12 Series Plates Now online

12 Series Plates Now online, Have Fun!

61 series plates now live

I have just added the latest DVLA 61 series plates, a AB 61GUN! 35,805,844 registrations.

Admin

Regfinder site updates

After a long hiatus (nearly a year!) we've got back to doing some more work on Regfinder.net . Over that period we kept the plate data up to date but paid work commitments mean't nothing else got done.

Looking at our search data and web stats it appears that even though we've not paid much attention to Regfinder for a year, the site visits and number plate searches are around three times what the site got a year ago, and it was quite busy then!

So we're pleased to announce that over coming days/weeks we'll be adding a lot of new features that we hope will make Regfinder a better service. Some of these are:

The new 61 plates (being processed by us at this moment)
New site design (looking good so far)
A cross platform mobile app for iPhone, Android and Windows Phone (iPhone is in beta)
More tools to help dealers and private sellers trade in number plates and widgets so that you can put bits of Regfinder (search etc) on your own web sites.

And a bit of advertising (unfortunately).

If there's anything that you think can be improved on the site then please reply here.

Cheers

Regfinder Admin (not the other bloke).

Bus spotter must pay £11,000

Bus fanatic Steven Curl must pay nearly £11,000 after running up a bill with the DVLA by using his employer’s computers.

Curl, of Haverhill, was sacked by AXA Insurance and prosecuted for fraud by abuse of trust after he used its computers to check on the ownership of buses.

Curl, 45, of Pearmain Walk, was given a five-month suspended jail term in November after admitting the charge.

The bus spotter appeared back at Ipswich Crown Court this week for a hearing under the Proceeds of Crime Act.

It heard that over nearly two years he contacted the DVLA 3,000 times, at a cost of £3.75 per number plate inquiry.

He ran up a bill of £10,983 which Mr Recorder Simon Spence has ordered him to pay by July 11. If he fails he will be jailed for seven months.

He must also pay an additional £1,200 towards the cost of the prosecution.





Reg

11 plates withdrawn from sale

Hehehe. Just received this email from the DVLA. Seems they missed a few;

"These '11 number plates have been withdrawn and will no longer be offered for sale."


UF 11 UKA
UF 11 UKR
AC 11 NTS
BC 11 NTS
CC 11 NTS
DC 11 NTS
EC 11 NTS
FC 11 NTS
GC 11 NTS
HC 11 NTS
JC 11 NTS
KC 11 NTS
LC 11 NTS
MC 11 NTS
NC 11 NTS
OC 11 NTS
PC 11 NTS
RC 11 NTS
SC 11 NTS
TC 11 NTS
UC 11 NTS
VC 11 NTS
WC 11 NTS
YC 11 NTS

I'm surprised they didn't spot these earlier.
(They should use Regfinder.net : )





Reg

A great single/single number plate gallery.

I met a man on the Internet. (No wait! That's not how it sounds!)



As regular readers of this blog will probably be aware, interest in number plates - be it professional or hobby - can be a bit of a lonesome affair.

In my relatively short time in the world of vehicle registrations, I have learned that 'indifference' is rarely a word that can be applied to it. People seem - more often than not - to have a deep seated "Clarkson-esque" loathing of the entire subject or, at the opposite end of the scale, a weird kind of snobbery about it.
(Paradox: "Even the most serious personalised number plate fans seem to dislike most personalised number plates").

With this in mind, it's always good to meet 'Number Plate Nerds' who are a bit more positive about their passion.

There are a couple of strings that I follow on the 'Pistonheads Gassing Station' forum.

("Real Good Number Plates (Vol 2)" and "Spotted! Real Rubbish Chav Number Plates". You'll need to register before viewing/commenting on them, I think).

Commentators here, do tend to suffer from a touch of the afore mentioned snobbery at times (I'll have to include myself in that statement if I'm honest, though my snobbery is inverted and so doesn't count) but, if you don't get involved then it's a great source of information and - believe it or not - sometimes even a good laugh!

Single/singles' are never far from the central topic as they are widely regarded as the Holy Grail of UK number plates, being among the very first ever issued, and pictures of these plates are always a welcome addition.

One of the regular contributors to these Pistonheads forum strings has come up with the idea of publishing a picture gallery purely for single/single registrations which is a good thing for two reason. Firstly; it's a great resource (for me, obviously), and secondly; It's something that seems to be agreeable to all commentators. (Which is bloody rare!)

