Frequency Answered Questions
It is optional, however the government allows you to transfer the plate information from the scrapped car to a new car within a period of 12 months from the date of the incident.
Yes, inform your insurance company that you wish to retain ownership of your registration plate in the case the car is scrapped and this should be stated in writing on the car insurance cover note.
GET IT IN WRITING FROM YOUR INSURANCE PROVIDER!
You can retain the old registration or apply for a new normal registration when it is time to sell your car.
Yes, you don’t need a car but the registration certificate which lasts 10 years and can be renewed one month before its expiry.
Further information from the DVLA – Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency – Swansea.
For more information you can visit www.gov.uk/personalised-vehicle-registration-numbers
You can also phone DVLA Customer Enquiries (Vehicles) on 0300 790 6802 between 8am and 7pm Monday to Friday, and between 8am and 2pm on Saturdays.
Transferring and retaining the registration number of an old car which is not registered at DVLA.
It is possible for you to register the car at DVLA, but you will not be able to transfer or retain the registration number.
For more details you can visit www.gov.uk or see leaflet How to register your ‘old’ car (V848).
Keeping the registration number if you rebuild or convert your car.
Not all registration numbers can be transferred.
Your V5C will say if you can transfer the registration number. If you can you should consider:
• transferring it to another car
• retaining it on a document before breaking up or carrying out any alterations or conversions. If you do not do this you may lose your right to the registration number.
For more information see our leaflet, guidelines for the registration of rebuilt or radically altered cars and kit cars (INF26).
What happens to the registration number if you export your car?
By law you must tell us if you are taking your car abroad for more than 12 months.
If you want to transfer or retain the registration number you must do so before the car leaves the UK. You cannot apply once the car is out of the country.
You should get advice from Customer Enquiries, well before the date the car is being exported.
Please phone DVLA on 0300 790 6802. Lines are open between 8am and 7pm Monday to Friday, and between 8am and 2pm on Saturdays.
Your car is written off.
You can still apply to transfer or retain the registration number as long as:
• the vehicle is available to be inspected (we will also ask for an insurer’s engineers report)
• you can meet all the conditions of the transfer or retention schemes.
Important – if you want to transfer or retain the registration number you must make sure your insurers know that the car must be made available for us to inspect. If your insurers settle your claim and sell the car as salvage before the registration number is properly transferred or retained, it will pass with the car to the new keeper and you will lose your right.
Once you have successfully transferred or retained your registration number from the written off car, let your insurers know about the change of registration number and send them the replacement V5C. If your insurers intend to sell the write off as salvage, the car must display the replacement registration number.
Your car is stolen and not recovered.
After a year you can apply to have its registration number transferred to your replacement car as long as certain conditions of the transfer scheme are met.
In addition the following must also apply:
• the theft must have been reported to the police
• the theft has been on DVLA records for at least 12 months (the police should tell DVLA for you) but for no more than three years
• the car had a valid MOT certificate when it was stolen
• the car had valid car tax at the time of theft.
To apply, or for more information, write to:
Personalised Registrations
DVLA
Swansea
SA99 1DS
You will need to give the registration number.
If your vehicle is recovered and you or your insurer decide to sell or destroy it, you’ll need to apply to keep or transfer your registration number online at www.gov.uk/keep-registration-number or using
form V317 before the vehicle is disposed of.
Your car is leased
Only the car’s registered keeper can apply to transfer or retain a registration number. The leasing
company (if they are the keeper) would have the right to transfer or retain the registration number.
If you still want to assign a registration number on a leased car, check with the leasing company
that they agree to you doing so and that they are prepared to co-operate with transferring or retaining
the registration number in the future.
You no longer want to assign the registration number.
You can apply for a refund of the assignment fee (if you paid the assignment fee at the time you purchased or retained the registration number).
If you have a certificate valid for 10 years, you can apply for a refund before the expiry date of your V750 or V778 certificate.
