Front number plates and the police

[martisracing]

I always have a front number plate fitted even although it looks stupid and spoils the lines of the car, however the law seems rather strange that motor bikes do not require them. I understand why the edge on type are not allowed but there is no reason why a flat across the front type should not be fitted. Sure it would look stupid but surely that should not be an excuse to get one fitted. In the current days of political correctness and all being treated equally I do not see why I should have to one fitted and they do not.
This seems to give them carte blanche to ignore speed limits with very little chance of being caught as most speed cameras are forward facing. Again why should I as a car driver run the risk of being caught when breaking the speed limit and they do not?

[sone]

martisracing said:

I always have a front number plate fitted even although it looks stupid and spoils the lines of the car, however the law seems rather strange that motor bikes do not require them. I understand why the edge on type are not allowed but there is no reason why a flat across the front type should not be fitted. Sure it would look stupid but surely that should not be an excuse to get one fitted. In the current days of political correctness and all being treated equally I do not see why I should have to one fitted and they do not.
This seems to give them carte blanche to ignore speed limits with very little chance of being caught as most speed cameras are forward facing. Again why should I as a car driver run the risk of being caught when breaking the speed limit and they do not?

I thought speed cameras where forward facing so the pick up your rear plate as you drive past?

[warch]

martisracing said:

I always have a front number plate fitted even although it looks stupid and spoils the lines of the car, however the law seems rather strange that motor bikes do not require them. I understand why the edge on type are not allowed but there is no reason why a flat across the front type should not be fitted. Sure it would look stupid but surely that should not be an excuse to get one fitted. In the current days of political correctness and all being treated equally I do not see why I should have to one fitted and they do not.
This seems to give them carte blanche to ignore speed limits with very little chance of being caught as most speed cameras are forward facing. Again why should I as a car driver run the risk of being caught when breaking the speed limit and they do not?

Please could you explain whereabouts on the front of a bike (example pictured) there is room to fit a front numberplate?

[Trev450]

sone said:

I thought speed cameras where forward facing so the pick up your rear plate as you drive past?

Forward facing as in facing the front of the car. This is so as to capture the driver in the image as well as the registration so as to prevent offenders stating someone else was driving.;

[sone]

warch said:

martisracing said:

I always have a front number plate fitted even although it looks stupid and spoils the lines of the car, however the law seems rather strange that motor bikes do not require them. I understand why the edge on type are not allowed but there is no reason why a flat across the front type should not be fitted. Sure it would look stupid but surely that should not be an excuse to get one fitted. In the current days of political correctness and all being treated equally I do not see why I should have to one fitted and they do not.
This seems to give them carte blanche to ignore speed limits with very little chance of being caught as most speed cameras are forward facing. Again why should I as a car driver run the risk of being caught when breaking the speed limit and they do not?

Please could you explain whereabouts on the front of a bike (example pictured) there is room to fit a front numberplate?

Easy! (-:

[warch]

shouldn't it be a full size plate for leegull porpoises?

[BlackPrince]

sone said:

Easy! (-:

its not an S1000, but it still works!

Amazing the number of people here who sycophantically fellate even the silliest government policies meant to regulate minutiae. I run a front plate on my car, but I don't have a problem with those who don't!
I wonder if those who complain about other's "moral compass" and how committing these types of infractions prevents the police from doing their real jobs, ever speed or jaywalk?? If so, pot-kettle-black

[vpr]

Ive not run a front plate for 20 years or so on various cars and been pulled 4 times and only the last incident was it a problem, in Wales on the Evo Triangle where fuzz decided to make an example of us and even made it into the local rag.

Incidentally, one of us had a small plate, also a £100 fine.

Incidentally, I had it in the screen (when I saw them coming up behind) but that wasn’t good enough. £100 fine



I’ve owned my FGT 10 yrs now and never had a plate and never pulled. There is physically no where to put it

[Durzel]

That BMW clearly has a natural space for the plate and any Police officer seeing it will know something is missing.

[lordbluf]

vpr said:

Ive not run a front plate for 20 years or so on various cars and been pulled 4 times and only the last incident was it a problem, in Wales on the Evo Triangle where fuzz decided to make an example of us and even made it into the local rag.

Incidentally, one of us had a small plate, also a £100 fine.

