Is your custom license plate legal, or will it get you in serious legal trouble? Individuals in the UK are being urged to double-check their license plates. A few minor errors can result in a £1,000 fine and a failed MOT test for your custom number plate.
The general public knows that custom or personalized number plates must follow certain rules. The majority of these requirements ensure that the plate is always visible and legible. But there’s more to it.
Over 15,000 incorrectly registered number plates have been discovered in the UK in three years. The most common offenders appear to be Norfolk and London personal number plates, though they can be found in any town or village in the UK.
How your license plate and registration are made and displayed may affect their legality. A personalized number plate can be considered “illegal” in five ways. The results are:
The wrong font was chosen for the number plate.
Personal license plates follow the same formatting rules as standard UK license plates. All number plates must use the standard “Charles Wright” font in the UK, regardless of design.
The wrong flag is on the vehicle’s license plate.
The EU, the Union Jack, the St. George Cross, the Scottish Saltire, and the Red Dragon of Wales are the only flags allowed on number plates in the UK. The Playboy Bunny, Betty Boop, BMW, and Mercedes Benz trademarked images that vehicles cannot display. They are occasionally used on show plates but are strictly prohibited on public roads.
The wrong color license plate was used.
Even a personal number plate must adhere to the Department of Transportation’s color guidelines. A white plate with black font is necessary for the UK. The plate’s back must be yellow with black font.
This 1973 law determines a vehicle’s front and rear ends. Although some countries use registration plates in the opposite order, such as France, where yellow front plates and white backplates are used, yellow was chosen as the most visually arresting contrast to white.
Numberplates for vehicles registered before January 1, 1973, can be either the standard black and silver or the yellow and white. Even if the registration number was issued before 1973, the use of black or silver number plates on a vehicle is dependent on the year of manufacture.
The license plate background has a flaw.
No stickers on the number plate because the details must be visible. Even if it’s just a pattern, a non-standard background is unacceptable. To meet MoT requirements, the yellow and white backgrounds must be reflective.
The Private Plate Company manufactures all acrylic number plates for vehicles by BSau 145d, a 2001 British law. The MoT requires this small line of code in the bottom right-hand corner of the front and rear number plates.
The plate’s lettering is crooked.
A fine may be imposed if the letter spacing is incorrect. It is the most frequently broken rule when it comes to plates. Theft results in a £1000 fine and the forfeiture of your license plate if you misrepresent the number plate.
But if you need a custom number plate, a company that is well known and aware of rules and regulations to make custom number plates will work for you. You can contact numeroplates.co.uk for custom and legal number plates.
