Personalised Number Plate Information

NUMBER PLATES:

Dubai: U66, Z777 and M2222 will be among 80 unique number plates up for grabs at the Roads and Transport Authority’s (RTA) 94th open auction on March 11.
Registration for the year’s first auction, which will be held at Emirates Towers’ Godolphin Ballroom, will open from March 4.

The last two auctions of last year generated huge interests with single digit plate D5 going for Dh33 million in October, while the plate number Q2 on offer in December went unsold despite massive expectations.

“The recent open auctions saw huge footfall from various community segments. This has promoted us to offer another chance for the public to engage in positive bidding for their fancied numbers in various codes,” Sultan Al Marzouqi, Director of Vehicle Licensing at RTA.

The numbers on offer range from two and three digits to four and five digits, including S90000 and U66.

During the auction, plate N572 will be on offer through a draw for the participants.

“Interested bidders can register in RTA’s Customers Happiness Centres at Umm Al Romool, Deira and Al Barsha. They can also register through RTA’s website (www.rta.ae), or Drivers and Vehicles app, and each participant is required to have a traffic file in Dubai,” said Al Marzouqi.

Registration for the auction will remain open until the day of the auction, and bidding will start at 4.30pm.

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The number plate 1D was bought for a record £352,000 at auction yesterday.

Tycoon Nabil Bishara won it in fierce bidding and plans to put it on his wife's Bentley.

His £352,411 offer beats the previous £254,000 best for a DVLA sale, set by 51NGH in 2006. The DVLA's Damian Lawson said after the auction in Claverdon, Warks: We're absolutely over the moon."

Britain's priciest car reg is F1, bought privately for £440,625 in 2008 by Afzal Kahn of Bradford, West Yorks."

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Police have generated Dhs 8.4 million in revenues from the auction of 150 distinctive vehicle licence plates (category III) during the fourth electronic auction on Saturday. It was organised in cooperation with Emirates Auction, the leading auction company in the Middle East specialising in the organization and management of auctions and electronic.

The double-digit number (77), the highest amount in the auction, reached Dhs1,460,000 after a fierce competition that lasted until the last seconds of the auction closing on the Emirates Auction website.
While the three, four and five-digit plates attracted a number of auctioneers.
The number 11111 was able to reach the barrier of Dhs680,500, while the number 555 sold for Dhs465,000.
The number plate 10000 was sold Dhs 374,000, the number 5555 sold for Dhs356,500.

Brigadier General Saif Al Zari Al Shamsi, Commander-in-Chief of Sharjah Police, said: "We are pleased to conclude this successful auction of the distinctive vehicle number plates’, which comes within the strategy of the Sharjah Police General Command to employ modern technology and systems to improve the quality of services provided to customers according to international standards.
It was also an opportunity for citizens and residents to acquire special plates with their desired numbers.

Al Shamsi thanked Emirates Auction for its efforts in organising the fourth electronic auction and other auctions that contributed in achieving the Ministry of Interior's strategy to enhance customer satisfaction and improve the quality of services provided to them.

Do you fancy driving around Launceston as Batman while keeping an eye out for your nemesis, Joker?

Two number plates going under the hammer this month could turn the childhood dream of a DC Comics’ fan into reality.

Batman and Joker number plates are up for grabs at Tullochs Auctions’ Collector Car Auction.

Auction manager Jesse Reid tips the plates will bring out the young superhero and villain in bidders.

“The plates themselves are enough to have an auction on,” she laughed.

It is expected the Batman plate will fetch up to $35,000 while the Joker is only tipped to reach $2000.

In July a number plate bearing the number one sold at Tullochs Auctions for a staggering $310,000.

Ms Reid admits although Batman is expected to fetch $35,000, the huge amount paid for the number one plate showed anything was possible.

“There’s a lot of number plate investors – they’ve been really undervalued for a while – and have been picking up,” she said.

The increased interest has resulted in 24 number plates being put up for sale at the upcoming auction.