Incidentally, I had it in the screen (when I saw them coming up behind) but that wasn’t good enough. £100 fine



I’ve owned my FGT 10 yrs now and never had a plate and never pulled. There is physically no where to put it

[NDA]

vpr said:

I’ve owned my FGT 10 yrs now and never had a plate and never pulled. There is physically no where to put it

There is - for a small one.

[RamboLambo]

NDA said:

There is - for a small one.

Yep and I would argue that's perfectly acceptable. From a distance a copper driving past isn't going to spot its not regulation size

[vpr]

NDA said:

vpr said:

I’ve owned my FGT 10 yrs now and never had a plate and never pulled. There is physically no where to put it

There is - for a small one.

Who asked you anyway

It’s worse to have a small plate as it can involve points too. Like I said, mate with a small plate who was with us got fined £100 too.

[Paul O]

I think you are legally allowed a smaller number plate if your car doesn't have a European community type approval and has no space that can accommodate a full size plate - which some imports won't have. No idea how you find out though!

[RamboLambo]

Paul O said:

I think you are legally allowed a smaller number plate if your car doesn't have a European community type approval and has no space that can accommodate a full size plate - which some imports won't have. No idea how you find out though!

That's correct and its on the DVLA website some where. I stumbled across it a few years back and printed it off to carry around in my car but I'm damned if I can find it on the website again or I would post it up.

Extract below

The Road Vehicles ( Display of Registration Marks) (Amendment) regulations 2002 SI no. 2687 came into force in November 2002.

These amendment regulations introduce a new regulation 14A, making special provision in relation to the size and spacing of characters in the registration number of some imported vehicles. These regulations also include the display of motorcycle sizes number plates on imported vehicles. The provision only applies to vehicles imported into the UK which do not have European Community Whole Vehicle Type Approval, and are so constructed, that the area available for the fixing of the registration plate precludes the display on the plate of a registration number in conformity with the requirements of regulation 14.

Also contained is an amendment to regulation 3, to prohibit the use of a number plate on which the background is patterned or textured, or gives that appearance.

Where a vehicle has been allocated a UK registration number, the number plate must comply with the specification and standards laid out in the Road Vehicles ( Display of Registration Marks) Regulations 2001, as amended. Certain imported vehicles may be permitted to display numberplates with smaller characters if the vehicle does not have European Community Vehicle Type Approval and the vehicle's construction/design cannot accommodate standard size numberplates.

The dimensions for the smaller sized plate are:

• each character in the registration number must be 64mm high
the width of each character of the number, other than the letter 'I' and the figure '1' must be 44mm

• the width of every part of the stroke forming a character in a number must be 10mm
the spacing between any two characters within a group must be 10mm

• the vertical spacing between groups of characters must be 5mm

• the width of a margin between the number and the top and lateral sides of the numberplate must be not less than 5mm

• the space between the bottom of the number/character and the bottom of the plate must not be less than 13mm

[vpr]

This applies to mainly Jap imports and some US cars but does not allow a small plate that many use like the fgt above.

[RamboLambo]

vpr said:

This applies to mainly Jap imports and some US cars but does not allow a small plate that many use like the fgt above.

Maybe but I don't think your average traffic cop will know the law to that degree if you quote it to him

[ashleyman]

Purposefully took the front plate off my car today leaving the holder in place specifically to test if the Sainsbury’s ANPR sign would flash up with end of free parking if it couldn’t read a plate.

Was stuck behind a Police car for the journey there and wasn’t pulled.

FYI - Sainsbury’s don’t read the rear number plate on entry (only on exit) so if you don’t have a front plate you can stay as long as you like.

[lordbluf]

ashleyman said:

Purposefully took the front plate off my car today leaving the holder in place specifically to test if the Sainsbury’s ANPR sign would flash up with end of free parking if it couldn’t read a plate.

Was stuck behind a Police car for the journey there and wasn’t pulled.

FYI - Sainsbury’s don’t read the rear number plate on entry (only on exit) so if you don’t have a front plate you can stay as long as you like.

So did you need assistance on getting out of the car park? That is, some car park Read front plate for entry and exit, so without a plate the barrier won’t open ?

[lordbluf]

Meanwhile in Wales :

https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/poli...

I drive to Wales regularly so may just put the plate on the dash board for the boyos- I’m assuming no one has issues with it on the dash board ?