DVLA Bans Numberplate As Obscene

A man from Chesterfield was ordered to remove a naughty number plate by the DVLA, even though he bought it from their website.

Alan Clarke, 49, paid £399 for the plate ‘BO11 LUX’ and fitted it to his new Range Rover.

His friends and family found the cheeky plate hilarious but the laughter was short-lived when, six weeks later, Clarke received a letter from the DVLA ordering him to remove it.

The organisation said the plate was “causing offence” and threatened Clarke with a fine of up to £1,000.

According to The Daily Mail, he said: “It’s absolutely ludicrous. I saw it on the DVLA website last November and thought it would be a bit of fun to put it on my new car.

“[The DVLA] are threatening to criminalise me. But they are a government agency and they put the plate on their own website for anyone to buy so it’s 100 per cent legal. I can’t imagine why anyone would be offended by it.”

Clarke said he thought it was the police who may have reported the plate to the DVLA.

A spokesman for the DVLA told The Daily Mail: “DVLA tries to identify combinations that may cause offence, and on the rare occasion where potentially offensive numbers slip through the net, steps are taken to withdraw the registration number.

“This particular registration plate has been withdrawn, therefore it is an offence for the driver to still be displaying it. He would receive a refund for the plate.”