UK Number Plate Law Explained

It's likely you'll see dozens of number plates every day - on buses, cars, motorbikes, vans and everything in between.

What you might not know is that the UK has set laws governing what constitutes a legal number plate and flouting these laws could lead to a fine of up to £1,000. Whether you have a standard plate or a personalise one, here are the number plate rules and regulations that it’s important to be aware of.

How does the British number plate system work?

Vehicle registration number format

Since September 2001, all vehicle registration numbers have used the following format:

  • 2-letter DVLA memory tag: This refers to the region in the UK where the vehicle was first registered
  • 2-number age identifier: These identify when the vehicle was issued
  • 3 letters: These are chosen at random
Number plate image

2-letter DVLA memory tag

The first two digits of your registration are called a DVLA memory tag. These two letters identify where in the UK your car was first registered. The system was centralised in 2013, meaning that the regional offices were closed, and number plates are now issued from a national base.

However, the DVLA still follows this system for the most part and sends dealerships batches of number plates that match their location. So, if you’re buying a car in Essex, chances are the registration plate will start with E.

Here’s a breakdown of the DVLA memory tags, so you can see what letter combinations correspond to each region:

Regional Identifiers

DVLA Office

Region

AA, AB, AC, AD, AE, AF, AG, AH, AJ, AK, AL, AM, AN 

Peterborough 

Anglia

AO, AP, AR, AS, AT, AU 

Norwich 

AV, AW, AX, AY 

Ipswich 

BA, BB, BC, BD, BE, BF, BG, BH, BJ, BK, BL, BM, BN, BO, BP, BR, BS, BT, BU, BV, BW, BX, BY 

Birmingham 

Birmingham

CA, CB, CC, CD, CE, CF, CG, CH, CJ, CK, CL, CM, CN, CO 

Cardiff 

Cymru

CP, CR, CS, CT, CU, CV 

Swansea 

CW, CX, CY 

Bangor 

DA, DB, DC, DD, DE, DF, DG, DH, DJ, DK 

Chester 

Deeside to Shrewsbury

DL, DM, DN, DO, DP, DR, DS, DT, DU, DV, DW, DX, DY 

Shrewsbury 

EA, EB, EC, ED, EE, EF, EG, EH, EJ, EK, EL, EM, EN, EO, EP, ER, ES, ET, EU, EV, EW, EX, EY 

Chelmsford 

Essex

FA, FB, FC, FD, FE, FF, FG, FH, FJ, FK, FL, FM, FN, FP 

Nottingham 

Forest and Fens

FR, FS, FT, FV, FW, FX, FY 

Lincoln 

GA, GB, GC, GD, GE, GF, GG, GH, GJ, GK, GL, GM, GN, GO 

Maidstone 

Garden of England

GP, GR, GS, GT, GU, GV, GX, GY 

Brighton 

HA, HB, HC, HD, HE, HF, HG, HH, HJ 

Bournemouth 

Hampshire and Dorset

HK, HL, HM, HN, HO, HP, HR, HS, HT, HU, HV, HX, HY 

Portsmouth 

HW 

Portsmouth (Used exclusively for the Isle of Wight) 

KA, KB, KC, KD, KE, KF, KG, KH, KJ, KK, KL 

Luton 

-

KM, KN, KO, KP, KR, KS, KT, KU, KV, KW, KX, KY 

Northampton 

-

LA, LB, LC, LD, LE, LF, LG, LH, LJ 

Wimbledon 

London

LK, LL, LM, LN, LO, LP, LR, LS, LT 

Stanmore 

LU, LV, LW, LX, LY 

Sidcup 

MA, MB, MC, MD, ME, MF, MG, MH, MJ, MK, ML, MM, MN, MO, MP, MR, MS, MT, MU, MV, MW, MX, MY 

Manchester 

Manchester and Merseyside

NA, NB, NC, ND, NE, NF, NG, NH, NJ, NK, NL, NM, NN, NO 

Newcastle 

North

NP, NR, NS, NT, NU, NV, NW, NX, NY 

Stockton 

OA, OB, OC, OD, OE, OF, OG, OH, OJ, OK, OL, OM, ON, OO, OP, OR, OS, OT, OU, OV, OW, OX, OY 

Oxford 

Oxford

PA, PB, PC, PD, PE, PF, PG, PH, PJ, PK, PL, PM, PN, PO, PP, PR, PS, PT 

Preston 

Preston

PU, PV, PW, PX, PY 

Carlisle 

RA, RB, RC, RD, RE, RF, RG, RH, RJ, RK, RL, RM, RN, RO, RP, RR, RS, RT, RU, RV, RW, RX, RY 

Reading 

Reading

SA, SB, SC, SD, SE, SF, SG, SH, SJ 

Glasgow 

Scotland

SK, SL, SM, SN, SO 

Edinburgh 

SP, SR, SS, ST 

Dundee 

SU, SV, SW 

Aberdeen 

SX, SY 

Inverness 

VA, VB, VC, VD, VE, VF, VG, VH, VJ, VK, VL, VM, VN, VO, VP, VR, VS, VT, VU, VV, VW, VX, VY

Worcester 

Severn Valley

WA, WB, WC, WD, WE, WF, WG, WH, WJ 

Exeter 

West of England

WK, WL 

Truro 

WM, WN, WO, WP, WR, WS, WT, WU, WV, WW, WX, WY 

Bristol 

YA, YB, YC, YD, YE, YF, YG, YH, YJ, YK 

Leeds 

Yorkshire

YL, YM, YN, YO, YP, YR, YS, YT, YU 

Sheffield 

YV, YW, YX, YY 

Beverley

2-number age identifier

The two numbers that follow the memory tag identify in which six-month period the car was first registered. Instead of following a calendar year (changing in January and July), the period changes in March and September.

The March codes use the last two digits of the year of registration, so a car registered between March and August in 2023 will have the identifier XX23.

September codes are slightly different; these codes are the year the car was registered plus 50. So, a car registered between September and February 2023 will have the identifier XX73.

Putting them together, a car registered in Cardiff, in November 2018, might have the registration number CA68, followed by 3 random letters.

The rules vary for personalised or private number plates and you can find out more about that here.

Number plate design specifications

The number plates on your vehicle need to comply with the following specifications. They must:

  • be made from a reflective material
  • display black characters on a white background (front plate)
  • display black characters on a yellow background (rear plate)
  • not have a background pattern
  • be a single shade of black (if issued after 1 September 2021)
  • include a mark to show who supplied the number plate
  • be marked with a British Standard number (BS AU 145e for plates produced after 1 September 2021)

They can also:

  • include certain flags and symbols
  • display a green line on the left-hand sid
  • feature 3D (raised) characters

One key point to be aware of is that number plates can’t include numbers or letters that have been rearranged or misrepresented. For example, it’s illegal to use bolts or screws to alter the numbers or letters.

You also can’t use a registration number to make your vehicle appear younger than it is.

Font and typography

A standard font has been used on number plates since September 2001, eliminating any of the more difficult-to-read styles that you may have seen in earlier years.

There are now set guidelines on the size of letters, letter spacing, letter thickness and more. For a definitive list, check out the DVLA’s Vehicle registration numbers and number plates.

Flags

As mentioned above, certain flags and symbols are allowed on vehicle number plates. Flags should be positioned on the left-hand side and can be one of the following:

  • Union flag (also known as the Union Jack)
  • Cross of St George
  • Cross of St Andrew (also known as the Saltire)
  • Red dragon of Wales

You can also include a national identifier:

  • UNITED KINGDOM, United Kingdom or UK
  • GREAT BRITAIN, Great Britain or GB
  • CYMRU, Cymru, CYM or Cym
  • ENGLAND, England, ENG, Eng
  • SCOTLAND, Scotland, SCO or Sco
  • WALES or Wales

The identifier should appear underneath the flag. Neither should be on the margin of the number plate, or more than 50mm wide.

Green number plates

If you drive a zero-emission vehicle, then you’re eligible to display a number plate with a green border down the left-hand side.

You can find out more about green number plates and how to order one in our Green Number Plates article.

Fines

We mentioned it briefly in the introduction, but if you don’t have a legal number plate then you run the risk of being fined up to £1,000. Your car will also fail its MOT test and in some cases, the registration number might be permanently withdrawn.

You can easily avoid this by making sure that your number plate adheres to all the points we’ve listed above.

Buying a number plate

Number plates can only be purchased legally from DVLA certified garages or manufacturers, which can be easily located with the DVLA's helpful online tool.

You can also head to Halfords and purchase both back and front number plates online or instore. We’ll also fit them for you for a small fee, taking all the hassle out of the process.

Shop number plates

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07/23