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Private number plates. They’re undoubtedly very popular. However, they can cost a lot of money, and this can leave many people struggling to decide if they’re justifiable. This is particularly prominent when it comes to selling the car; indeed, it’s easy to assume that they will be sold with the vehicle.
However, this isn’t always the case. In fact, it’s possible to keep a private number plate in your ownership when you sell. Luckily, we’ve outlined the key steps you should know for this as follows.
Private number plates often hold a lot of meaning and importance, for many people. As a result, it’s understandable that many people might want to keep hold of their plate. But how can you do this? Is it even possible?
Well, yes. It is possible to keep your private number plate when selling a car. However, this will usually sell with the car it’s registered to. So, you will need to apply to the DVLA to authorise the change using a retention application.
If the authorisation is granted, the DVLA will send you a V778 Retention Document, which allows you to keep the number plate. This plate can then be used on any vehicle you own within the next decade.
After you have done so, a new V5 logbook will be sent to you with the new vehicle registration. As such, if you want to sell a car without its custom number plate, you’ll need approval before transferring the car. Otherwise, you would be transferring the car with a V5 that shows the custom number plate, not the new registration number.
If you don’t necessarily want to use the custom number plate on another vehicle, you don’t need to. However, you will need to relinquish the right to use the number plate. Fortunately, this is also pretty simple.
You can still recover a private number if the car has been written off and salvaged, but the process is more complicated.
The first step is to notify your insurance provider. If you fail to do this when the vehicle has been written off, you are likely to lose the right to keep the number plate. Once the insurance pays you out for the vehicle, you will not be able to recover the plate number as it will belong to them.
No. You can’t necessarily keep just any number plate. Specifically, the vehicle must already be DVLA registered. It must also be functional and able to move with its own engine and battery. Furthermore, it also needs to be eligible for an MOT certificate – ruling out classic cars. Moreover, you must have declared SORN or taxed the vehicle every year for the last five year and may need an HGV certificate for heavy goods vehicles.
Be aware that the DVLA may request an inspection. You will need to be present for this if they do.
If you’re looking to buy a car, it’s possible to see how many number plates it may have had. You can also run the number plate in a car history checking tool to see what work has been done.
This simple process also allows you to see if the vehicle’s basic information, such as make and model, correlate with the plate you were given; in doing so, you can double check that the seller hasn’t given out a fake number plate when selling the car. So, don’t take a chance with number plates when buying, especially if you’re buying based on the plate; always double check this with a history checking tool first.