The guys' user name is "Shmee" and his picture gallery is;

"Shmee150's Photostream"

If you have a single/single number plate picture that doesn't appear to be in the gallery then feel free to send it to Shmee at; plategallery@shmee150.co.uk
He's up to 111 'plates at last count and is always keen to add more.



Reg

PS; I've added "Shmee150's Photostream" to the resources box on here for easy of access, in case anyone snaps a plate they want to add at a later date.

The 11 number plate series ready to view

Even the DVLA are excited about this sequence of number plates !



YO11 ARE/ not GO11NG/ TO 11EED/ to be a LO11ERY winner to find six and seven LE11TER word NU11BER PL11TES in this lot!

(The regfinder scan is under way. Watch this space.)


Reg

Council agrees to sell £7000 private number plate

WEST Lothian Council has agreed to sell off its private registration plate worth an estimated £7000.

After numerous calls from taxpayers, officials at the council believe the sale will send out the right message to staff and the community, as Scotland’s local authorities struggle with a debt in excess £9 billion.

Retaining the ASX 1 number plate is no longer a priority, said Council leader Peter Johnston as he also announced plans to get rid of the chauffeur driven Volvo S80.

He said: "We've said from the beginning that no stone can be left unturned in our quest to find vital savings in the face of a £60 million budget shortfall.

"Councillors must lead by example and we will be moving to approve these changes at the council executive in early November."

But other cash strapped councils are still refusing to follow this example, even though half of the Scottish local authorities own prestige number plates, a few of which are believed to be amongst the most valuable in the UK.

Glasgow City Council owns two registrations which are each said to be worth up to £500,000, and the City of Edinburgh Council owns the S0 plate, valued somewhere in the region of £100,000 and £500,000.

'G0' is one of the official registrations owned by Glasgow City Council




Edinburgh Council's 'S0' plate





ES 1, the plate that currently graces the provost of Perth and Kinross's car, is thought to be worth around £150,000.

West Lothian Council's move to sell unnecessary assets has been welcomed by groups campaigning for less waste in the public sector and Emma Boon, from Taxpayer's Alliance, said it was time the other authorities did the same.

"While it's great that West Lothian are selling their number plate and getting rid of their civic car, it's disappointing that other Scottish councils are yet to follow suit. Said Emma.

"In these tough financial conditions councils must find significant savings.

"It would be unfair to expect taxpayers to continue to fund a civic car and it's disgraceful for councils to cling on to these luxuries at a time when taxpayers are struggling to make ends meet."

A spokesman for Glasgow City Council said: "Services have yet to finalise their proposed savings for the coming year."

And officials at the City of Edinburgh Council said the local authority would not be putting its personalised number plates up for sale as they were of "historical value to the city".

A Rover 75 used by Midlothian's Council has the registration plate SY 0, with an estimated value of £50,000.




A spokesperson said: "There are no plans to change the civic car provision in the near future and consideration has not been given to changing its number plate.
The SY 0 plate is part of Midlothian’s heritage and an asset which grows in value every year."

"The vehicles are not just used by council dignitaries but are also essential for guests including visiting royalty and important businesses."






Reg

Council slammed for not selling NH1 number plate worth "£400,000"

Bosses at another Council have been slammed for refusing to bolster the coffers by selling the mayors private registration plates, worth an estimated £400,000.

The number plate 'NH 1' has been on the Mayor of Northampton's ceremonial car for decades.

But Northampton Borough Council say it is not worth selling because it would only reduce the local individual’s council tax bill by £4.

But the TaxPayers’ Alliance yesterday urged the council to sell the reg plates and raise money for those struggling to make ends meet.

A spokeswoman said: "These number plates are a luxury that the council can ill afford at a time when it is facing spending cuts.

"It's a disgrace that they're trying to hang onto these at a time when some taxpayers in the area are struggling to make ends meet.

"The plates are an indulgence and they should sell them off as soon as possible."

Northampton Borough Council leader Brian Markham said the plate is part of the town's heritage.

He said: "If we got £400,000, that would be the equivalent to £4 off the average council tax bill for a whole year for the council taxpayers of Northampton. But that is only one year, next year you can't sell the number plate again.

"More importantly, that number plate is part of our heritage – not just for the council but for the town – we've owned that since the first number plates for cars."




Reg

China bans unlucky number plates

China turned superstitious by barring the issuance of number plates bearing the "unlucky" number '4', causing a mixed reaction from the public.

