DVLA Number Plate Auctions

Reg Plates Article

DVLA Number Plate Auctions

Are you a cat lover with a few hundred quid to spare? How about a huge Dennis the Menace fan keen to show your appreciation via the medium of your motor? Well you’re in luck as the DVLA – the body in charge of car registrations in the UK – is holding 2017’s first live auction of registration numbers this week and among the plates on offer are WH15 KER ( yours for a starting price of £700) and BE11 ANO (a mere £400). The event – which starts on Wednesday – will see a total of 1,500 personalised registrations being auctioned to members of the public. The registrations on offer have been chosen by DVLA to suit all tastes, styles and budgets and range from plates that reflect names such as EL17 OTT, HA15 RRY and PA14 ULA through to quirkier offerings such as OUR 848Y, OLD 800K and YOU 105E. And fans of Harry Potter could find themselves spellbound by POT 110N which carries a reserve of £250. The agency will be aiming to build on the success of its live auction programme in 2016, which raised £25.6 million through five sales – setting a new record for a second consecutive year. Last year, the total sales of personalised registrations by the DVLA surpassed £147m, taking the total amount raised since the sales began in September 1989 to £2.4 billion. Sales by the agency suggest that interest in personalised plates has soared in recent years with a 150 per cent increase of registered bidders for its live sales since 2011. On average 9,500 customers com[pete for lots per auction. Adam Griffiths, of DVLA Personalised Registrations, said: “It’s been nearly three months since our last live sale, and I am really excited by our first sale of 2017 where some really great registrations are available to bid for. We have experienced two successive record-breaking years and, when you look through the catalogue at the registrations we have compiled for this sale, I am very hopeful that this success will continue.” He added: “Bidding in person is by far the most popular way to buy a registration and it is at the auction where you will find the real atmosphere – it’s a great day out and we make the experience as enjoyable and friendly as possible. If you can’t make it to the auction we offer free telephone, internet and absent bidding facilities”.

If you have a clear idea of the letters and numbers you would like in your number plate, you can carry out a specialised search that covers over 42 million combinations of number plate registrations.

Choosing between current style number plates and prefix style number plates gives you a wider range of options, so you are more likely to find a private plate that includes the letters and numbers you prefer. All you need to do is fill in two of the three search boxes at the top of the page and then let our website do its magic. You will be presented with options you can purchase for yourself, or as a gift.

Personalised number plate auctions take place every three months, selling an average of 1,600 private registration numbers each time. They are a great opportunity to get hold of number plates that have never been on sale before, as they come with the new issues of each year’s plates.

If you are unable to attend the auction yourself, you can rely on us to bid on your dream personalised number plate – which will also help to prevent you from getting carried away and bidding far more than you had intended to!

We have the experience and expertise to be able to offer you advice and guidance about the kind of price range a particular plate might go for, and you can trust us to place your bids for you. We can even call you during the auction so you can keep track of whether you’re on a winning streak or not.

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