Drivers warned as ‘ghost plate’ offences soar

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 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.