Vehicle Registration: Licence Plate Rules

In the UK, just like numerous other countries, a licence plate is a legal requirement for all vehicles on the road. Of course, licence plate regulations vary from country to country and UK licence plates have their own laws and regulations that drivers need to follow.

Sometimes the licence plate laws change causing confusion among motorists. So, how does the UK number plate system work? What determines how data is presented on a UK licence plate?

When were car licence plates first implemented?

Licence plates, as many drivers currently know them, were first introduced in the UK in 1903. As part of the Motor Car Act, all vehicles required such plates on both their front and rear.

All vehicles in the UK require vehicle registration and license plates before being road-worthy.

Of course, these must be obtained through legal channels, as all vehicles must be registered via the DVA (Driving and Vehicle Agency in Northern Ireland) or the DVLA (Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency in Great Britain).

Registering for a car license plate

After the vehicle registration process is complete, the owner then has the legal right, or actually, an obligation, to buy and use a numbered car plate. To ensure that all plates are assigned correctly, you must apply for your plates through a DVLA registered supplier. The DVLA vehicle registration helps to ensure the DVLA is aware of all numbers given out and guarantees you don’t obtain a number that is already in use.

These plates can also only be given out to officially registered vehicles, which is why you need to register your car beforehand. This is also the case when reapplying for an existing plate - since the licence expires after six months - as you still need a registered vehicle to keep it.

How to read licence plates?

If you don’t drive, licence plates may appear to you as a complicated or random series of numbers and letters. However, just like tyre markings and tyre size codes, this is about the data that can tell you a great deal about the car.

Currently, the UK number plate format consists of 7 characters: the first group of 2 letters followed by 2 numbers and the second part made by 3 letters.

The initial 2 letters of the first group are the local memory tag. They tell you the specific DVLA office used in the registration process, if the plate was registered before 2013. From this point onwards, the code generally refers to entire regions, e.g. MA for Manchester.

The next 2 numbers are the age identifier, meaning the registration period in which the plates were created. The current system has been in place since 2001 and it sees the number change every September and March. Since that period, the numbers start from “02” in March and “52” in September. 

Below are the current numbers used, thus far, so you can easily tell how old a car is:

The last three letters are randomly generated to register individual cars. This way, two vehicles registered in the same region, during the same 6-month period, still have different plates and can be identified as such.

What are cherished number plates?

While many drivers are normally happy with their car as it is, others prefer to make their car as personal and unique as possible. Sometimes this is about fitting aesthetically pleasing car tyres or bigger car wheels but it may also be about the vehicle registration numbers. More and more often, people look to register personalised licence plates.

Such custom licence plates are legally allowed in the UK and are available through the same channels as regular plates. After all, these still need to be unique and must be obtained through a DVLA vetted supplier.

Often called “cherished number plates” in the UK, they come in a variety of forms. The most popular is the dateless style, as this does not require the date of the vehicle to be displayed. As a result, these are often highly in demand, both because they require more creative freedom and because they allow owners to ‘hide’ the age of their vehicle, consequently often being more expensive.

Dateless style licence plates are often in high demand due to their unique appeal. There are also prefix and suffix types, requiring the age to be included in the first or last part of the number, respectively. These are often cheaper, as owners have to choose something that is personal, yet still contains the relevant age code (as detailed above).

Other vehicle registration plate rules in the UK

Aside from the vehicle registration process, drivers should also be careful how their vehicle registration plates are displayed. They must be in the correct style, including font and colour. This enables them to be read by the Automatic Number Plate Registration system used by the police and other governmental bodies, car parks and garages to quickly identify cars through an online database.

Consequently, it is illegal to drive your car on the road if your plates do not meet the UK vehicle registration regulations. You may get a maximum fine of £1000. This also restricts the use of some European plates. For example, the embossed font used on some German plates is illegal in the UK.

Furthermore, drivers must always have their plates attached to their vehicle in a clear and visible manner. This means they must be easy to read, free of dirt and correctly lit up at night. In addition to custom plates, also discussed previously, the only other extra details allowed on vehicle licence plates are the national (or EU) emblems, as long as they are placed to the left of the plate number.