Number Plates

[gadjet]

The rear number plate was damaged when someone drove into the back of my car .It is still complete ,but cracked.
Do I need to get a new plate or can I mend the existing one ? Would mending it affect the reflection ?
If I need to get a new one, what documentation do I need to produce to prove ownership ?

Thanks
Sue

[88V8]

The rear number plate was damaged when someone drove into the back of my car .It is still complete ,but cracked.
Do I need to get a new plate or can I mend the existing one ? Would mending it affect the reflection ?

The number plate on our shopping trolley cracked years ago when my welly caught under it as I was washing the car.

If it is firmly attached, no need to replace it. You could take it off and put some duck tape along the back of the crack to reinforce it if you like.

V8

[staffordian]

If the existing one is complete but cracked and you mended it in some way, I reckon you would be unlucky to be pulled up for it, but it might fail an MOT.

To get new ones, you normally need proof of ID and the V5 document for the vehicle.

Some dodgy online sellers don't ask for anything but I'd be wary as they may not meet the legal requirement for road legal plates, such as a supplier postcode. They are usually advertised as show plates and I suspect most of the dodgily spaced personal plates are sourced this way.

[chas49]

If I need to get a new one, what documentation do I need to produce to prove ownership ?

Thanks
Sue

Official info on documentation here: https://www.gov.uk/displaying-number-pl ... es-made-up

[bungeejumper]

I once bought a £5 "show" plate online after mine got demolished by a careless fellow human. (I use that term loosely. ) A show plate isn't technically road-legal, because, although the letters and the spacing are right, it doesn't have the maker's mark to certify that he's physically seen your V5.

But my techically illegal car passed six MOTs, and it was was also pulled over by a traffic patrol, none of whom noticed the lack of a postcode on the plate. Would have been a serious crime if my intention had been to clone a random stranger's car, but since it matched my V5 it was a victimless misdemeanour, at worst.

My regular independent garage will do me a new plate without needing to see my V5. He's been servicing the car for so long that my VIN number is already on his records. And, since his garage's name is on the new plate, he provides it for nothing. Free advertising, you see?

BJ

[brightncheerful]

Having fallen out with the dealership whose lip on the plate had their advertising on it without my permission, I got my local garage (authorised. approved provider) to supply and fit a new plate. Theirs are metal, last longer.

[MonsterMork]

If the existing one is complete but cracked and you mended it in some way, I reckon you would be unlucky to be pulled up for it, but it might fail an MOT.

Sorry I'm late to the thread!

For MoT purposes it would depend on the severity of the damage and whether the damage would affect the ability to properly read the plate from a distance or by an ANPR or speed camera. Details on the MoT requirements here:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/mot-inspect ... he-vehicle

Please note however that even if a plate (in any condition - new, old, cracked, minty fresh, whatever) passes an MoT it may not actually be technically legal As mentioned elsewhere a plate with no makers postcode and a missing BS number (BS AU 145 D or BS AU 145 E) may pass an MoT but an eagle-eyed clued-up copper may take umbrage*, as this falls into Construction And Use regulations, which can, and usually do, differ significantly from MoT rules. As you may find from the above link the MoT does not check for the presence of a BS number or makers postcode, but it is actually a requirement as stipulated in C&U. Those of you suffering from insomnia may find this link helpful and educational:

https://www.bnma.org/advice-centre/the- ... s-au-145e/

And before you ask why I have looked all this up for you, yes, I am bored squitless this evening

MoTMork


*if you get nailed by the plod for a lack of BS number or makers postcode then you must have seriously brassed them off!!!

[bungeejumper]

*if you get nailed by the plod for a lack of BS number or makers postcode then you must have seriously brassed them off!!!

Indeed. But isn't the bigger issue that a plate without a postcode has been made up and sent out without the issuer having certified sight of the V5? Which is just what you'd want if you were trying to clone another car's number plate?

My neighbour got a visit from plod some years ago, about an incident in which "his" car had knocked a cyclist off a bridge in Durham, I believe. By good fortune, he happened to have a confirmable alibi on the day in question, and he also told them that he'd never been that far north in his life. (But then, he would say that, wouldn't he?)

Plod sighed heavily and accepted his statement, and they didn't trouble him again. But the episode did underline the importance of everybody having road legal plates.

