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General => General discussion => Topic started by: J5H VW on 22 April 2008, 11:52
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Hi Guys,
I have some private plates on my car, and they have one character mis-spaced. I got pulled over last night, got a £30 fine.
My question is, do the police keep a record of the fact that I have been pulled up for this? IE: Do I need to change the plates to correct spacing? If I left them as they are, would I get done hard if pulled over again?
Also - Does there have to be a space between the characters on the plate? For example...
Illegal: A1 AA A
Legal: A1 AAA
Not Sure: A1AAA
He said he pulled me for the letters being not correctly spaced, did not mention anything about them being German plates.
Any advice chaps?
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Plate law is well documented on here if you have a search.
Esentially:
* Must be UK
* Must be correctly spaced
* No funny screw locations
* No borders
* Only EU symbol on one end
* Must be BSE (or whatever) marked
* Must have post code of plate maker
* Must be white front, yellow rear
* Must be plastic and reflective
If you break any of these you will likely get fined as you found out. I'm not sure but I think they mark you down as having been pulled for it and if they catch you again they can remove the plate form your car meaning you have to get it re registered or something.
Nick
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They will keep a record of the offence, and if you get pulled for the same thing they will pull your pants down.
A1 AAA is the only option you have with that amount of digits all other spacing is illegal.
German plates are illegal, so if you got pulled by another copper and he fined you for the plates, even if correctly spaced, he would be quite within his rights to do so. Ignorance is not a defence.
Saying that I have German plates on my Mk1 (correctly spaced) and the boys in blue I've come across don't see them as an issue
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Lots of dealers make plates up that have borders tho...hmmm
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Damn - guess I have to go standard again.
I was thinkin that if it was correctly spaced, but German, I might get away with it. Only risk is if they keep a record it having been pulled over before.
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I was informed by a not so nice policeman :angry:
He will report me to DVLA about my incorrect spacing on my plate B111 YVW = BillY VW
And if DVLA receive a total of 3 incidents, that DVLA will re-claim the registration.
So I have changed the one on the rear to iliminate them sneeking up behind me, But keeping the 1 on the front until i get a telling off again :wink:
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if you get caught 3 times for ALTERING the lettering of a private plate not only will DVLA withdraw it - they will issue your car with a Q Plate. Not a good thing to happen
I know these things :rolleyes:
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I'm probably not going to be popular saying this, but what is the obsession with the alternative plates? It's like you're upset that your car's English/wherever you're from. Although it's not as bad as here in Ireland where you get the odd dickhead sporting a yellow plate on the back. No offence to anyone intended with that comment, my point is just have a bit of pride in where you're from. Maybe I'm missing the point, but either way if it's the law to have your plates a certain way, I don't understand why people can't put up with that, it's not like they're pink or something.
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mmm pink plates huh? Theres a thought Leonard/Alpinehead!!!
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I'm probably not going to be popular saying this
Makes you very popular with me. Number plate-related whining bugs the hell out of me.
I don't get this dumb-assed obsession, either. It's an identity mark for your vehicle, not a f*cking lifestyle.
That your mother bought it for an 18th present isn't an excuse either - that just marks the rest of your family out as vain social climbers, with a degree in sad-act-one-up-man-ship in my books.
B111 YVW does not = BillY VW, it equals B111 YVW
You might notice in Germany (for those of you who actually have a passport and use it) all German cars have identical format number plates, just like in the Netherlands and France and probably every other European nation. That's because the government over there controls the production of the plates. It's about time the UK Government did the same thing in my opinion - it'd stop all this whining about getting pulled for massaging the spacing of plates, that's one thing for sure. It might make a few people realise what a liberal society we live in, too.
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Guys - valid points by all there, but then again, each to their own.
My argument is simply that I am not trying to hide any details on my plate, not trying to make it look like something it is not (either by using odd fonts or screw holes etc).
I simply spaced out the letters slightly differently (by one space in the whole sequence actually), each letter was clearly displayed and is not an attempt to evade being caught by a camera etc (to which i can testify that it does not work! lol)
As for the plate itself being german, I just like the look of german plates. Mine do not have a "D" on them or anything else. To all intents and purposes, they are idenitcal to UK ones, but are made of pressed metal rather than plastic.
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gotta agree wiv diamond on this one
imo when ever i see a private plate or one thats been respaced i just think what a c0ck and vain c*nt and that they have no taste, no matter what the car
its the epitome of chaviness :smiley:
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Guys - valid points by all there, but then again, each to their own.
You go steaming straight past the side of the point then and miss it entirely.
It's NOT each to their own.
It's each to a standard plate, with a combination of letters and numbers organised in the prescribed style, which includes font, size and spacing.
Also if your plates were 'identical' to UK plates they'd have a BS mark and you wouldn't get pulled over for them, or fined, or have the threat of having your private plate taken away from you.