Beijing's traffic management bureau has stopped issuing car registration plates bearing the number as many Chinese consider it to be unlucky because it sounds similar to the word for death.

From this week, drivers in the capital who bought new cars no longer need to make a special request to omit the number, as it has been removed from the registration plate choosing system by the Beijing Traffic Management Bureau.

The BTMB have stated that the decision was made because number plates bearing a '4' have always been unpopular.






Reg

10 O number plate sells for £92,920 at DVLA auction

The final day of DVLA Personalised Registrations autumn auction got off to a great start when the registration 10 O sold for 92,920 pounds.

The winning bid was made by phone during at a tense and busy auction room at Rudding Park, near Harrogate so mystery still surrounds the successful bidder.

10 O is the latest in the O series released by DVLA Personalised Registrations in January 2009 to mark its 20th anniversary. Since then, more than 1.62 million pounds has been generated from this series alone.

While DVLA staff celebrated the sale of 10 O, the precise 92,919.69p (73,500 hammer price plus VAT, buyers premium and assignment fee) still falls short of the 210,000 pounds paid for 1 O in January 2009.

In total, the sale of personalised number plates by the DVLA has raised £1.6 billion. All money raised goes to the Treasury.





Reg

£26,000 personalised number plate for daughter aged 11

Doting dad Harbhajans Bains has spent 26,000 pounds on personalised car number plates for his daughter - aged 11.

Mr Bains bid at a DVLA auction for 99A, the year she was born and the first letter of her name, six years before Amun can even start learning.

The 41 year old pharmacist, of Little Aston, Sutton Coldfield, said: "My limit was to be 15,000 pounds but Amun had told all her friends. And I can't resist a unique plate."

Harbhajans now has 24 number plates, including ones for other kids Jeevun, 10, and Bahadar, 8.




Reg

RIP Sir Norman Wisdom

Reg

Great number plate collection

To find and own your perfect numberplate is always a special thing, especially if it's dateless as avid numberplate enthusiasts will agree. To find 'his and her' sequential plates is even better. To have a collection of five in a sequence is exceptionally rare and pretty special indeed!
But here's one lucky owner, Mr Powis who has just that; number plates 1 POW, 2 POW, 3 POW, 4 POW and 5 POW, each proudly displayed on his cherished car collection too.


"I've always had a fascination with personalised plates" comments Mr Powis. "I don't know whether it's a vehicle vanity or de aging thing or whatever, but ever since my first car, I've had some form of private plate on all of my cars. Admittedly, the plates have generally got more 'special' over the years, but I never anticipated ending up with my 'Royal Flush' of POW plates."


Mr Powis bought his first private plate in 1997, and over the years bought a number of POW plates which have since either been given to family members, or currently for sale through PrimoRegistrations. The main dateless collection started in 2007 and took just under four years to complete. "I certainly didn't start looking for this many' or this actual sequence in fact" retorts Powis. "I originally wanted 1, 11 and 111 POW" he highlighted. But he lost 111 POW to another bidder at auction and had to rethink his strategy.


"I bought the first three plates through dealers, and then asked for the last two to be released at auction, it was certainly exceptionally nerve racking with the final one, as I knew I had to win it to complete the collection. Luckily nobody else bid for that one and I secured it for the list price."
Which brings us onto money. Who knows what this collection is now worth? The perfect sequence of these low number, dateless plates makes the collection considerably more valuable than their individual components, and POW are good letters too and could refer to a wide number of things (POWER springs to mind!). We consider the valuation to be in the region of 250,000 pounds, but as Powis quickly responds "yes, but you've got to find somebody not only rich enough, but who has enough cars for them all, and has a particular connection with POW for it to be worth anything like that amount!"


And he concluded with an amusing anecdote; "The funniest thing happened though, when we moved home into our local village. A rumour got out that we were linked to the Royal Family [POW referring to the Prince of Wales], which the local postman thought to be true, and therefore thought suitable to spread across all of his post rounds! Even now, years later, we're asked if it's true! Maybe I will write to Prince Charles to see if he wants to buy them. I'm sure he meets all the criteria!"




Reg
Thanks to PrimoRegistrations for the article.

DVLA's Penultimate Sale of 2010

DVLA Personalised Registrations' autumn auction is almost upon us, with the prestigious Rudding Park, near Harrogate, the setting for this year's penultimate sale.

