Private Plates

[Demonic Angel]

My cousin has just bought a new car - a BMW 3 Series - K reg.

I'm adamant its on a private plate though, because the registration is

LN LLL

(L= Letter, N= Number)

She's adamant its NOT a private plate! :D

I thought that you couldnt have un-private plates with just one number - that it had to be LNNN LLL?

Can anyone explain which is right?

[Robie]

Well thats not quite correct as the new format is:

LLNN LLL

But I agree, that seems like a private plate to me as well.

[Demonic Angel]

Well thats not quite correct as the new format is:

LLNN LLL

But I agree, that seems like a private plate to me as well.

←

Yes I know it is, I mean the old format where the year was a letter and not a number!

[alanbradley]

I agree with you Em as the vehicle registration people then to keep the very low numbers to flog them off for lots of money.

Mine is a private plate, but its LNNN LLL and notvery obvious. It was also a Christmas present (not that I'm ungrateful)

A

[Roytoner]

If it's a K reg it can't have a L first letter private plate,

unless it's a Irish plate then it as to be LN 111

[JT]

we've owned a few cars with the old plate system, that only had 2 numbers, so maybe some only had one? seems more like a private plate though

[Leeky]

Erm....its not legal to put an L reg plate on a K reg car you know

[alanbradley]

If it's a K reg it can't have a L first letter private plate,

unless it's a Irish plate then it as to be LN 111 

←

Erm....its not legal to put an L reg plate on a K reg car you know 

←

Um...

I don't think its an "L" plate on the car, I think Em was using "L" to show "letter" rather than the actual plate...

A

[Al J]

Yep, Alan's right but while we're on it, I thought it was illegal to put a plate on a vehicle indicating it was newer than it actually is?

[alanbradley]

Yeah Al, it is illegal...

[s0cks]

Em, thats NOT a private plate. The old system catered for the following:

LN LLL

LNN LLL

LNNN LLL

And yes, it is illegal to have a plate that suggests your car is newer then it really is.

[Demonic Angel]

Em, thats NOT a private plate. The old system catered for the following:

LN LLL

LNN LLL

LNNN LLL

And yes, it is illegal to have a plate that suggests your car is newer then it really is.

←

Thats all I needed to know - thanks s0cks!

I dont think it is making the car newer than it is - its definitely a K registration, I just thought that it might be a personalised K registration....

[s0cks]

Well, it COULD be personalized. But it's fully legal.

[Matthew_McNally]

the fact that it has only one number would make me think its a private plate.

mine is certainly in that sequence, although it is not quite formatted properly :o

[Ryan1985]

I reckon its private aswell!

And tut tut Matthew! :P

[nrgizerbunny]

It may be a private plate but the old system allowed for

L123 XYZ

L12 XYZ

L1 XYZ

up until the R registration (IIRC when it changed every 6 months)when all new plates had to be of the form. THe DVLA sells the first sets of numbers usually, if nobody wants them then they get stuck onto a normal car.

L123 XYZ

basiclaly it could be either. but if your mate says its not private then it probably isn't

My dad's G reg polo only had two numbers and that was bought from the dealer, definitely wasn't a private plate either.

[dicey2k]

Yep, Alan's right but while we're on it, I thought it was illegal to put a plate on a vehicle indicating it was newer than it actually is?

←

Yep, She's not saying that

She was just using L as a format mask to mean letter.

But it is illegal to put a newer plate on an older car. I'm pretty sure its also dodgy to put a GTi Badge on a non-GTi car... Etc Etc...

(Don't dare quote me on that)

[Fidgits]

to close this discussion.

The DVLA generally hold number 1-70 for private plates. Which means most standard [old style] plates would be in the LNN LLL format.

Now, her plate COULD be a normal issued plate, as it does happen, but its rare, and is more likely to be a private plate.

[knightrider]

ITS A PERSONALISED PLATE WHICH WOULD BE K2 ABC (FOR EXAMPLE)

A PRIVATE PLATE WOULD BE LIKE CHARLIE KARMA SUPRAS WHICH HIDES AGE,

[Fidgits]

ITS A PERSONALISED PLATE WHICH WOULD BE K2 ABC (FOR EXAMPLE)

A PRIVATE PLATE WOULD BE LIKE CHARLIE KARMA SUPRAS WHICH HIDES AGE,

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Thats just semantics... and not really the point... since [working from your post] a personalised plate can show the car to be older than it actually is..

e.g. M3 BMW on a 2005 M3...

[Karma Supra]

Bah....

AS said earlier. a lot of "cherished" plates are plates that were issued and people have liked so they bought them.. for Examply Millys old car (Rover lol) had the number plate T48 FAN.. it was merely the numberplate the car was issued with, but I dare say someone at some point will buy it and transfer it onto something else..

The other thoing is that you never actually "own" a reg plate, what you pay for is the right to use that regestration, on the database that is owned by the DVLA, which is why, if they wan;t to be particularly annoying, they can actually take a registration right off you for misuse (i.e. illegal spacing), but I have not actually heard of a case of them doing that!

The formatting on mine is way out from standard... but its still spaced 100% legall.. has still got me pulled a few times especially when I had it on the Lexus :(

[LORD_ED]

werent u 17 then driveing a soarer tt???

wonder why u got pulled

[Karma Supra]

Well, there was always that too........

[Bibbs]

I've got a cherished plate as the number 666 is not issue either ..

[bluepaseo]

We had a car once that started K25 *** and that was its original number.