For any other certificate, you can apply for a refund within six years of the expiry date.
Once a certificate has expired, you lose the right to display the registration number.
Adding or changing a nominee’s details on your certificate of entitlement or retention document.
You can do this as long as your certificate or document has not run out. Your V750 or V778 will
tell you how to do this.
You must either assign the registration number or apply for an extension before it comes to an end.
Your V750 or V778 will tell you how to do this.
You will lose your right to the registration number if you act too late.
You can extend the right to a registration number for 10 years.
If a car has a registration number starting with ‘Q’or ‘QNI’ prefix, that registration number cannot be transferred and must stay on the car.
Check your Car Registration Certificate (V5C) before you apply, to make sure that the registration number can be transferred. If the V5C states that the registration number is non-transferable, you cannot transfer or retain it.
If you would like to take the number off a car and keep it on a retention document for up to 10 years. You can do this online at www.gov.uk/keep-registration-number (the fee is £80).
You can also transfer the registration number onto another car online at www.gov.uk/keep-registration-number
(the fee is £80). You can complete the process by putting the registration number onto the car immediately afterwards at www.gov.uk/put-registration-number-vehicle
Alternatively, you, as the registered keeper, will need to fill in form V317. This form contains more information about transferring or retaining a registration number. You can get the form from www.gov.uk/dvlaforms or from DVLA.
A retention allows a registration number to be removed from a car and held on a document.
You can retain a registration number for 10 years.
Only the registered keeper of a car can apply to retain a registration number and choose to become
the grantee or give the details of someone else.
The grantee has the right to the registration number. The grantee has the right to assign (put on) the registration number to a car registered in someone else’s name. This person is known as a nominee.
The DVLA will issue a ‘retention document’ (V778) to the grantee. This will include details of:
• the registration number
• the nominee (if one is given in the application)
• the date the registration number should be assigned by.
The nominee has no right to the registration number until it is assigned to their car.
Once the grantee has assigned the registration number to their or their nominee’s car, the right to the registration number goes to the registered keeper of that car.
A car plate transfer allows a registration number to be moved from one car to another. Only the registered keeper of a car can apply to transfer its registration number.
When a car is registered with another registration number, that car will have its existing registration number
withdrawn unless you apply to transfer or retain it at the same time.
Important – try not to sell or transfer your car before you move the personalised registration number to your new car (by transferring it) or put it on hold (by retaining it).
Important – when you want to sell your vehicle displaying a personalised plate (be careful) if you don’t move it… you’ll definitely lose it.
Car registration dealers may sell registration numbers that they have bought, but they are not acting on behalf of DVLA.
You buy the right to have the registration number assigned to a vehicle registered in your name, or in the name of another person (the nominee).
The nominee has no right to the registration number until it is assigned to their vehicle.
We will send you a ‘certificate of entitlement’ (V750). This will include details of:
• the registration number
• the purchaser and nominee
• the date the right to assign the registration number will end.
You can extend the right for a further 10 years.
You can apply up to 28 days prior to its expiry.
You can add (if you do not have one), or change a nominee up until or at the same time the registration number is assigned. More details about this are on the V750.
When acquiring a car registration number do ensure that you do not make your car actually appear younger than it really is.
This is against the law.
You must observe the law relating to the style, size and spacing of letters and numbers on number plates, or you
may receive a fine of £1000 and the registration number may taken away or be permanently withdrawn from use.
You must go to a Registered Number Plate Supplier (RNPS) to get a number plate.
Use the following link:
Registration numbers must be correctly displayed in line with the law.
Refer to the following link:
The United Kingdom Secretary of State allocates them to vehicles (and which may be withdrawn) as part of the process of registering and taxing cars or other vehicles.
All registration numbers are owned by the United Kingdom Secretary of State.
Registration numbers are a unique way of identifying cars or vehicles.
The link to the INF 46 Registration Numbers and You can be found below:
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