Personalised Number Plate Information

NUMBER PLATES:

The Licensing Agency, Roads & Transport Authority (RTA) is all set to offer 250 licensing plates comprising 3, 4 and 5 digits in its forthcoming 51st online auction. Plates on offer bear the Codes (H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, and T). Registration of bidders starts on Sunday 21st January. The bidding will start at 08:00 am on 28th Jan 2018 and continue for five days.

"The wide participation of the public in online or open auctions and the positive competition to grab such numbers underscore the importance of holding these auctions in bringing happiness & satisfaction to number plate enthusiasts," Sultan Al Marzouqi, Director of Vehicles licensing, RTA Licensing Agency.

Al Marzouqi highlighted the importance of online auctions to a large segment of community members who prefer such particular auctions as they find the liberty of selecting their fancied numbers in a hassle-free environment. "These auctions also contribute to enhancing the online services of the RTA under its annual plan aimed at improving the quality and standard of processing public transactions," he commented.

"Participation in the auction requires the client to have an account opened through RTA's website (www.rta.ae) or use the 'New User' link to obtain a Username and Password. For a new registration, the user is required to have either a vehicle registered in Dubai or a driver license issued from Dubai. For participating in the auction, the bidder is required to issue a security cheque to the order of the RTA amounting to AED5,000 and deposit it to one of RTA's Customers Happiness Centers at Umm Al Ramool, Bur Dubai, Deira or Al Tawar Municipal Centre. In the case of payment by a credit card, the client must also deposit five thousand dirhams as security. Clients have also to pay 120 dirhams as participation fees through the website (www.rta.ae)" explained Al Marzouqi.

"The successful bidder has to clear the due amount within ten working days from the Auction Closing Date by cash or credit card through centres of service providers or RTA's Customer Happiness Centers. Cash payments are acceptable up to AED 50,000. For higher amounts, customers can make payment by a certified check or credit card, or pay online using a credit card too. Failure to clear due payments will result in entering the bidder in the list of defaulters," he added.

"A dedicated team at RTA's Call Center has been furnished with all information related to the auction, and stands ready to respond to any public inquiries relating to procedures of participation or payment through the toll-free number 8009090," concluded Al Marzouqi.

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Number Plate Suppliers, do they have to be registered?

The short answer to the question is YES.

If you are buying a cherished plate through a registered (MIRAD) dealer who is also a registered number plate supplier (RNPS) with the DVLA then they can supply the plates for you.

Sales manager at Image Registrations Bruno Morris said if we are supplying the cherished number to the client and transferring it onto the vehicle for them then we already have established proof of ownership and identity during the transfer procedure. It saves the customer a lot of hassle by enabling us to supply the registration plates with the completed paperwork"."

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ITP had launched a 15-day campaign for awareness among road users to remove unauthorised or non-patterned number plates from their vehicles and bikes.

The campaign was launched under the directions of Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, with the purpose to ensure high security alert, and maintain law and order situation in the capital.

The campaign will end after two days on April 15 after which strict legal action will be taken against drivers whose vehicles have non-patterned number plates.

All such number plates would be considered fake and a fine would be imposed on such vehicle owners. The Traffic SSP had sent letters to government and private organisations regarding this campaign. He also appealed that the citizens cooperate with ITP and display authorised number plates issued by Excise and Taxation Office.


Bidders allowed to purchase an unlimited number of private vehicle number plates in Kingdom's first ever public auction
05 : 59 PM - 12/04/2017
Manama, Apr. 12 (BNA): The first public auction of private vehicle number plates will take place at 18:00 on 13 April at the Isa Sports City Hall D, adjacent to the Bahrain National Stadium.


The auction, organised by Mazad, will open for registration between 11:00 to 17:00 on 13 April. In line with the company’s commitment to fairness and transparency, Mazad has announced that there will be a set amount of seats available for non-participating members of the public, which will be allocated on a first come first serve basis.

Mr Talal Arif Alaraifi, CEO of Mazad, stated that the fast track service opened to all interested parties generated a large amount of interest at all locations, including at the Notary Office, Gosi Commercial Complex, and the Bahrain Investors Centre in Bahrain Financial Harbour.

