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Original poster

Personalised number plates

214 replies

DryWhiteagainW · 23/01/2023 19:11

Was chatting to a friend about this. Are they a bit naff really?
DH and half my town seem to love them, I’m not fussed.
Dont know how to do a poll but was just wondering what you all think (obv not a first world issue I realise)

OP posts:
saraclara · 23/01/2023 22:10

MrsJBaptiste · 23/01/2023 22:06

More cars have them than not these days so I'm not sure the 'naff' argument is that valid anymore 🤷‍♀️

Maybe where you live. But absolutely not in most parts of the country.

user764329056 · 23/01/2023 22:15

Pretentious, unnecessary, tasteless

maryofthevirginkind · 23/01/2023 22:18

I think the ones trying to say a name and failing are naff. Mine is my husbands initials and year or birth and my initials. Means something to us but looks like a standard number plate too. Not naff IMO.

Also why if you're called Lynn (or whatever) do you want everyone to know!

cushioncovers · 23/01/2023 22:18

Naff

JustKeepSlimming · 23/01/2023 22:33

I think personalised things are a bit naff generally, unless it's something that you need to identify as your own (like a coffee mug in work or something).

I also find the plates with a football team name on them particularly cringeworthy (eg AB777 LFC). But as long as they're not on my car, I'm not that bothered.

thirstyformore · 23/01/2023 22:49

@WestBridgewater it spells my actual name! No squinting required.

Still not sure where they are "particularly naff". Lots of things are naff. I admit personalised number plates are a "bit" naff, but not more so than, say, a LV bag, eating McDonald's in the street, big eyebrows, making a video call on public transport or brown shoes on men.

Hellibore · 24/01/2023 03:29

Super tacky.

Hellibore · 24/01/2023 03:35

1 W4Nk3R

Champagneforeveryone · 24/01/2023 03:36

DH has one, it ranks up there with his children in terms of attachment 😆

His is actually relevant. The first 4 look like his name (without screws or spacing) and the last three are his initials. We only have one car now (mine) so it's on that. Fortunately it doesn't look out of place on my car in the area where we live, but I've never got over being baffled by it.

On a related note, he was once offered a large amount of money for it, as it also works well for a prominent local business. Try as I might I couldn't get him to budge and so the fecking thing remains with us to this day 😉

Trez1510 · 24/01/2023 04:06

WestBridgewater · 23/01/2023 21:14

My SIL bought my brother one with a completely different name. It’s sort of supposed to be the name of the character in a film he likes. It’s not this but it’s like having NL18BRE for Nacho Libre and his name is Kevin. It makes no sense unless she’s planning on changing his name for his birthday.

This is a fantastic example of the type of plates that cause me great resentment.

I absolutely resent the brain time it takes to try to work out WTAF they think it says.

A straightforward number and initials, fair enough if it floats your boat.

Anything that needs special spacing, oddly placed screws or just doesn't make any sense at all are as cringey af.

User1754875 · 24/01/2023 04:53

I don't think it is anything to do with how much money you have, there are several up my road which is in an East Midlands, not that nice town, average house cost about £300k, NDNs have one, opposite has three and there are more down the road, these are all very average people though mostly older so would probably have more disposable income.

Firstshoes · 24/01/2023 05:42

Kazzyhoward · 23/01/2023 19:57

As a couple of people have said, main use is to hide the true age of the car. Lots of coach firms do it (usually with meaningless number plates) as their passengers would probably feel a bit peeved if they knew the coach was 20-30 years old which is remarkably commonplace.

That is the only reason I got mine. My car was the earliest of its model and is fairly old. With my plate disguising this it could be 10 years younger. My plate is my initials but was very cheap.

CeriB82 · 24/01/2023 05:54

I bought one for my daughter for her 18th.

its something she has for life.

i also think Pandora bracelets and charms are naff but i dont over think it. I have bigger fish to fry

divet · 24/01/2023 05:59

Naff.

My friend's husband got one for £200 on his new lease car (extra ££ per month without consulting her, in a cost of living crisis, when she pays the majority of the bills).

But you'd only know it was personal if you knew his middle initial - it's like Mark David Robertson bought a plate with EP21 MDR. Honestly consolidated my hate for him, the overspending, pointless showoffy twat.

Simonjt · 24/01/2023 06:03

I have one, when I got it my employer at the time had a rule that cars used to collect/visit clients couldn’t be more than three years old. Lots of people have them to disguise the age of their car, while yes clients could have searched my plate to see how old my car was, it was unlikely they would bother.

WestBridgewater · 24/01/2023 06:13

Trez1510 · 24/01/2023 04:06

This is a fantastic example of the type of plates that cause me great resentment.

I absolutely resent the brain time it takes to try to work out WTAF they think it says.

A straightforward number and initials, fair enough if it floats your boat.

Anything that needs special spacing, oddly placed screws or just doesn't make any sense at all are as cringey af.

Show quote history

Every time I see it I still can’t believe he’s humoured her and put it on his car. Must be love.

TwoLeftSocksWithHoles · 24/01/2023 06:36

Kazzyhoward · 23/01/2023 19:57

As a couple of people have said, main use is to hide the true age of the car. Lots of coach firms do it (usually with meaningless number plates) as their passengers would probably feel a bit peeved if they knew the coach was 20-30 years old which is remarkably commonplace.

"you can't use a registration to make a vehicle appear newer than it is"

However this does not apply to dateless registrations (which ceased in 1962).

Justellingthetruth · 24/01/2023 06:42

@DryWhiteagainW

inam sure the people who say naff have naff things in there life.

torquewench · 24/01/2023 06:46

Sparklingbrook · 23/01/2023 19:22

Do people want their initials/name on their house too?

Someone in my road lives in a house (inherited from grandparents) that has a name which is a combination of 3 letters from both of her paternal grandparents' and her dad's names in big gold letters on the gates, and she drives a car with a private plate that was her grandad's that's been in the family 40+ years

rwalker · 24/01/2023 06:49

Nah we call them twat plates in our house

my sister has one for the sole purpose you can’t tell how old her car is

MeanderingGently · 24/01/2023 06:54

VI4 GRA drives round here regularly.
I mean, just why would you want that as your car reg?

Vallmo47 · 24/01/2023 06:56

Indifferent

NashvilleQueen · 24/01/2023 07:03

Wouldn't buy one. Couldn't care less if others choose to.

Oblomov22 · 24/01/2023 07:04

Dislike them. Dh has one. Just think they are really naff.

exLtEveDallas · 24/01/2023 07:16

I think they are becoming more popular. DD says she wants one on her first car, and almost all of her mates (17&18) have them.

I was bought one for my 50th. Really didn’t want one, no interest at all (& don’t like them) but DD persuaded DH to buy it and I could hardly say no when they’d got it as a surprise could I? Thankfully it’s just our initials (like AB11 CDE when A&B are DH & DD and CDE are mine) so meaningless to most.