the event of an accident.

A QR code, or Quick Response code, is an alternative to the conventional 'barcode', able to carry more information than the traditional code you might see on a packet of cereal.

Originally developed in Japan as a way of tracking automotive parts during production, QR codes become popular with mobile-marketers as a way of embedding a website or email link that could be read by a smartphone camera.

Mercedes-Benz takes it a step further and uses the codes to link to a vehicle-specific Rescue-Card that details all potential hazards that first-responders may have to deal with in the event of an accident.

Placement of airbags, fuel tanks and batteries are shown on a mobile phone screen when the code is scanned with the phone’s camera.

There is a code sticker both in your fuel flap and on the opposite side of the car – usually in the door-jamb – so that the information is accessible from either side.

This information is particularly important for hybrid and electric vehicles that, if involved in an accident, can pose a potential electrocution risk to rescuers.

Knowing where and how to disconnect the battery is important information.

Mercedes-Benz offers these stickers for any vehicle dating back to 1990, so older Benz owners can request these to be fitted free of charge at their next service.

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James Ward

With over 20 years of experience in digital publishing, James Ward has worked within the automotive landscape since 2007 and brings experience from the publishing, manufacturer and lifestyle side of the industry together to spearhead Drive's multi-media content direction.

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