As ever, next month's three day event, which gets underway on Tuesday, October 5, will feature 1,500 personalised registrations, with reserve prices ranging from £250 to £10,000.

DVLA have again served up an eclectic mix of number plates, ranging from the sublime, like the "star" 10 O, GEN 151S and FLY 805S, to the humorous like RA55 STA, TUN 151A and CHE 4T!

For owners of arguably the greatest modern Ferrari, the A599 GTO will undoubtedly strike a chord along with F50 XXX, other popular registration plates directly reflecting car marques and models will be F635 BMW and LAM 80S while FHM 848E will certainly add a touch of glamour!. For the Liverpool FC fan, LFC 80Y surely is a must.

To register an interest or to download an auction catalogue, Click Here.




Reg

Vinnie Jones wears his name on his number plate

For Vinnie Jones, it's important that everyone knows exactly who is driving the shiny black Range Rover as the footballer turned actor's number plate spelled out the words 'UK VIN'.

And cruising behind him wife Tanya brought up the rear in a matching black Jaguar with the plate 'UK TANYA'.



Quite why the couple were driving in convoy is unknown, but it's clear that they are fans of the high profile Los Angeles lifestyle.

The reformed footballing hardman has fit in well in Tinseltown enjoying a certain amount of big screen success since debuting in Guy Ritchie's Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrells.

He recently revealed how other former players keep calling him in the hope of landing a movie role.

Ex Wimbledon teammate John Fashanu and Chelsea legend Kerry Dixon is among those who have called on Hollywood based Vinnie for advice.

Vinnie said: 'I've had so many calls. They want to be in a film. Or they want me to get their sons in.'

He also said he wants to open his own stage school to help budding British actors.

Vinnie added: 'It's so scary out there! These youngsters come to Hollywood and don't know where to begin.

'I'm going to give them a bit of guidance if I can so that they don't get ripped off. It's hard to know who to trust.

"It's so difficult to get an agent, let alone an acting part! I've been around a while so hopefully I can help,' he told The Sun.


Read more Here!

Popemobile to have SCV 1 number plates.

The latest Popemobile has been unveiled ahead of the Pontiff's visit to the UK, a Mercedes with an average speed of 6mph.

The M class vehicle, with space for the Pope to stand and wave at the crowd, will be driven by a so far unnamed British driver.

It is not the first time the car has been used, having already made several outings in other countries.

The Popemobile carries the number plates SCV 1, which stands for Stato della Citta del Vaticano, or Vatican city state in Italian. (The 'SCV 1' on the Pope Mobile is Vatican registered, so is a duplicate of the UK one which is currently on a Cherokee Jeep)

Although the average speed is just 6mph, the vehicle can go much faster if needs be.

Historically, different Popes have used a variety of methods to enable them to greet the public.

Many years ago a simple chair was used that was held aloft and carried by papal attendants.

The first modified vehicles were used by Pope John Paul II in the 80s and were often crude adaptations of vans or trucks. The vehicles were issued the number plate VIP 1 for his visit. The cherished number plate VIP 1 was then sold to Roman Abramovich for £285,000 in July 2006.

Today he will travel from Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh through the centre of the Scottish capital for his first day of his visit.

After traveling to London for events tomorrow he will be driven in the Popemobile at 5pm from Lambeth Palace through to Westminster.

On Saturday evening, prior to a prayer vigil at Hyde Park, the vehicle will again be making its way through central London.

Pope Benedict moves to the West Midlands on Sunday where people will be able to line Hagley Road in Birmingham as he makes his way to an open air mass at Cofton Park.





Reg

Tourist beware. Watch your speed in Spain.

A new speed campaign has been launched on the roads of Spain and the authorities targeting foreign drivers with their radar gun sights.

Plans to stop and fine tourists breaking the speed limit have been boosted by a new system. Each roadside camera can photograph number plates from any country. The picture is then shown to the driver on the spot, there is no escape.

"In 2009, 30 percent of offenders were foreign vehicles, and on some speed traps in the summer the figure exceeded 40 per cent. Here we have an alternative that enables us to show the driver the offence they have committed," explained
Frederico Fernandez, the deputy head of Spain’s
Dirección General de Tráfico.

The new speed cameras have been installed at four locations in regions where there is a high number of vehicles with foreign registration plates. The move has heightened the debate in Spain on whether speeding fines save lives or if it is just another way for the government to raise funds.


