In August's UK number plate news: The new 74 series plates can be displayed from September 1st; ANPR woes hit motorists and more...
The new 74 plates can be displayed from 1st September
The second series of 2024 number plates, the 74 series, will be legal to display on new vehicles from 1st September 2024. As always, it will not be legal to display the new plates on older cars. The regulations do not permit the use of number plates that make a car look younger than it really is.
People wanting the number 74 on a number plate need not feel left out. Regtransfers has a selection of plates including the number 74 which are legal to display on older cars!
Those of you buying new cars displaying numbers from the new series may find a few combinations aren't available. As we reported in April, DVLA have banned the release of certain 74 series numbers that they consider offensive or inappropriate.
Dodgy ANPR dumps fines on innocent drivers
The automatic number plate recognition system at the Dartford Crossing taking the A282 across the Thames between Dartford in Kent and Thurrock in Essex seems to be less than reliable. Drivers from all over the UK, some of whom have never even been in the area of the crossing, have received charges for unpaid crossings. One motorist claimed she had received two such notices, despite never using the Dartford Crossing.
Drivers have reported that the photographs on their charge notices have been blurred and difficult to read. When photos are unclear, the Dartford Crossing system ANPR images are supposed to be checked manually, but it is evident that either the automated system or the humans checking the unclear images are not doing the job properly.
National Highways said the failures occurred in "a small minority of cases".
Jobseeker caught driving with fake number plates
An 18-year-old man stopped by police in Marshland St James, Norfolk was found to have fitted fake plates to his Ford Focus. At Lynn Magistrates Court, Lee Harrod's legal representative offered Mr Harrod's determination to find employment as mitigation.
The solicitor stated that Mr Harrod had bought the car with the intention of driving legally, but that literacy issues meant that he struggled with the driving theory test. It was pointed out that Mr Harrod, who was seeking work as a roofer, was driving while dressed in his work clothes of high-visibility jacket and safety boots, in the hope of finding employment.
Mr Harrod, from Huntingdon, had six penalty points added to his licence, was fined £120, and was ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £48 and court costs of £40.
