Why are some 2024 registration plates banned?
The 1st of September sees the brand new 74-plate vehicles hit the road and many drivers will be considering personalised number plates, we’re here to offer out advice on the naughty number plates banned by the DVLA that could be considered offensive or inappropriate. Each year, the DVLA will ban a series of number plates that fall under this category.
What 74-number plates are banned?
There is a total of 365 banned 74 number plates, ranging from childish registrations like **74 RSE, to ones with a more political stance, for example, anything relating to the war in Ukraine with number plates such as NO74 RUS, WA74 RUS, WA74 UKR and FK74 RUS are all banned.
For those unhappy with the ULEZ charges brought into place, they won’t be able to show their displeasure via their number plate, as NO74 LEZ has also been banned.
Of course, on the list are several registration plates that allude to swear words, whilst others allude to crimes and violence, examples include, BB74 STD and MU74 DER.
Is my number plate legal?
Along with the list of banned registration plates, there are also several rules around how number plates should be displayed. Following these rules can help you to avoid a fine and stop your vehicle from failing its MOT before anyone’s even taken a look under the bonnet.
Number plate rules to follow:
- Be made from a reflective material.
- Display black characters on a white background (front plate).
- Display black characters on a yellow background (rear plate).
- No background pattern.
- Be marked to show who supplied the number plate.
- Be marked with a British Standard number – this is ‘BS AU 145e’ for plates fitted after 1st September 2021.
- The characters must not be removable or reflective and if fitted after the 1st September 2021 must be a single shade of black.
Rules for customising your number plate:
- Have 3D (raised) characters.
- Display flags, symbols or identifiers.
- Flags can include the Union Jack, Cross of St George, Cross of St Andrew and the Red Dragon of Wales.
- Identifies can include, UK/United Kingdom, GB/ Great Britain, CYM/Cymru, ENG/England, SCO/Scotland and Wales.
- Display a green flash, if you have a zero-emissions vehicle.
Those who are looking to transfer a personalised plate to a new lease vehicle will be pleased to know that this is possible, it involves a little bit of paperwork as you’ll have to submit a retention document and a certificate of entitlement, depending on your situation.