But it is not only stamped aluminum up for grabs at the Collector Car Auction.

A rare, left-hand drive 1974 LJ Holden Torana built in the Philippines could sell for a “very affordable” price.

With one owner, Ms Reid tips the car will fetch up to $45,000.

As of Tuesday evening, pre-bidding, the top bid lodged was $22,500.

The Torana coupled with a Falcon XB John Goss Coupe and a 1986 Porsche 911 Carrera 3.2 Targa is likely to draw car enthusiasts from the woodwork.

The Porsche Targa – with a desirable Tasmanian history – is likely to sell for between $85,000 and $95,000.

A FX 48-215 featured in Saturday’s story in The Examiner about the closure of Holden will also go under the hammer.

“We’re looking somewhere around the million with the interest in the stock we’ve got,” Ms Reid said.

The auction manager said the popularity of vehicles had been increasing.

“The car auctions have a fairly big mainland following and we get a great response,” she said.

The Collector Car Auction will be held on October 21 from 1pm.

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Potential investors in registration plates often consider private purchases, via newspaper ads, or classified ads from owners looking for a quick sale. However, this can be somewhat time consuming.

At the other end of the scale, when the time comes to get rid of your personalised registration plate there are numerous avenues to explore. Many sought-after registration plates have been known to sell for thousands of pounds. As long as your registration plate has retail or sentimental value to others, it is quite possible that you can make a profit on your initial investment.

Potential investors in registration plates often consider private purchases, via newspaper ads, or classified ads from owners looking for a quick sale. However, this can be somewhat time consuming.

At the other end of the scale, when the time comes to get rid of your personalised registration plate there are numerous avenues to explore. Many sought-after registration plates have been known to sell for thousands of pounds. As long as your registration plate has retail or sentimental value to others, it is quite possible that you can make a profit on your initial investment.

http://www.regplates.com

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Drivers have been warned that they can be stripped of their car’s number plate if they break the law.

Devon and Cornwall Police revealed the circumstances in which plates can be seized as they revealed how many motorists had been stopped for having dodgy plates.

The force said three drivers a week were stopped, on average, in the last 12 months for having illegal plates.

So-called “non conforming” number plates include those that have been mis-spaced and those with italics.

In response to a request under the Freedom of Information Act, a Devon and Cornwall Police spokesman said: “The force will also contact DVLA (Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency) in cases where the number plate has been mis-spaced.

“Purchasers of the registration mark do not own the plate, they own the right to place it on their vehicle, subject to conditions. Mis-spacing is one of them.

“On receipt of two reports of the same mark being mis-spaced they will remove it from the owner, who may have paid several thousand pounds for it. Often the illegal number plates are purchased on the internet and specified not for road use.”

On its website the DVLA also warned that you could be fined up to £1,000, and that your car “will fail its MOT test if you drive with incorrectly displayed number plates”.

THESE ARE THE DVLA’S RULES
For vehicles with new or replacement number plates fitted from 1 September 2001, registration numbers can no longer be shown over three lines (unless the vehicle was first registered before 1 January 1973) or if a vehicle is constructed before 1 January 1976 and is registered in the historic tax class and is exempt from vehicle tax.

Also, the letters and numbers (characters) on number plates bought since 1 September 2001 will need to meet the following standards.

Characters must be 79mm tall

Characters (except the number 1 or letter I) must be 50mm wide

The character stroke (the thickness of the black print) must be 14mm

The space between characters must be 11mm

The space between the age identifier and the random letters must be 33mm

The margins at the top, bottom and side of the plate must be 11mm

Vertical space between the age identifier and the random numbers must be 19mm

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As well as having an internet presence, we also regularly advertise in many of the 'National' publications where we offer a selection of registrations owned by us for sale.

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More than seven million people tuned in to watch the Queen’s speech on television on Christmas Day - but thousands also logged on to the Swansea-based DVLA’s online services.