BJ

[stevensfo]

*if you get nailed by the plod for a lack of BS number or makers postcode then you must have seriously brassed them off!!!

Indeed. But isn't the bigger issue that a plate without a postcode has been made up and sent out without the issuer having certified sight of the V5? Which is just what you'd want if you were trying to clone another car's number plate?

My neighbour got a visit from plod some years ago, about an incident in which "his" car had knocked a cyclist off a bridge in Durham, I believe. By good fortune, he happened to have a confirmable alibi on the day in question, and he also told them that he'd never been that far north in his life. (But then, he would say that, wouldn't he?)

Plod sighed heavily and accepted his statement, and they didn't trouble him again. But the episode did underline the importance of everybody having road legal plates.

BJ

Crikey, is all this stuff about BS, postcode, V5 etc fairly recent? I admit that it's over 20 years ago, but I remember giving Halfords the plate number and picking it up the next day. Maybe my memory is playing tricks but I seem to remember that it was no more difficult than buying a bag of potatoes.

Though, being Halfords, I don't think it was as cheap!

Steve

[quelquod]

Crikey, is all this stuff about BS, postcode, V5 etc fairly recent? I admit that it's over 20 years ago, but I remember giving Halfords the plate number and picking it up the next day. Maybe my memory is playing tricks but I seem to remember that it was no more difficult than buying a bag of potatoes.

Though, being Halfords, I don't think it was as cheap!

Steve

Halfrauds eh? A few cars ago I needed a numberplate for my caravan and dropped into the Livingston branch, gave my details, paid and wandered off - no need for V5 or any other sort of proof of ownership etc. Fine I thought until that evening when I went to collect it and found that they'd made it up to my postcode instead of my registration, so maybe having the V5 is a help to some of the dumbasses out there?

[Watis]

Indeed. But isn't the bigger issue that a plate without a postcode has been made up and sent out without the issuer having certified sight of the V5? Which is just what you'd want if you were trying to clone another car's number plate?

My neighbour got a visit from plod some years ago, about an incident in which "his" car had knocked a cyclist off a bridge in Durham, I believe. By good fortune, he happened to have a confirmable alibi on the day in question, and he also told them that he'd never been that far north in his life. (But then, he would say that, wouldn't he?)

Plod sighed heavily and accepted his statement, and they didn't trouble him again. But the episode did underline the importance of everybody having road legal plates.

BJ

Crikey, is all this stuff about BS, postcode, V5 etc fairly recent? I admit that it's over 20 years ago, but I remember giving Halfords the plate number and picking it up the next day. Maybe my memory is playing tricks but I seem to remember that it was no more difficult than buying a bag of potatoes.

Though, being Halfords, I don't think it was as cheap!

Steve

I bought a number plate in 1997, just after the new rules were introduced. To satisfy the man in Halfords I had to show the V5, my paper driving licence (to confirm that I was the registered keeper) and my passport (for the photo ID). Fortunately, I'd taken all those documents with me.

Watis

[stevensfo]

Crikey, is all this stuff about BS, postcode, V5 etc fairly recent? I admit that it's over 20 years ago, but I remember giving Halfords the plate number and picking it up the next day. Maybe my memory is playing tricks but I seem to remember that it was no more difficult than buying a bag of potatoes.

Though, being Halfords, I don't think it was as cheap!

Steve

I bought a number plate in 1997, just after the new rules were introduced. To satisfy the man in Halfords I had to show the V5, my paper driving licence (to confirm that I was the registered keeper) and my passport (for the photo ID). Fortunately, I'd taken all those documents with me.

Watis

1997 was the year when I left my job in France and drove back to the UK. My family had gone on ahead, leaving me to bring the last few bits and pieces. I remember Halfords as being incredibly expensive. Maybe it's changed. Auto shops were everywhere in France, Halfords seemed to have a monopoly.

I can only think that I must have changed my plates just before the new laws. To get my Ford Escort legal, I had to change the position of the brake light and then register the car in a DVLC office. All quite fast. I did commit a faux pas in the office when the lady asked me if I was there to register a personalised number plate. I remember shaking my head and asking if I really looked so stupid. She lowered her voice and said that most people in the queue were here for that reason. Red face and quiet exit time!

Steve

PS Whatever they say about France, I only had a few scrapes in 10 years whereas over 5 years in Stevenage, we had two cars written off after being rear-ended, my precious Escort and a Nissan Micra.