You could always get one of these ; )




Reg

The law finally catches up with number plate fraudster

Justice has finally been served to a fraudster who ripped off a motorcyclist from a village near Burton more than a decade ago.

Mark Seabridge, 46, boasted to a friend as he flew off to a new life as a restaurant owner in Tenerife that he had conned someone out of 6,000 pounds for a private number plates, Stafford Crown Court heard.

The victim was Mark Sadler, from Wychnor, who had handed over a banker's draft for 6,000 pounds for the cherished registration M4RKS in 1999.

However, Anthony Johnston, prosecuting, told the court that all Mr Sadler got for his money was a pair of number plates, as Seabridge did not own the actual right to it.

It had been bought by someone else at auction.

Mr Sadler, who wanted to put the number plate on a motorbike, got his documentation returned and when he tried to contact Seabridge, he had disappeared.

Mr Johnston said Seabridge's partner had revealed the money was spent on living expenses in Tenerife.

Amanda O'Mara, defending, said Seabridge had subsequently lost his restaurant business on the Spanish island.

He was arrested when he came back to the UK in 2006 to be a prosecution witness in a trial.

However, he then went missing again until his recent arrest.

The court heard Seabridge had already served 37 days in custody, including a sentence for skipping bail following his arrest in 2006.

Seabridge, from Farnborough, Hampshire, admitted a charge of obtaining money by deception and was given a 12 week prison sentence, suspended for a year.

He was also ordered to complete 250 hours of unpaid community work.

Judge Mark Eades told him: "This was a case of blatant fraud on Mr Sadler.

"You regarded it as a con to get money to feather your nest in Tenerife.

"If I was Mr Sadler, I would feel extremely aggrieved." Judge Eades also told Seabridge that he was lucky he was coming before the courts now, at a time when sentences are less severe than previously.

Referring to current sentencing guidelines, he told the defendant: "If you had come up for sentence in 1999, the notion of getting a four week sentence would have been laughed at."





Reg

Town Hall Number Plate Spies, Caught in the Act

Snoops at local town halls across the country have been caught in the act, using the DVLA’s database to spy on people.

The Big Brother tactics emerged after councils were given the go ahead to use DVLA car registration records, strictly to track down owners of ­abandoned ­vehicles.

Instead, bureaucrats have been checking up on residents suspected of other offences that have nothing to do with motoring, in a blatant breach of the rules.

As a result, several councils have been banned from accessing the database and many more have received warnings after serious breaches were uncovered.

155 of the 432 local authorities allowed to use the ­database were audited, showing that the DVLA’s ­system was accessed 750 times a day in the 2009/10 financial year.

However, it was discovered that ­councils were using the system to try and find people for a variety of non motoring offences including horse fouling, littering and owning unruly/dangerous dogs.

Red coded warnings were sent by the DVLA to the chief executives of 56 authorities where ­serious breaches of the system had been uncovered. A further 99 also received warnings about abusing the system and 12, which failed to make the changes requested by the DVLA, have been banned ­altogether.

Campaign director of Big Brother Watch, Dylan Sharpe, said: "The outrageous and often illegal abuse of the DVLA database is yet another example of the way in which local ­councils will use any available means to keep a check on their residents.

"Law abiding people, or those suspected of very minor offences, are regularly having their ­personal lives exposed.

"They are being spied on for ­nonsensical reasons by these inflated town hall bureaucrats.

"The Government needs to rein in this sort of clandestine snooping as a matter of urgency."

Inspectors found councils breaking the rules by searching for registration plates with partial ­numbers, or by failing to log in and out of the database correctly.

Councils were given 24 hour access to the database to make it easier to find the owners of abandoned vehicles.

After a move by the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs the access was upgraded to help council staff investigate so called SDHp "environmental crimes".

A DVLA spokesman said: "We carry out regular audits of users to ensure they respect the terms and conditions of the contract and user agreements which cover this service. The reasons for suspension range from failure to respond to an audit letter to failure to comply with record keeping or data access requirements.

"In most cases, suspensions were related to mismanagement and record keeping, rather than inappropriate access."

The barred authorities are Nottingham City and Ashfield in Nottinghamshire, Corby in Northamptonshire, Brighton and Hove, ­Hastings and Lewes, all in East Sussex, ­Elmbridge in Surrey, Hull in East ­Yorkshire, Tower Hamlets in east ­London, ­Blackpool in Lancashire, ­Bedford in Bedfordshire and Stroud in Gloucestershire.




Reg