Figures from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency in Morriston reveal that despite it being December 25, many still found time to keep on top of their vehicle administration, from taxing cars to buying personalised registrations.

So, in addition to the estimated 10 million turkeys eaten on the big day, 8,550 vehicles were taxed or declared off road online, 521 people informed the agency online they had bought or sold a vehicle, and more than 1,600 people applied for their first provisional driving licence.

Oliver Morley, chief executive of the Swansea-based DVLA, said: “Giving customers choice in how, where and when they use our services is at the heart of what we do.

“We are committed to creating digital services that meet the needs of our customers and clearly, these services are allowing people the opportunity to fit their admin into their lifestyle – 365 days a year.”

Other figures for online activity on Christmas Day include 136 people paying a fine, 621 people buying a personalised registration number, 456 people applying for a duplicate licence, 727 telling the DVLA of their new address and 11,343 viewing their driving licence.

THERE are a number of mistakes that can be made on personalised number plates that could see drivers land a £1,000 and also fail their MOT. Here is what they are and how to avoid them.

Illegal number plates could see thousands of Brits face fines and even make them fail their MOT.

Certain personalised number plates have the potential to be costly errors for drivers.

While a personalised number plate can be, to some people, a nice form of expression, they could also be costly.

Personalised number plate firm Regplates.com encourages drivers to use a degree of imagination and interpretation while designing one, but sticking to the traditional number plate formats.

According to the company, however, 15,000 drivers across the UK have been fined for having an illegal plates over the past three years.

The worst offenders come from London with 3,058 offences clocked while North Wales and Norfolk also totted up over 1,100 each.

This includes plates that did not conform to regulations, cars without a front or back plate or ones with indistinguishable/obscured plates.

It is a legal requirement for a car’s numberplate to be clear and legible and failure to meet these criteria can result in £1,000 fine, loss of the personal registration number and/or a failed MOT.

There are other modifications that drivers can also be penalised for.

These include using the wrong colours for the lettering or for the background of the plates.

Number plates should have black characters on a white background at the front of the car and on a yellow background on the back of the car.

Spacing is also crucial and drivers should ensure that the characters on their plate are correctly spaced.

Non-confirming backgrounds or stickers that could interfere with the legibility of a plate are also factors that carry a fine risk.

The standard font used on all number plates is ‘Charles Wright’ and it is the only one deemed acceptable for motorists to have.

Similarly, the flag on the left hand side of the plate must also be correct.

Acceptable flags include: The EU flag, The Union Jack, The St George Cross, The Scottish Saltire (St Andrew Cross) and The Red Dragon of Wales.

The transport department has clarified that all vehicles registered in the state must have High Security Registration Plates (HSRP) fitted by January 15, 2018. The department has plans to impose a fine of Rs 500 on those who fail to comply with the requirement.

The state government had in November 2012 made it mandatory for all new vehicles to have HSRP number plates. But the vehicles registered before 2012 were given exemption. That exemption has now been done away with and the transport department, following a Supreme Court order has mandated HSRP for any and all vehicles registered in the state. The apex court had in November this year issued notices and sought response from five states on a contempt plea alleging non-compliance of the order related to ensuring high security registration plates (HSRP) for all vehicles. A bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud issued notice to the governments of five states and sought their response in eight weeks.

It was contended that despite the apex court directive earlier in 2017, the five state governments - Gujarat, Assam, Delhi, Haryana and Bihar had not complied with the directions.The transport department stated that it has also come to their notice that several vehicles registered after November 2012 are moving without the HSRP number plate.

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The UK's most expensive number plate to date is the F1 registration number purchased by a British businessman for £440,625 in 2008, though that's just small change compared to the £7m spent by Abu Dhabi-based Saeed Khouri on the 1 number plate - officially the largest sum of money ever spent on a registration number.

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The introduction of a new smart vehicle licensing system by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority [DVLA] would raise the cost of vehicle registration.

Though authorities are unable to say exactly how much it would, it is expected that the new technology and some other variables would contribute to the price increase.

