Number plates

[skyhigh]

Hi all, bit of a boring one this, but here goes...

I need a new set of number plates - looking online you can get a pair off Amazon/Ebay for around £12, whereas Halfords wants £30. Has anyone used one of these cheap sites before for these? Having never needed to buy a replacement plate before, are they one of those things that you get what you pay for?

I'm a cheapskate by nature but the last thing I want is to end up with a set that I can't use because they're not legal...!

 

[causton]

The first couple I saw on eBay had a message the same or similar:

"PLEASE NOTE: By clicking the buy it now you agree to the plates being made to the current regulations (100% road legal) i.e Legal spacing, Suppliers Business Name & Postcode (in small writing at bottom of plate) and the BS mark."

So I think they should be fine, it says on the listings they meet the current BS standards and print the business name and postcode as is a legal requirement - I would say you should be fine!

 

[tony_mac]

A little care is needed - some places heavily imply that they are legal when they are actually not, and it's difficult to do anything about it particularly if they are overseas.

You can check if the supplier is genuine by looking-up the postcode here:-
https://www.gov.uk/number-plate-supplier

(Some can't be found, and at least one is a fake address).

 

[D365]

I'd far rather go for the Halfords/shop-bought set tbh.

 

[skyhigh]

Thanks - due to my line of work I'm fairly confident that I'd be able to spot a dodgy one if it turned up, I'm just not sure it's worth the hassle if it happens. As you point out a lot say they're road legal, but the addresses may not necessarily be correct.

I'm guessing the quality must be pretty poor to get down to the price, but my inner Scotsman can't pass up on a possible bargain!

 

[najaB]

I'm guessing the quality must be pretty poor to get down to the price, but my inner Scotsman can't pass up on a possible bargain!

It's not a bargain if you end up having to pay twice.

 

[skyhigh]

It's not a bargain if you end up having to pay twice.

Indeed. I'll probably stick to Halfords or similar.

 

[90019]

I had a set of £10 plates on my MX5, and they were no lower in quality than the Halfords ones the previous owner had fitted on the Golf I replaced it with.

Halfords are expensive because they can be, same with most products they sell.
So long as the plates bought online have the correct markings, there should be no issue.
Also the Halfords monkeys clearly fitted the ones on the Golf without much care, because both front and rear were slightly off centre and wonky.


Try asking your local garage, as often they can get plates made and fitted for less than the large chains will charge you.
Alternatively, lots of motor factors make plates, which can either be fitted yourself or by a garage.

 

[507021]

Try asking your local garage, as often they can get plates made and fitted for less than the large chains will charge you.
Alternatively, lots of motor factors make plates, which can either be fitted yourself or by a garage.

I agree with this, definitely ask around your local garages first. The quality is just as good if not better as the much larger motoring chains, and it costs a fraction of the price as well.

I asked a local garage to make a new set of registration plates for my car recently and they only cost me £10. My Dad had a new set made at a local garage (a different one to the one I used, but still excellent quality) for one of his previous cars as well, I can't remember the exact cost but they were very reasonable.

 

[headshot119]

I recently had the front number plate replaced on my car at a VW service centre (Was in for some warranty work) and it only cost £10.12. £20.24 for decent quality new plates, assuming they aren't even cheaper if you get both done at once, is quite good.

 

[EssexGonzo]

Don't you need to show proof of ownership / keepership before you can get plates made hence the approved govt list of suppliers? Whenever I've had some made up at Halfords, I've had to show my V5.

Any made without ownership proof by default would be show plates.

Not that you'll actually ever get pulled over. Some of the clearly illegal plates adorning expensive cars around here have been visible for years.

 

[beeza1]

Don't you need to show proof of ownership / keepership before you can get plates made hence the approved govt list of suppliers? Whenever I've had some made up at Halfords, I've had to show my V5.

Any made without ownership proof by default would be show plates.

Not that you'll actually ever get pulled over. Some of the clearly illegal plates adorning expensive cars around here have been visible for years.

Yes, you have to produce your V5 to get new plates made up "legally". Most of the plates on eBay and other outlets such as autojumbles are what are known in the trade as "show plates", some of them are 100% legal regarding size and spacing, but most of them have no suppliers postcode, instead they usually have a message or something similar. My local MOT centre do legal ones for £5 each, even fitting them free if they are required for the test.

 

[Cowley]

Try asking your local garage, as often they can get plates made and fitted for less than the large chains will charge you.
Alternatively, lots of motor factors make plates, which can either be fitted yourself or by a garage.

I'd also agree with this. I had one replaced for my MOT last year and I was going to do it myself but the garage were able to get it much cheaper, in fact it was even cheaper despite them fitting it, they had the vehicle details too so no faffing around with V5 documents either.