£60 Fixed Penalty for Number Plate Spacing

Hi, I got caught yesterday and thought it worth warning other members. I've had my number plate for over 12 years and have always been aware that it wouldn't pass an MoT. It's the correct size, font, colour etc, but it reads P60RCH rather than P60_RCH. What I hadn't realised is that the law has changed recently allowing the Police to give out a £60 on the spot fine. It was a rare sunny day yesteday, so I got my Porsche out of the garage and put the roof down. I drove 3 miles before being pulled over by a (probably bored) Policeman. I now have 28 days to pay the fine and 7 days to change the plates. Luckily no points! Neil.

and here's a photo of the (offending) plate...

That's been in place for a while now, If you get caught again, or VOSA catch you with that plate on, they can confiscate it! This was mine, before I changed it back, the other option was lose it! Edit by Richard - Changed

Yes i heard you can get your number plate took off you if you alter or change it in any way. [ ]

Two strikes and your out rule - according to the man at the DVLA. Pathetic, petty rules IMHO OK to legislate against italics and naff fonts - but spacing? Cr@p ruling! Graham

I think its down to jealousy - pure and simple!

The daft thing is that a personalied numberplate is easier to remember in the case of an incident. They should encourage it. DVLA makes money out of these plates.

I got a speeding ticket (mobile camera) in my Jeep some years back. The plate actually read 'J33P FH' rather than 'J 33 PFH'. The recognition system worked even with illegal spacing. A couple of weeks later a bored copper stopped me because of the plate's spacing. He wasn't even pleasant in his manner and proceded to tell me "Change it or the next time it's a fine". As a point of interest you never own a registration number (regardless of where you got it from or how much you paid for it). You are assigned it for use on a particular vehicle. Therefore the DVLA can stop you using the plate if they so wish and AFAIK there is no appeal system against their decisions.

I think a warning and being given 7 days or something to change the plate would've been fair enough. Straight to £60 with no warning seemed a little unfair for the offence. It does seem like revenue generation from the motorist again. In comparison, a drunk who abuses the Police, others and/or property gets an £80 fixed penalty for a section 5 public order offence. Needless to say, I am changing my plates this weekend.

What's all this moaning, we motorist after all. Bend over and gel up [ ]

Simple answer- stop trying to make your plates say something it shouldn't. Looks chavvy anyway.[8D] I'm sure if you had a son/daughter/partner who was involved in an accident, to which there was a witness, but the witness couldn't give details of the plate because of mispacing/ italics so the culprit could not be traced, that your views would change. Not often I agree with the police or shafting of motorists, but do on this.

As an ex copper I can tell you there will be some truth occasionally in what you say. Another attitiude of some bobbies will be that you can afford the fine because of the car you drive and it won't bother you getting it. Be aware that the chances of you EVER being stopped for this offence by bobbies who are not 'Hobs' (traffic bobbies, the ones with white hats) are less than slim. Most community and response bobbies will not even know the law regarding these plates. Other option could be to use the German font, put the Euro 'D' on the left of the plate and speak in German if you get stopped and hope for the best. Ideal if your car is LHD

Good advice but I'm a bit limited (three words) to my German - how about unwinding the window and saying Bratwurst and Bier Keller and Franz Beckenbauer which order do you think I should use them?[8|]

LOL - try 'ein, zwei, drei, Liebfraumilch!!!'

Bad luck, £60 on the spot fine is not right at all. I was stopped in my little run-about car. I had changed the font a little but not so it is unreadable but no spacing or the silly nonsence with the coloured screws. I argued, (huge embelishment I might add), that the law with respect to font/spacing came into force in 2005. I argued that as my car plate was 2001 it was not applicable. The rather confused officer stated I was defiantely wrong and asked me to accompany him to his vehicle, which is usually trouble! He was going to show me the specific legislation on it but to my relief he could not find it. He then indicated that my plate did not have the british standard institute kite mark. However I brought to his attention that the plate on his patrol vehicle also did not have this necessary mark. He smiled and gave me a warning. He probably thought cocky little s*&t. Alan.

Love it! I almost hope I get pulled just to try this. [ ][ ] I saw a plate at the weekend that read "CHLOE". We followed it for a while, and it took the two of us some time to decipher it as C11 LCE with dodge spacing, some black fixings and what looked like black tape. I can see the reasons for a standardised format being important, I guess it's one of those things where we have to accept that the odd idiot trying to evade identification means the rest of us have to obey the law as well. However trivial.