DVLA Number Plates For Sale By Auction

Reg Plates Article

DVLA Number Plates For Sale By Auction

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”.

Just some of the 1,500 personalised registrations included in the forthcoming sale include:

115 A (reserve – £2,500), ABY 641L (£250), AMB 2R (£350), ARO 88IE (£250), AUS 111E (£250), 350 B (£2,500), B111 NDS (£250), B111 NKY (£250), BA11 DGE (£400), BE11 ANO (£400), BOS 551E (£250), BUB 4 (£1,200), 105 C (£2,500), CA17 RLY (£400), 888 CM (£2,200), 8111 D (£2,500), 247 DR (£2,200), 845 E (£2,500), ENS 20 (£1,200), FAS 70 (£1,200), FEZ 488 (£300), 458 FUN (£1,200), 111 G (£2,500), GA13 BBY (£400), GET 81G (£300), GTR 2R (£350), 120 H (£2,500), HGV 81G (£300), HOT 911A (£250), IG 111 (£2,200), 1000 J (£2,500), JOS 55H (£300), KAR 4H (£350), LE66 OTT (£700), 811 LS (£2,500), 500 M (£2,500), MAX 80W (£300), NAZ 5 (£500), NER 111S (£250), 72 O (£2,500), (£400), POT 110N (£250), RO13 BYS (£700), SMY 17H (£300), 801 T (£2,500), 812 TH (£2,200), TW15 TER (£700), UV51 NGH (£700), VAZ 110 (£300), W42 DLE (£250), W166 LES (£250), WH15 KER (£700), 222 X (£2,500).

So how do you ensure you get one that rises in value rather than one that remains static? The trick is to buy something that other people are likely to want. Number plates that show a person’s name or initials are a good example, providing they are not unusual names or initials. Having something that is unusual will not prevent the number plate from rising in value, but it may be more difficult as it will be harder to find a buyer whom the number plate is relevant to and who wants to pay for it.

Next, have a look at what is currently for sale that matches that name or initials. If there are not many or if the one you have is considerably better, you will have a greater chance of the investment rising in value. If, on the other hand, there are lots of other options for people with that name or initials, you may find it harder to sell the one you own.

Other things that can prevent you from getting a high price for a number plate include:

Number plates that are hard to understand – If people can’t tell what the number plate means after a few seconds of looking at it, you might struggle to get a high price for it.
Humorous number plates – These types of plates are very niche, so the market for them is smaller than for standard phrases.
Made up or unique words – There may not be anyone else who wants a number plate with a very unusual word.

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