Numberplate valuation

[carreauchompeur]

Folks,

What do "Number number, letter letter" plates generally tend to go for? I've seen one for sale by a private individual for £5000.

Basically my year of birth followed by initials (XX XX). Fairly common initials...

Wondering if it's the sort of thing which would hold its value. Seems tempting when one sees far longer, less significant plates for the £1500 mark.

[tjob]

That's probably a decent price assuming the numbers and letters are good ones, perhaps FB 68, rather than YW 32, as I'd assume the former are more desirable initials!

[carreauchompeur]

It's numbers then letters, but the letters are indeed common initials.

[Freddy88FM]

I bought 88 FM two months ago. I did comprehensive market research on this and of the 248 'number number letter letter' plates that have been sold by the DVLA since 1991, the average price was £4800 at fall of hammer. The lowest price was about £2k, the highest about £10k. I got mine for £5.2 + tax, buyers fee and tax on buyers fee. Worked out at £6.8k all in all. Four character plates seem to be a particularly desirable format and don't actually go for much less than three character plates.

However, unless something drastic happens with the way plates are done, I should see a profit should I ever sell it (unlikely). However, it's worth remembering they are not easy to liquify... it can take months to find a buyer.

Buy direct from DVLA auction. Also, if you register your interest for an auction... they offer you the unsold plates for a buy it now of their reserves. Worth noting if you're on a budget.

[carreauchompeur]

Thanks, that's REALLY useful... Does seem like a halfway decent price and it's already been reduced from £7000 so I suspect a desperate seller.

Nothing much of note's come up in the recent auctions. I missed out on 18 SJD and 16 SJD a while back, which are now on a dealer's site for far more...

[Freddy88FM]

carreauchompeur said:

Thanks, that's REALLY useful... Does seem like a halfway decent price and it's already been reduced from £7000 so I suspect a desperate seller.

Nothing much of note's come up in the recent auctions. I missed out on 18 SJD and 16 SJD a while back, which are now on a dealer's site for far more...

No problem. Glad all that work can be useful twice! It was boring as hell compiling the data, but I wanted to be sure I didn't put in a 'heart over head' sized bid.

If I were you I'd get XX SD, in my opinion they're nicer than XX SJD... and £5k is fair. If you can afford it, go for it. I pussyfooted around for long enough wondering whether I might regret it - I do not regret it at all. Also worth haggling - tell them the market average is £4.8k, close them on £4.9.

Good luck! Let us all know how it goes.

[Ozzie Osmond]

Freddy88FM said:

I should see a profit should I ever sell it.

Now there's an optimist. Number plate prices are on the floor.

[TheLordJohn]

I'd like 88 SAR when I make it.

[Freddy88FM]

Ozzie Osmond said:

Now there's an optimist. Number plate prices are on the floor.

Sorry, to be clear... I'm talking in the long run. Like houses, (unless something drastic changes with the way the government does things) there will be a net post inflation increase in value over the next 10/25/50 years. Of course in the short term profits are less likely... again like houses.

Give the economy some time, prices will start to move north.

Edited by Freddy88FM on Sunday 10th March 22:44

Edited by Freddy88FM on Sunday 10th March 22:45

[scottyrocks]

Pardon my asking, but what is all the fascination in the UK with number plates? Around here, we have vanity plates, but they're not a terribly big deal. Is there a place I could read up on the license plate culture in your country?

[JREwing]

scottyrocks said:

Pardon my asking, but what is all the fascination in the UK with number plates? Around here, we have vanity plates, but they're not a terribly big deal. Is there a place I could read up on the license plate culture in your country?

It's far more complicated because it follows a specific format. Since the 1960s numberplates are assigned by registration date of the vehicle and loosely by location of registration.
For instance, if you bought a 1970s S-reg vehicle the 'S' would be an age marker applied as a suffix and it would be August 1977 - July 1978. For instance (randomly generated) GVU 749S. But those numbers could be 1-3 digits.
This changed (circa 1984, I think?)
Then the age marker became a prefix. So S-reg in that system would be August 1998-February 1999. For instance S871 FRE.
Since 2001 there is the current system. Starting in September 2001 we had '51 plate'. An example would be RT51 HBT. This means September 2001-February 2002 is the registration date of the vehicle. March-August we have the two final digits of the year (so currently 13. For example BT13 RFV). From September to February 2014 we will have a 63 plate (53 was September 2003-February 2004). An example of 63 would be GU63 LGP.

None of these are actual number plates to the best of my knowledge, just random examples.
And until the early '60s the system was different. Are you confused yet?

[carreauchompeur]

Wow. Bit of a postscript.

Seller was a nice chap, made a low offer however he'd already sold pretty quickly for £5000. About a grand over my budget anyway.

It's now on eBay with a plate company for £12000! They probably won't get it, but what a bonkers price.

[V8forweekends]

scottyrocks said:

Pardon my asking, but what is all the fascination in the UK with number plates? Around here, we have vanity plates, but they're not a terribly big deal. Is there a place I could read up on the license plate culture in your country?

Main differences -

We don't have States with a local DMV - so it's like the Feds doing everything, and also means a reg is unique across the whole Country.

There's never been any formal recognition of vanity plates (I.e. you can't just request "DAVE1" like you can in the US and some other countries), so any names, words etc that are spelt out are within the constraints of the reg system outlined above.

A plate typically lives with a vehicle for life - as (certainly in later years) it is an easy way to know the age of the vehicle. Plates/numbers can be moved between vehicles for a fee - hence the vanity plates. A plate can't be transferred to make an older vehicle look younger.