Anyone who wants a private plate should be allowed to buy one and then if they re-space it, or mess about with it it should immediately be taken away from them for being so vain. And they should be made to leave their vehicle where they've been nicked until Q plates have been issued. At this point they should be allowed to collect it, from a Government authorised spray shop, after it's been resprayed pink (at their cost, obviously).
Damn, that'd make me happy and make me smile a lot.
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Anyone want to buy a personalised plate.....? I have one for sale! :laugh:
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Simply having pressed plates does not make them German. As far as I am aware, it is perfectly legal to have pressed steel or alloy plates, providing they pass the requirements of BS AU145d regarding reflectivity. What IS illegal is having the wrong font, incorrect spacing, Stadt or TuV stckers, or a "D" emblem.
So, if you have pressed plates with the correct font and spacing, no adornments except a GB/ENG/SCO/CYM emblem (borders are acceptable too) and no mucking around with bolts, you are perfectly OK with regard to the law and MoT. Doesn't make them German, though.
It was common practice at one time for UK cars to be supplied with pressed plates. The only reason acrylic plates have become standard is because they are cheaper to make.
Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer, policeman, or bona fide member of the motor trade; my information comes from a study of the DVLA and British Standards websites.
Cheers
Chris
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It might have been common for UK cars to be fitted with pressed plates about 20 years ago, but this is now. It used to be legal for cars to be fitted with black and silver plates - fit them to something later than somewhen in the 60's (IIRC) and you'll get a prohibition notice on your vehicle.
If you think they're legal show us a supplier for BS-marked pressed plates.
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Black and white plates can only be fitted to cars registered before 1st Jan 1973. The same I think applies to pressed plates of the colour kind.
As a great example of a percy plate there is one at work today. It's a totally shagged MKV escort. Paint shot, bumpers full of filler, one mirror missing, loads of dents, only 2 hub caps. It has a plate that reads K8 THX and underneath is printed Kathy so you can figure it out. Ha ha ha ha ha ha
Nick
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nice! it always cracky me up whrn they have to explain their plates!
edit - by the way my germanic plates in my sig have been removed!
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do u live in germany ? NO
English plates , a nice set of deeler plates or even just a set of nice brand new plates always looks nice
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The relevant part of the applicable statute is reproduced below:
Statutory Instrument 2001 No. 561
The Road Vehicles (Display of Registration Marks) Regulations 2001
PART 1
VEHICLES REGISTERED AND NEW REGISTRATION PLATES FITTED ON OR AFTER 1ST SEPTEMBER 2001 (MANDATORY SPECIFICATION)
1. The plate must be made of retroreflecting material which, as regards its construction, colour and other qualities, complies with the requirements of -
(a) the British Standard specification for retroreflecting number plates published on 15 January 1998 under number BS AU 145d[13], or
(b) any other relevant standard or specification recognised for use in an EEA State and which, when in use, offers a performance equivalent to that offered by a plate complying with the British Standard specification,
and which, in either case, is marked with the number (or such other information as is necessary to permit identification) of that standard or specification.
2. Where the registration mark is displayed on the front of the vehicle, it must have black characters on a white background.
3. Where the registration mark is displayed on the back of the vehicle, it must have black characters on a yellow background.
So, it has to be retroreflective, and it has to either (a) comply with BS AU 145d or (b) comply with an equivalent EEA standard (TuV would perhaps be considered equivalent in a court of law).
Nothing in either the statute or the standard precludes the use of pressed plates. It does not necessarily follow that any particular pressed plate is legal (e.g. BS AU 145d approved) as a result of this, of course. All herrings are fish, not all fish are herrings. It should be perfectly possible to manufacture a pressed plate that complies with 145d; whether or not anyone has actually done this is a separate matter.
Chris
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A bit of Googling found this site:
http://www.classic-number-plate.com/3D-vision-number-plate.html (http://www.classic-number-plate.com/3D-vision-number-plate.html)
Not German, but pressed metal and BS AU 145d compliant.
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oh well looks like i am a vain c0ck :grin:
i certainly got some vains in me c0ck anyway :tongue:
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i have been in court over illegal plates on my other car, i basically had a tiny plate on the front, had countless run'ings with the law over it, and became on first name terms with certain police officers :laugh:
i had loads of fines but to cut a long story short i got sent to court, got a 250 quid fine and that was it, i now have a slightly larger plate on the car now, relocated to inside the modified bumper (hard to explain but not as obvoius to notice its a smaller plate in this location) it also has the exact lettering as a legal plate so its hard to tell its not actually legal if this makes any sense haha, iv never had no trouble with this plate on
as for atlering how the plate reads, no matter what you do, you will get pulled at some point, iv been stopped in the golf and told the plates are not legal, this is the golf in my sig, apparently they dont have a BS mark and number engraved on them...but i got round this as its only law on cars built from 2001 :wink:
As for german plates, i think they look gash, and as im not in germany, or a german i just dont see the point but its each to their own aint it :cool:
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my problem is with this:
why do show plates cost 1/2 what legal plates cost?
they are still reflective and last as long.
