The wild-west landscape of the UK number plate system is to be formally investigated by parliament – a move that will be welcomed by forecourt operators, with around 13% of fuel-theft incidents made by vehicles using illegitimate plates.
This follows countless calls from campaigners to fix the myriad issues with the current arrangements.
While some countries have a single, government-endorsed number plate supplier that produces registrations using materials with security measures, here there are over 40,000 registered firms making number plates, plus untold unregistered black-market suppliers.
Similarly, while many countries have tight controls over the materials number plates must be made from, here they are comprised of easily available plastics, and can feature materials that look legitimate to the naked eye, but block the infrared light ANPR cameras in petrol stations use.
Police, council and transport organisations’ cameras also rely on ANPR, meaning vehicles can be rendered untraceable to authorities with the simple fitment of so-called ‘ghost’ plates, which feature characters, films or sprays containing ANPR blocking materials.
Plates can also be easily ‘cloned’ by copying the registration from a similar car advertised online, allowing miscreants to accrue speeding and other penalties in someone else’s name, while also evading detection when committing more serious crimes. Transport for London reports the use of cloned plates has surged by 64% in the past three years.
To tackle these issues the All Party Parliamentary Group for Transport Safety (APPGTS) is launching a call for evidence to carry out a “comprehensive assessment” of the system as it stands, while also considering “evidence-based recommendations” to fix it.
Ultimately, the inquiry aims to help develop “a more robust regulatory and enforcement system to tackle the illegal use of non-compliant number plates and increase road safety”.
Campaigners have been sounding alarm bells over the UK’s dysfunctional number plate system for some time, with the British Number Plate Manufacturers Association, the Office of the Surveillance Camera Commissioner and police groups compiling a detailed report in 2020 that sets out the issues, and recommended changes.
That report was not heeded at the time, but following further campaigning from police groups, Trading Standards bodies, and reputable number-plate manufacturers, ministers are now poised to take action.
Forecourt Trader has also been involved in the area, and subsequently attended a meeting at the Palace of Westminster chaired by Sarah Coombes MP, who this summer launched a campaign to tackle the issue of so called ghost plates.
