30 Pound Fine

[Steviewevie]

The spacing is fine, but the lexus logo and the border round the plate are illegal.

Good point, I hadn't noticed those, I was only looking at the lettering/spacing.

I thought borders were ok ? I know that the Lexus logo isn't allowed though.

[Parthiban]

The border can't be illegal, my front plate (fitted by a Lexus dealer) has a border round it..........

[johnboy]

The border can't be illegal, my front plate (fitted by a Lexus dealer) has a border round it..........

It is, see HERE at the bottom of the page

[Steviewevie]

The border can't be illegal, my front plate (fitted by a Lexus dealer) has a border round it..........

It is, see HERE at the bottom of the page

According to that link, though :

A non-reflective border and the Euro-symbol with the national identification letters are optional additions.

[Parthiban]

A non-reflective border and the Euro-symbol with the national identification letters are optional additions.

That's the only reference to a border I can find too, where does it say you can't have one?

[Gord]

imo its just an easy way of them getting more money in the piggy bank, i know the law is the law but he could of give you

a warning :)

It's a revenue raiser.DVLA sell plates that can be personalised but have the gall to say it is illegal to alter spacings etc.

Only trouble with warnings, from the Police point of view, is that unless they get recorded as official warnings there is no way of telling how many times someone has been stopped and warned and over what period of time until the same officer is involved again.

Yeh, this was the discussion I had with my missus. It annoys me that the DVLA bang on about them saying you can 'personalise' your car etc but then have all these petty rules. Anyway its a lesson learnt - It was a £30 fine and 17 quid for new plates.

PC Jobsworth took pics of the front and rear of the car and then delighted in telling me that if I 'offended' again the plates would be taken off me as the DVLA actually still own them - they are just kind enough to rent them to me.

I do agree with Stevie and all the other peeps on here that say I should have expected it. I know its wrong, its just bloody petty. I didnt have any fancy type face, black screw cap or anti reflection stuff, standard black type with just one character slightly shifted. Just petty.

Anyway like I say its a lesson learnt - I hope this post might save another member 50 quid in the future

Ad

You will slso be getting a letter off DVLA, asking where you got the illegal plates made up :winky:

[Bazza]

imo its just an easy way of them getting more money in the piggy bank, i know the law is the law but he could of give you

a warning :)

It's a revenue raiser.DVLA sell plates that can be personalised but have the gall to say it is illegal to alter spacings etc.

Only trouble with warnings, from the Police point of view, is that unless they get recorded as official warnings there is no way of telling how many times someone has been stopped and warned and over what period of time until the same officer is involved again.

Yeh, this was the discussion I had with my missus. It annoys me that the DVLA bang on about them saying you can 'personalise' your car etc but then have all these petty rules. Anyway its a lesson learnt - It was a £30 fine and 17 quid for new plates.

PC Jobsworth took pics of the front and rear of the car and then delighted in telling me that if I 'offended' again the plates would be taken off me as the DVLA actually still own them - they are just kind enough to rent them to me.

I do agree with Stevie and all the other peeps on here that say I should have expected it. I know its wrong, its just bloody petty. I didnt have any fancy type face, black screw cap or anti reflection stuff, standard black type with just one character slightly shifted. Just petty.

Anyway like I say its a lesson learnt - I hope this post might save another member 50 quid in the future

Ad

You will slso be getting a letter off DVLA, asking where you got the illegal plates made up :winky:

made up perfectly legally in Ireland

[dlayen]

i got ticket for small plate and incorrect spacing on bike never got follow up from dvla

[Ian D]

The prosecution of the law on plates is nothing to do with common-sense, it's all to do with making sure we do as we are told and hitting easy targets.

IMO, the fine is harsh. Your plate is easy to read, and if anything is easier to read than the legal version.

I was recently fined £30 by a motorbike cop for an illegal size plate on my bike. :tsktsk:

The fine annoyed me less than the sanctimonious twaddle I had to listen to while he checked my details and wrote his ticket. Plus, having being burgled 3 times in 10 years and had no interest from the Police (I identified the scroat who nicked my wallet and used my cards, but even with that the Police weren't interested), I was angry that they find it easier to nick a law-abiding motorist than a burglar :tsktsk: . OK, the plate was smaller than that required, but it was perfectly readable in all situations.