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never considered private plates, waste of money really. If you want good looking plates, its style not what it reads. But after reading this post it seems that you cant style them really! So standard plates for all :laugh:
I want pressed plates, or ones that have no sh!ty writing underneath. I do think that nice looking plates make a difference, but what the letters are - i dont care.
I do have a confession though, first time i saw my plate, i did think what it read, even though it is standard.
The car was advertised as £895 - P895 and the last 3 letters UFR - you f***er :laugh:
LL ;)
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Thought I'd post this answer from DVLA about 3D plates.
Are 3D characters allowed?
Registration numbers and letters must be black and non - reflectable. 3D characters are allowed provided the number plate complies with the British Standard specification (BS AU 145d).
http://www.dvla.gov.uk/vehicles/numberplateinfo.aspx (http://www.dvla.gov.uk/vehicles/numberplateinfo.aspx)
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I want pressed plates, or ones that have no sh!ty writing underneath. I do think that nice looking plates make a difference, but what the letters are - i dont care.
You can get totally legal plates with very faint BSU marks and all the other codes you need to have. :)
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Nice research work Witchwood :afro:
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Good discussion guys. I have 2 private plates one is the DYK and the other relates to me, which I don't need to explain. Private plates look good when used in the correct context. Vein tos5ers, maybe so, but not chavvy when tastefully done. MAG1C as used by Paul Daniels is excellent! There are loads out there. My mate in Oz has the ultimate plate, just his initials JFK looks unique and works well for his business. W3RKD is another example for the businesses that use them over here. I can't understand why personal plates bother people so much? Get a grip, it's just a few letters and numbers that register/link a car to the owner. :smiley:
Anyway, DYK is for sale at the moment so if there are any................................................................. well you know who you are, get in touch. :grin:
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i Know a lot of people that have private plates because they aren't vain.
To me, brand new cars with the latest plate out screams vanity a lot louder then a plate that identifies it as your car.
A private plate avoids "keeping up with the jones's" and prevents people from judging you on how new your car is.
Obviously with older cars it is more obvious that they are not the latest model, but the reasoning behind a private plate is still the same.
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A private plate avoids "keeping up with the jones's" and prevents people from judging you on how new your car is.
Funny, in my eyes it marks you out as thinking you're ahead of the Jones's. As an example there was a family going through school about roughly the same time as I was and as each of them turn 17 they got a new car, with a private plate, with their initials on it.
I think what I found offensive in that situation was the psychology of not having to work for anything - stuff just being handed to you on a plate.
Oh and the fact that you need to stamp you initials on a car. Does your Mum still stitch in labels in your clothes with your name in, too? Or have you moved on to getting your initials monogrammed on to your shirt pocket. The Golf club is thatta way (and yes, I've probably ridden over the greens with my mountain bike).
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each to there own - dont like it - oh well. :rolleyes:
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The previous owner of my car put german pressed plates on my car.
I like the pressed plates, but don't want to run the risk of being fined for the german bit, does anyone know if there are any 'GB' stickers that I can put over the 'D' just to save me buying new pressed plates?
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The previous owner of my car put german pressed plates on my car.
I like the pressed plates, but don't want to run the risk of being fined for the german bit, does anyone know if there are any 'GB' stickers that I can put over the 'D' just to save me buying new pressed plates?
Halfords?
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Might need to clarify, not looking for the oval GB stickers but if there are any blue ones that go on the number plate (to cover my german ones), not see these around.
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I thought that "german plates" were now "euro plates" because the europeans all use the same font these days....
Well, why is it, when the government are telling us we're europeans, can't we use "european plates"?
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i have pressed metall plates on the VR and the Bora, i have passed a few trafic cars with these on both cars and had no problems, i guess it depends what sort of copper you get, mine are correct spacing and have the GB logo on, got an mot on the Bora soon so will see how they get on then :smiley:
ran black and silver plates on my mk1 gti for over 2 years, only ended getting pulled by some anal arse in Yorkshire :grin:
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Anyone know if their is a law against having reflective vinyl strip plates on your bonnet instead of the front of the car?
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i have pressed metall plates on the VR and the Bora, i have passed a few trafic cars with these on both cars and had no problems, i guess it depends what sort of copper you get, mine are correct spacing and have the GB logo on, got an mot on the Bora soon so will see how they get on then :smiley:
ran black and silver plates on my mk1 gti for over 2 years, only ended getting pulled by some anal arse in Yorkshire :grin:
mine passed the MOT with Full german plates on - MOT regs and oad traffic regs are different - had the same on my Bike. :wink: