The government has been urged to crack down on illegal number plates, as new figures reveal there were more than 21,000 offences detected last year.
Car insurance comparison site Quotezone analysed data from police forces, obtained via Freedom of Information (FOI) requests, highlighting 21,683 reported incidents in 2024 involving illegal or non-compliant number plates.
This includes ‘ghost plates’, which use reflective coatings to evade detection by speed and ANPR cameras.
The number of offences has triggered renewed calls for stricter regulation and enforcement.
The use of non-standard characters, incorrect fonts, spacing, or sizing is considered an illegal number plate modification. Drivers caught with illegal number plates can be fined up to £1,000.
The data shows that by number, the Metropolitan Police recorded the most offences (6,158).
In terms of the number of non-compliant number plate offences per population, Humberside led the way with 122 incidents per 100,000 people.
The data also highlights several other hotspots. Norfolk reported 926 offences, that’s 99 per 100,000 people, followed by Greater Manchester with 2,791 offences, 95 per 100,000 people.
At the other end of the scale, motorists in Northumbria were the most likely to comply with number plate laws, with 60 offences recorded last year, just 4 per 100,000 people.
Warwickshire also saw relatively few offences (65), while Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire each reporting just 90 offences in total across the year.
Quotezone also quizzed police forces on whether they are actively conducting operations targeting illegal or obscured number plates.
Some forces confirmed they are taking action, including Nottinghamshire Police Force who have recently equipped their Roads Policing Unit with equipment to assist in identifying ghost plates.
Greg Wilson, Quotezone CEO, said: “Ghost number plates have surged in popularity across England, with some drivers using them to evade speeding penalties and other traffic regulations.
“The data gathered from police forces indicates that many motorists continue to flout the rules regarding vehicle registration plates, but recent calls for stricter legislation and harsher penalties could mean that offenders will soon face a more rigorous crackdown.
“Drivers must remember it’s a legal requirement to have an easily identifiable number plate which is clean, not obscured and free from modifications, failure to do so could end in fines and penalty points.
“Even three penalty points could increase the driver’s car insurance premium by an average of 5%, rising to 25% for six penalty points. If drivers suspect they’re a victim of ghost plating, and have had their registration number stolen, they need to inform the police and the DVLA as soon as possible to try and avoid penalty points accumulating on the wrong licence.”
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