I have no sympathy with funny fonts, colors etc.

I also had grief from my ex-wife when her MOT tester said the spacing was wrong on her/my other car (the gap between the first letter and first number was 1/4" too large!) and this cost £60 and lots of hassle to put right so we could get an MOT. As from next year (not far away) you need to have the maker's name on the plate or you will fail the MOT, so beware.

As for HIDs, unless you have a self-levelling system (eg IS300) then they are illegal and dangerous to other road users. I have no sympathy there.

Keep you eyes peeled.

Ian

[Rich OB]

My plate is the correct size but the font is 5mm smaller than it should be with standard font. Never had a problem with it.

I've also got HID's fitted and both passed through the MOT last week without a mention.

Back in the day (1997) i had my plates taken off my car by a motorbike cop due to different font and chrome shadow (very young and stupid i thought it was cool then) He said i can either change the plate there and then, leave the car where it was, or he could take my plates and he would then write on my reg in yellow crayon! Whatever option i would still recieve £30 fine! I was so mad at the time i said fine take the plates but you're not writing on my car, he then said you may proceed but if i see you with no plates down the road i can fine you again. I drove off and home (about 6 mile) with no plates at all on my car and was fine. A week later i went to the local cop shop and got my plates back and put them back on (still yong and stupid Lol)

None of it made sense at all, he was willing to let me drive with no plate whatsoever rather than advise me or just fine me.

Anyway a fine for an illegal plate is not a new thing at all, its simply more commonly known due to more and more poeple mis spacing digits.

We all like a nice plate and i do think nowadays the plod get fine-happy with perfectly readable plates, yes silly colours and crazy fonts are a no no but mis spacing 1 digit isn't that bad neither un-readable, just like a border or logo, whats the big deal?

[Steviewevie]

As for HIDs, unless you have a self-levelling system (eg IS300) then they are illegal and dangerous to other road users. I have no sympathy there.

Sorry, I don't agree. Having HIDs that are properly aimed are IMHO *better* for road safety, i.e. because you can see better at night. There is no reason they should be dangerous to other road users.

I had an OEM HID system on my previous car, but the self-levelling kept breaking. Which was more dangerous ? EDIT - the MoT doesn't even check that the self-levelling is working, my car passed the MoT with broken self-levelling.

I also don't think they're illegal, I've heard this mentioned before but no-one can seem to prove it. There are laws about fitting HIDs to new cars in that they must be self-levelling, but there are all sorts of laws about new stuff on cars which current cars don't comply with, but it doesn't make them illegal. If HIDs were illegal they wouldn't pass the MoT.

[Mark W]

How many times were you pulled over with standard plates?

Sounds like a positive thing to me- Police more likely to recover your car if it's got illegal plates on- there's money in it

Disclaimer: Above is totally tongue in cheek

[Ian D]

HIDs: Read

Dept of Transport note on HIDs

Quote:

"In summary it is not permitted to convert an existing halogen headlamp unit for use with HID bulbs. The entire headlamp unit must be replaced with one designed and approved for use with HID bulbs ...."

Of course, what the law says and what you can get away with can be different things.

I have enough of a problem with people in loaded cars not adjusting their headlights without adding to the problem with illegally-fitted HIDs (the beam pattern is wrong from a HID in a standard headlamp - a HID headlamp has different grating patterns).

Ian

[Steviewevie]

HIDs: Read

Dept of Transport note on HIDs

Quote:

"In summary it is not permitted to convert an existing halogen headlamp unit for use with HID bulbs. The entire headlamp unit must be replaced with one designed and approved for use with HID bulbs ...."

Interesting, thanks. To be fair though, it sounds a lot muddier than the DfT are making out, and I doubt that anyone has been prosecuted for this - if they had been I doubt they'd be using phrases such as "in the Department's view ...".

As I said, if it was that big a problem, then they'd be making aftermarket HIDs an MoT failure item, testing self-levelling, etc, etc.