Mr Alaraifi also highlighted that all the necessary procedures have been put in place ahead of the auction, and that the successful preparation is a reflection of the wide-ranging stakeholder engagement that has been undertaken. Mr Alaraifi also noted that a separate office for issuing power of attorney will be allocated in the auction venue.

The CEO called on those wishing to participate in the auction to bring all necessary documentation to the venue, including ID cards, and to ensure they have signed the participation form. Mr Alaraifi noted that company owners can register in the name of their companies through individuals authorised by law, and provide original power of attorney documentation at the event.

Mr Al Araifi further noted that regardless of nationality, bidders registered to participate will be able to purchase an unlimited number of private vehicle number plates. Buyers must complete the payment process within ten days, and upon completion of payment will be provided with an official certificate of ownership and have the freedom to use and/or assign the private number plate.

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The first series of number plates were issued in 1903 and ran until 1932, using the series A 1 to YY 9999. The letter or pair of letters indicated the local authority in whose area the vehicle was registered, for example A - London, B - Lancashire, C - West Riding of Yorkshire. In England and Wales the letter codes were initially allocated in order of population size (by the 1901 census) whilst Scotland and Ireland had their own sequences incorporating the letters S and I respectively, which were allocated alphabetically: IA = Antrim, IB = Armagh, etc. When a licensing authority reached 9999, it was allocated another two letter mark, but there was no pattern to these subsequent allocations as they were allocated on a first come first served basis. There are three interesting anomalies where a zero has been issued - The Lord Provost of Edinburgh has S 0 and his Glasgow counterpart has G 0 while the official car of the Lord Provost of Aberdeen has RG 0. In addition the Lord Mayor of London has the registration LB 0.

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Record numbers of motorists are driving cars fitted with personalised numberplates amid a surge in “auto vanity”.

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency sold a record 374,968 registrations last year, up 12 per cent in 12 months and almost five times the total in the mid-90s.

The trade in numberplates made more than £110 million for the Treasury in 2016-17 alone, a record annual total.

The rise coincides with an increase in the number of registrations made available by the DVLA, combined with a sharp rise in the value of rare plates over the past two decades.

In an era when we’re all supposed to be flaunting our individuality, the trend for personalised car number plates has apparently never been higher. The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), which sells new and never-issued registrations, sold 374,968 last year, an increase of 12%.

Among private dealers, who sell pre-owned plates, business is just as good.

“For the past five years, [the market has] been steadily rising.” It is thought one reason is a personalised plate makes the age of the car less obvious. But he also says social media has played a huge part. “It’s, ‘Hey, everybody, look at me’,” he says.

People post pictures of their new cars on Instagram, and adding a private plate “seems to be something that people can use to boost their social media reach”.

At the entry-level end of the market, “registrations that start at £250, on average there are 800 of those sold every day.” He says one fairly common customer is the parent who buys a personalised plate for their child on passing their driving test, to go with a new car. “My typical client would be someone in their 40s or 50s, they’ve got a bit of money sitting about and always fancied a personalised number plate.”

At the extreme end, plates can fetch more than £500,000. In 2014, one classic-car dealer bought a “25 O” plate, reportedly for his Ferrari 250 GTO, for £400,000 (the final price, including fees, was £518,000) and a “250 L” for £130,000.

“The numbers that were selling for £1,000 in 1980 now sell for £150,000. What probably changed it was in the late 80s, when the government started to sell numberplates. We in the trade all thought it would devalue the numbers, but it didn’t, it just got more people interested.”

A personalised plate is “a prestigious thing. There’s a little bit of vanity about it,” says Saperia. As for those of us who believe it’s the mark of a bit of a berk, Saperia points out that the DVLA’s sale of personalised plates “bring more than £100m every year to the treasury”.

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A NUMBER plate sold to raise money for Tatton Park has fetched a world record price of £331,500 at auction.

The M1 registration mark was bought by an anonymous north west-based bidder - for his six-year-old son's birthday.

Officials at auctioneers Bonhams and Tatton Park were stunned by the final selling price for the unique plate, which quickly reached and overtook the previous world record.

And they were even more amazed to learn that the owner is a boy who cannot legally drive for another 11 years.

The youngster is the son of a wealthy Cheshire businessman who refused to reveal himself and made his bids by phone.

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