Speaking to JoyNews, CEO of DVLA, Kwasi Agyeman Busia, said the pricing of the smart system will be determined by analyses from consultants from the sub-region. This should be completed by the 18th of July.

The DVLA as part of its digitisation process, is replacing the existing vehicle registration regime with a smart card service, to reduce human-to-human interaction in registering vehicles and also do away with paper documentation.

Digital documentation have already been done on vehicles from 1995 to date and starting from July 18, all vehicle registration is expected to be paperless as details will be transferred onto a smart card.

The Authority expressed optimism that the initiative will solve the problem of fake documentation on vehicles and ownership in the country.

"At any point in time, the one source of truth for a vehicle's owner is DVLA so for example if you got to the bank and you're using your car as a collateral, what we have now is the bank will consult DVLA through a mechanism we are establishing with and we are the only source to say this vehicle belongs to John/Jane Doe.”

The wide-ranging reforms by the DVLA which is to ensure that all drivers have been properly certified to handle vehicles will also see the phasing out of existing drivers' licence to be replaced with new ones with better security features to curb duplication.

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We also sponsor the Generation FMX freestlye motocross team.

So let the experts take the stress out of buying or selling your registration mark. Why not browse this site, and if you need any further assistance, we are on hand from 9am until 7pm Monday - Saturday, 10am - 4pm Sunday.

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Parking firms are buying details of more than 19,000 vehicles a day from the DVLA to chase unpaid fines.

Last night MPs warned that ‘bully boy’ firms are using the information to hound innocent motorists.

They called for a crackdown to protect drivers as it was revealed that the trade in information has reached record levels.

Between April and June the DVLA sold 1.74million vehicle keeper records, up from 1.06million in the same period last year. The DVLA, which sells the information for £2.50 a vehicle, is generating almost £1.5million a month.

The information is used by parking companies to chase drivers for fines of up to £100.

The most prolific of these is ParkingEye, owned by outsourcing firm Capita – which was exposed by the Daily Mail for using ruthless tactics to collect TV licence fees for the BBC.

It obtained 570,000 vehicle records in the three-month period, followed by Smart Parking with 125,000 and Euro Car Parks with 118,000.

The RAC Foundation said the industry is out of control, with the data suggesting a parking fine is issued every four and half seconds. It warned that the details of around seven million vehicles could be sold during the financial year, which would suggest that almost a quarter of motorists are being chased for a parking fine.

MPs are worried that the information is being widely misused, with motorists unfairly targeted while visiting hospitals and high street shops. Drivers have complained about being fined up to £100 for returning their cars a few minutes late, or after being unable to buy a ticket because of a faulty ticket machine.

Tory MP Sir Greg Knight said there appears to be a worrying rise in a practice known as ‘ghost ticketing’.

This is when a warden puts a ticket on a car and takes a photo. The warden then removes the ticket so the driver is unaware they were given one.

The firm waits 14 days, then hits the driver with an increased fine of up to £100 because they have not paid.

Sir Greg, who has tabled a private members’ Bill in the Commons to crack down on the self-regulated parking industry, said: ‘These figures are concerning. It is highly unlikely there has been a massive increase in bad parking.

‘Instead bully-boy parking firms are hounding innocent motorists and milking them for money. We need to put rogue firms out of business. There are many private parking companies who are playing fair. But others are clearly making a killing out of pursuing and persecuting motorists who have done nothing wrong.’

Fellow Tory Jacob Rees-Mogg said: ‘My concern is that some of these firms use the fines they levy as part of their business model.

‘This gives them a strong incentive to levy fines unjustly and aggressively. We would not need a new law if DVLA was more willing to strike off companies suspected of behaving badly.’

A ParkingEye spokesman said: ‘We operate with clear, standard and proportionate procedures which follow the British Parking Association’s code of practice. We encourage people who have received a parking charge to appeal if they think they should not have received a charge.’

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Cherished numbers are a great investment and now is the perfect time to start your collection.

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