March 2023 sees the release of the new '23' plate for motor vehicles, but there are a number of combinations for both normal and private registrations which have been banned.
The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) outlaws number plates which could be deemed to have rude and offensive connotations every six months - holding meetings twice per year prior to their release to scan for suitability.
In these meetings, staff sift through potential registrations, looking for 'combinations of numbers and letters where we consider that they may cause offence, embarrassment or are in poor taste'.
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Wales Online reports that a list of banned ‘23’ plates was obtained by carwow via a freedom of information request, revealing plates that would always be rude, as well as some that could be offensive in the current situation.
Few drivers are likely to want to be told to GO23 HEL or EA23 POO by the car in front, for example, while nobody wants to share the road with a BA23 TRD. BO23 OKS and MU23 DER are also likely to cause offence. More recent events have led to plates such as RU23 UKR, NO23 RUS and YE23 WAR being suppressed, alongside CO23 ONA and EU23 BAD.
Rude number plates that might slip through the DVLA’s net ahead of the change can also be rescinded at a later date, although the organisation highlights that 'the vast majority of registration numbers are made available', as most are unlikely to cause offence. Some number plates such as 'TO23 ERR' and 'AA23 OLE' were also reportedly banned by the DVLA in case they caused offense on the road.
More rude plates include BL23 JOB, EA23 VAJ and FA23 NNY. Carwow's consumer editor, Hugo Griffiths, said: "Personalised number plates are a huge business, bringing in £2bn for the Treasury since the DVLA started selling them in 1989, with around 400,000 cherished plates sold each year.
"Despite this lucrative revenue stream, there are some plates that are simply too rude for the road. And while few would argue against the suppression of offensive number plates, the biannual meetings where DVLA staff sit down and deliberately come up with rude combinations must be one of the highlights of the organisation’s calendar.
"Even for those not interested in personalised registrations, changing your car during the March and September plate-change months can be a wise idea, both for people wanting to have the latest reg, and for bargain hunters who could get a good deal on a car with the previous registration."
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