HomeRecent Number Plate NewsThe Law on Number Plates Jayne Henry October 17, 2010 Recent Number Plate News DVLA guidelines on how Number Plates should be displayed The DVLA states that all registration marks including marks purchased through DVLA’s sales scheme must be displayed in accordance with The Road Vehicles (Display of Registration Marks) Regulations 2001 (obtainable from Her Majesty’s Stationery Office). The Rules of Displaying Number Plates A number plate must be displayed at the front and rear of motor vehicles (with some exceptions). Number Plates must be easy to read and meet the British Standard. Lettering should be black on a white plate at the front and a yellow at the rear. The background surface should be reflex-reflecting but the characters must not. There are separate requirements for traditional number plates displayed on vehicles constructed before 1 January 1973, these are Black Number Plates with Silver Lettering Lettering and spacing must be of a set size. They must conform to one of the groups shown at:- Number plates fitted after 1 September 2001 or Number plates fitted before 1 September 2001. Number Plate Law The law states that, You must not alter, rearrange or misrepresent the letters or numbers Characters must not be moved from one group to the other (e.g. A242 ABC must not be displayed as A242A BC). Number plates must be clean and visible and NOT like this number plate, Offences may result in any or all of the following: A fine of up to £1,000 The registration mark may be WITHDRAWN The vehicle may FAIL the MOT test
