Proposals for a complete ban of customised 3D and 4D numberplates are "taking a sledgehammer to crack a walnut – and missing", according to A1 Automotive Group's managing director Simon Salloway.
Salloway is one of many aftermarket leaders to have expressed concern over calls for an outright ban of custom plates, following a recent expose by The Daily Mail. It claimed a staggering 1 in 15 cars are now fitted with illegal plates that cannot be spotted by surveillance cameras, and as a result go undetected.
Campaigning by Labour MP Sarah Coombes along with The All Party Parliamentary Group for Transport (APPGTS) resulted in the Government's recent Road Safety Strategy, which intends to ban such plates. And the worry among the industry that it is going to penalise legitimate numberplate manufacturers and suppliers.
Monitoring the rise in illegal numberplates, Transport for London (TfL) says that during one set of checks on 1000 vehicles last year, almost half wore non-compliant plates, potentially evading congestion and parking charges as well as speed cameras.
Specialist plate suppliers regtransfers.co.uk said: "Some media reports inaccurately conflate the term 'ghost plates' with legal 3D and 4D numberplates, which are not designed to avoid detection or identification".
That said, Coombes and others have called for a total ban. Her view is: "Banning 3D and 4D plates would also help ensure there’s less deviation allowed on numberplates."
Like others, Mark Field of the Independent Automotive Aftermarket Federation (IAAF) believes that the changes will have very little impact on the black market at all and is real concern to its members.
"34,455 suppliers are registered with the DVLA to produce UK numberplates, with many operating from private homes or small workshops, with no background checks in place," said Field.
"Some suppliers handling customers’ ID documents were found to have serious criminal convictions, including for violent offences and fraud. The problem is not only the process of approval but the lack of enforcement by market surveillance.
"A potential for any policy change is that many IAAF members legitimately selling numberplates are unfairly penalised".
A1 Automotive Group's Salloway concurred with the IAAF, fearing it's a knee-jerk reaction which won't stop the criminal element. He said: "Once again it's the rogue traders that are ruining business for those who work within the framework of the law. Contrary to popular belief, 3D and 4D are not illegal currently, and are legible to ANPR as [prominent plate manufacturer] Tennants UK will confirm.
"Ghost plates are a different product altogether and predominantly supplied by unscrupulous online traders.
"When an A1 member prints legitimate plates, including 3D or 4D, they will register the sale using the approved DVLA portal which includes the submission of V5 information. However, anyone can go online and order any style of 'show plate' they desire receiving no checks whatsoever, and this won’t change even with a ban on what is a legal product if produced in the right way.
"We feel the majority of illegal plates are supplied by online sellers operating from home or even outside of the UK. A ban on 3D/4D will not stop someone determined to get a ghost plate, it will only destroy a valuable revenue stream for legitimate traders.
"We also ask, what will happen to those law-abiding citizens who have purchased plates via authorised plate suppliers who now find themselves on the wrong side of the law. Will they be forced to scrap them and be faced with a bill for replacement?".
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