[jason_l]

I was originally going to buy L3X JL and space it as shown, i got worried as i thought i would get pulled for incorect spacing and have seen a few others on here get pulled for similar spacing.

In the end i got this.............

Have cut the plates down but as far as i can tell its legal???

Jason :P

[Boxbrownie]

Relevent info

http://www.dvla.gov.uk/media/pdf/leaflets/v796.pdf

[Kazi]

Bull or no bull sh*te, if its illegal its illegal. No different to these idiots that insist on driving with Fog lights on. Sympathise that its a waste of money and they should Police some other other cause for a change, something other than Motorists! Guess with Number plates, window tints etc, you're always gonna run the risk of getting pulled.

[doog442]

The prosecution of the law on plates is nothing to do with common-sense, it's all to do with making sure we do as we are told and hitting easy targets.

IMO, the fine is harsh. Your plate is easy to read, and if anything is easier to read than the legal version.

I was recently fined £30 by a motorbike cop for an illegal size plate on my bike. :tsktsk:

The fine annoyed me less than the sanctimonious twaddle I had to listen to while he checked my details and wrote his ticket. Plus, having being burgled 3 times in 10 years and had no interest from the Police (I identified the scroat who nicked my wallet and used my cards, but even with that the Police weren't interested), I was angry that they find it easier to nick a law-abiding motorist than a burglar :tsktsk: . OK, the plate was smaller than that required, but it was perfectly readable in all situations.

I have no sympathy with funny fonts, colors etc.

I also had grief from my ex-wife when her MOT tester said the spacing was wrong on her/my other car (the gap between the first letter and first number was 1/4" too large!) and this cost £60 and lots of hassle to put right so we could get an MOT. As from next year (not far away) you need to have the maker's name on the plate or you will fail the MOT, so beware.

As for HIDs, unless you have a self-levelling system (eg IS300) then they are illegal and dangerous to other road users. I have no sympathy there.

Keep you eyes peeled.

Ian

Its all down to ANPR and the ability of a machine to read your plates. Its not the ability to hit you with a speeding ticket but the ability to process thousands of number plates per hour throwing up all those un-insured drivers,stolen vehicles,drug dealers and criminals who use the roads.....

If you look at the wider picture you will perhaps realise the method behind the so called madness....and the importance of it.

If you are big enough to drive / ride around with illegal plates you are big enough to pay the fine..no sympathy im afraid..

[Rich OB]

Its very true that the reason they're clamping down on number plates is due to ANPR, and true if you know the plates your running are illegal you should take the fine on the chin.

I once had my brand new ST stolen and they didn't seem to be too interested in finding it, never got it back. They do seem more interested in easy targets, tints, plates, lights etc but at the end of the day the plod are right and anyone who argues is wrong, simple.

[TomCooper]

living in essex ive seen so many plates that are just completely illegal, i mean with font that i can bearly read sitting behinf them in traffic, all squiggerly and stupid, my font and letters are the right size, ive got a boarder around the outside with lexus which wont effect the ANPR, and teh front is about 3/4 the size of a standard plate.

Considering stolen cars, hit and runs, people being dragged out of there cars and beaten up and getting there cars robbed i think my plates are a minor offence, if im dragged out my car and its stolen theres little the old bill will do, happens alot around here and the police would rather sit there with a speed gun and catch you doign 75 in a 70 than chase someone whos actuallyt done something wrong.

[TomCooper]

Its very true that the reason they're clamping down on number plates is due to ANPR, and true if you know the plates your running are illegal you should take the fine on the chin.

I once had my brand new ST stolen and they didn't seem to be too interested in finding it, never got it back. They do seem more interested in easy targets, tints, plates, lights etc but at the end of the day the plod are right and anyone who argues is wrong, simple.

ive found arguing doesn't help at all, best to say yes sir no sir 3 bags full sir and the usually let you off with a warning..

i was pulled over in a 50 for doing 88 at 2am, with no one on the road (this was in my old rover) checked my details atc and showed me the video, i said i just wanted to open her up as haven't for a while, being honest with them and they just let me off with a warning.

old bill seem to be more interested in chavs driving around in fiestas all modded up, rather than a "classier" lexus you know