New 74 Plate Hits The Road - Number Plate History
Every year, the DVLA release two new number plates to signify the age of a vehicle. March 1st sees the release of the plate that represents the year, such as 19 Plate, 20 Plate and this year the 24 Plate. September 1st is the release of the larger number, like the 74 plate just released.
This current system of number plates was launched in the UK in 2001, with the 51 plate being the first in the line up. Following on from that was 02 and 52 etc until you get where we are today. The current format is the infinite, however. The year 2050, unless things change before hand, will see the last of this style plate as we run out of numbers. So, something like AA50 ABC and AA00 ABC will be the last of its kinds.
The History of Number Plates
Cars did not always have to display a number plate, or Vehicle Registration Marker (VRM). It seems crazy by today's standards; where our every move in a vehicle can be tracked using the vehicle's number plate. The Motor Car Act 1903 came into force on 1 January 1904 and made it a legal requirement for all vehicles to be entered on to an official vehicle register. All vehicles were required to be allocated and fitted with an alphanumeric plate. The original aim of this legislations is still relevant today: allow the easy tracking of vehicles in the event of an accident, a breach of law or any other incident.
Originally, plates were made of metal and were black with silver or white letters/numbers on them. Today, as you will know, they are made of plastic with yellow on the rear and white on the front. The switch from metal to plastic was due to the requirement that plates were made of a reflex-reflecting material. In short, they needed to be more visible and not become a flying piece of shrapnel in an accident. This became a requirement by law on all vehicles manufactured after 1 January 1973. This is why you see some older, classic cars still using their original metal plates; it is not a legal requirement for them to switch to the newer plate. However, it is an offence for you to display the old style metal plates on a newer vehicle.
The Meaning of a Number Plate
As shown in the diagram above, a number plate is broken down into 3 parts:
1. Area Code
2. Age indentifier
3. Random letters
Some cherish plates will vary from this as they may be representative of older styles that are still valid.
The area code, or the local memory tag, identifies the local registration office. Despite the fact that by December 2013, all local registration offices had closed, the letters are still used to signify the region that the car was registered in.
The age identifiers are as explained above. The last 3 letters are completely random.
