Personalised number plates

A personalised number plate can communicate something about you or your business or hobby. But, how do you go about getting one, how much can it cost, and what does the law say about it? According to the experts, the value of in-demand number plates is growing worldwide, and as each year passes, international records for the highest prices paid are being shattered.

At the top of the scale, personalised number plates can go for millions of pounds for a single registration. The top three sellers are single numbers, with the registration ‘1’ selling for £7.25 million in Abu Dhabi. The number ‘5’ sold for £3.5 million, also in Abu Dhabi; and ‘7’ sold for £3.5 million, again in Abu Dhabi. The most expensive personalised number plate ever registered in the UK was ‘F1’ which cost the owner £440,625. If you’re interested in buying a new number for your car, the majority of personalised number plates can be bought for a fraction of these prices!

The price is right
Some number plate specialists sell personalised plates which start at around £49 (Source: http://www.r4v.co.uk/cache/main.html), although there are a few additional costs to add on.

Generally, prices are around the £250 mark (Source: http://www.dvlaregistrations.co.uk/home/), which includes VAT plus an £80 assignment fee. Apart from that, there is also the cost of having the actual physical plates made up, which can vary.

Of course, for £250, you're not likely to be able to buy the most popular words, but there is an incredible amount of choice.

The costs vary greatly depending on the combination of letters and numbers that you want to buy. For example, ‘N900 ABL’ could cost around £250, whereas ‘K155 ABL’ could cost more like £1,300, because it spells out a discernable word (‘Kissabl’).

Personalised number plates starting with ‘H1’ could cost around £500 (Source: http://www.dvlaregistrations.co.uk/home/).

Number plates can be purchased from many number plate specialist firms (you can find many online) and also from the DVLA itself, which holds personalised registration auctions across the country through the year. Parking and attendance are free at these events.

The public auctions sell over 1,500 ‘never used’ numbers, and the DVLA says its auction prices are potentially lower than resale prices.

The DVLA also has a telesales service, and offers access to over 27 million searchable registrations online, where it also sells personalised plates.

Stylish choices
The four main styles for current registrations are:

1. Firstly there are formats of two letters (your initials?), a two-figure age identifier, a space and then finally three letters, for example ‘AB51 ABC’.

2. Prefix registrations are also available, which contain the year identifier at the beginning of a registration. They consist of a letter, one to three numbers, a space and then finally three letters, for example ‘A123 ABC’.

3. Suffix registrations contain the year identifier at the end of a registration. They consist of three letters, a space, one to three numbers, and then finally one letter, for example, ‘ABC 123A’.

4. Finally, dateless registrations do not contain a year identifier and can consist of a number combination followed by a letter combination and vice versa. There is a space between the number and the group of letters – for example, ‘1 ABC’ or ‘ABC 1’.

Certificate of Entitlement
The main legalities worth being aware of are that when you buy a personalised plate, you need to contact the DVLA to get a Certificate of Entitlement, also known as a V750.

This is required to officially put your personalised registration onto your car.

The Certificate of Entitlement will allow a registered number plate supplier to physically make up the plate for you, as long as you can produce proof of entitlement to the number, and documentation to prove your identity.

What about my car insurance?
Once you have received your Certificate of Entitlement, you need to contact your car insurance provider and let them know you have changed your car’s registration number.  They can then update their database and issue you with a new car insurance certificate.

It’s essential that you do this, as all documents relating to your car need to match up.
 

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