Cloned plate query
Discussion
Completely out of the blue, I got pulled over by a couple of police cars while driving down the motorway and was told that my car had been cloned, and that they wanted to check ID and inspect the car.
This seems to be a rather different state of affairs to the usual cloning queries which come up here (and other forums), where people have received, NIPs, parking charges, etc. and then had to dispute them.
This was the first I knew of this, so I assume that some sort of intelligence (ANPR?) had flagged up two cars with the same plate. It just seems a slightly odd state of affairs to me - unless a car thief has suddenly decided to be a law-abiding driver to keep their new car low profile.
Presumably as the police already know, there will be some marker on whatever computer system the police use. However, is there any other advice that I should follow? e.g. check in with my local police to get a reference number, alter the appearance of the car, etc.
This seems to be a rather different state of affairs to the usual cloning queries which come up here (and other forums), where people have received, NIPs, parking charges, etc. and then had to dispute them.
This was the first I knew of this, so I assume that some sort of intelligence (ANPR?) had flagged up two cars with the same plate. It just seems a slightly odd state of affairs to me - unless a car thief has suddenly decided to be a law-abiding driver to keep their new car low profile.
Presumably as the police already know, there will be some marker on whatever computer system the police use. However, is there any other advice that I should follow? e.g. check in with my local police to get a reference number, alter the appearance of the car, etc.
WatchfulEye said:
Completely out of the blue, I got pulled over by a couple of police cars while driving down the motorway and was told that my car had been cloned, and that they wanted to check ID and inspect the car.
This seems to be a rather different state of affairs to the usual cloning queries which come up here (and other forums), where people have received, NIPs, parking charges, etc. and then had to dispute them.
This was the first I knew of this, so I assume that some sort of intelligence (ANPR?) had flagged up two cars with the same plate. It just seems a slightly odd state of affairs to me - unless a car thief has suddenly decided to be a law-abiding driver to keep their new car low profile.
Presumably as the police already know, there will be some marker on whatever computer system the police use. However, is there any other advice that I should follow? e.g. check in with my local police to get a reference number, alter the appearance of the car, etc.
I know how it works, and what is looked for, and how it flags up, but this being a public forum, I cant really tell you.This seems to be a rather different state of affairs to the usual cloning queries which come up here (and other forums), where people have received, NIPs, parking charges, etc. and then had to dispute them.
This was the first I knew of this, so I assume that some sort of intelligence (ANPR?) had flagged up two cars with the same plate. It just seems a slightly odd state of affairs to me - unless a car thief has suddenly decided to be a law-abiding driver to keep their new car low profile.
Presumably as the police already know, there will be some marker on whatever computer system the police use. However, is there any other advice that I should follow? e.g. check in with my local police to get a reference number, alter the appearance of the car, etc.
Like the other guy said, a cheap privtae plate is a simple solution to all problems.
When mine was cloned i got a dart charge notice , with a photo of the near identical car.
I assumed the car was being driven illegally like a dodgy trader or moving a stolen car as opposed to being used for a particular crime such as a robbery, given it was snapped on a motorway.
As such i didn't expect and didn't receive anything after the dart. My process was to record it with the police etc but not sure it's relevant here.
For them to know about it they must have tugged someone with it surely ? You'd hope they'd change plates after if that were the case.
I assumed the car was being driven illegally like a dodgy trader or moving a stolen car as opposed to being used for a particular crime such as a robbery, given it was snapped on a motorway.
As such i didn't expect and didn't receive anything after the dart. My process was to record it with the police etc but not sure it's relevant here.
For them to know about it they must have tugged someone with it surely ? You'd hope they'd change plates after if that were the case.
My neighbour got pulled for this before couple of years back.
Didn’t stop their though. Car ended up being seized from outside his house for non payment of a loan (not his loan). Who ever it was went nuts, driving around London congestion zone for 6 months, speeding, parking fines, taken credit against the car etc etc. It was only the fact almost by luck he had been on holiday and could prove his car was at an airport car park that it got sorted. Nightmare.
Didn’t stop their though. Car ended up being seized from outside his house for non payment of a loan (not his loan). Who ever it was went nuts, driving around London congestion zone for 6 months, speeding, parking fines, taken credit against the car etc etc. It was only the fact almost by luck he had been on holiday and could prove his car was at an airport car park that it got sorted. Nightmare.
Cold said:
Is "your car has been cloned sir" the new version of "lots of these are getting stolen around here sir" as a made up reason to stop the car?
It's an urban myth that the police need a reason to stop a vehicle - They have the right to stop a mechanically propelled vehicle at any time, to check the details of the driver:From: https://www.gov.uk/stopped-by-police-while-driving... :
Overview
The police can stop a vehicle for any reason. If they ask you to stop, you should always pull over when it’s safe to do so. You’re breaking the law if you do not stop.
From: https://www.askthe.police.uk/content/Q723.htm :
Q723: Do the police need a reason to stop me whilst I am driving?
No, the police do not need any reason to stop any person driving a mechanically propelled vehicle or riding a pedal cycle on a road. The police can then require that you provide your name, date of birth (in certain circumstances), driving licence, insurance and MoT certificates. Failure to comply with any of these requirements is an offence.
The same information can be found here:
https://inews.co.uk/inews-lifestyle/cars/when-can-...
https://www.finder.com/uk/your-rights-after-gettin...
4rephill said:
It's an urban myth that the police need a reason to stop a vehicle - They have the right to stop a mechanically propelled vehicle at any time, to check the details of the driver:
Yes. We all know this. However, it doesn't stop the Bobby from spouting the same old tired lines and it sounds as if the OP has experienced the latest conversation opener. CLX said:
I have a private plate and it was cloned. I was quite surprised, as I thought they would only pick 'normal' , less conspicuous plates to copy. Mine must have been the only one of the same make and colour they could find, I suppose.
They won't care whether it's the originally-issued plate for that car or not, I suspect. It just has to be registered to a vehicle that is similar to the one they haveChiswickboy said:
littlebasher said:
If it was me, i'd be buying one of those really cheap private plates ASAP.
At least your doppelganger will then throw out ANPR alerts for no insurance etc and hopefully get stopped pronto
How does that work, then?At least your doppelganger will then throw out ANPR alerts for no insurance etc and hopefully get stopped pronto
martinbiz said:
Cold said:
Yes. We all know this. However, it doesn't stop the Bobby from spouting the same old tired lines and it sounds as if the OP has experienced the latest conversation opener.
And why do you think he would want to waste good oxygen doing this?Cold said:
4rephill said:
It's an urban myth that the police need a reason to stop a vehicle - They have the right to stop a mechanically propelled vehicle at any time, to check the details of the driver:
Yes. We all know this. However, it doesn't stop the Bobby from spouting the same old tired lines and it sounds as if the OP has experienced the latest conversation opener. And I suspect that's one of the main reasons why police officers give a reason to drivers for pulling their vehicle over - Because it saves getting into pointless, stupid arguments about whether or not they have the right to pull a vehicle over without reason.
Sadly, the World is full of far too many people who believe urban myths (such as an officer needing a reason to pull a vehicle over), and will argue for hours on end about their civil liberties being breached, based on their erroneous believes, refusing to accept the truth!
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