Drivers’ seemingly simple trick to dodge speed cameras sparks fresh law-change push
A significant chunk of drivers—perhaps as many as one in fifteen—are believed to be using £30 fake number plates to fool automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras. This issue has prompted the Department for Transport to roll out a major update amid growing concern that straightforward methods are letting cars slip past speed enforcement.
The British Number Plate Manufacturers Association (BNMA), which represents most UK plate suppliers, is calling for tougher sector regulation. In a letter to the Government, the BNMA warned that several unregistered suppliers with the DVLA are ignoring key requirements, fueling the problem.
Online marketplaces offer such plates for as little as £30, and using them can incur a £100 fine, though no penalty points are issued. Police say these “ghost” plates can appear normal to the human eye but may feature a reflective coating or other alterations that render them unreadable to infrared cameras. This baffling loophole has left officers puzzled, according to MP Sarah Coombs, who described the plates as looking legitimate yet being manipulated to defeat speed cameras.
In a parliamentary written question, Labour’s Jim McMahon asked Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander about the effectiveness of enforcing ghost-number-plate schemes in England. In response, Parliamentary Under-Secretary Lilian Greenwood indicated that a forthcoming policy document would set out new measures. She explained that the DVLA is collaborating with the National Police Chiefs’ Council and other departments to strengthen detection and enforcement of number-plate-related crimes, including cloned and ghost plates. She stressed that it remains illegal to display cloned or ghost plates, and enforcement is ultimately up to local policing leaders who must weigh local problems and available resources. The Police remain operationally independent and will investigate each case on its merits.
The government asserts a serious commitment to road safety and is exploring a suite of policies under a new ten-year Road Safety Strategy. This includes potential changes to motoring offences, in response to concerns raised by campaigns, MPs, and bereaved families who have voiced their experiences. The Road Safety Strategy is expected to be published by year’s end.
Previously, Professor Fraser Sampson, who led the UK’s ANPR program and has since left the post of Biometrics and Surveillance Camera Commissioner, warned that around 1 in 15 drivers were subverting the system in what he called a “staggeringly simple” manner. In a letter to the then Transportation Secretary, he lamented the lack of decisive action to curb the trend. He outlined ways criminals bypass fines by cloning plates, applying reflective tape, or purchasing so-called stealth plates to speed or access low-emission zones undetected. Although technology has advanced, he noted the ANPR system still yields about a 97% accuracy rate, which means roughly 2.4 million reads each day could be misread, potentially punishing innocent drivers.
Sampson highlighted the sheer scale of surveillance: tens of thousands of traffic lanes are monitored by cameras, producing tens of millions of number-plate reads daily, with projections that reads could top 100 million per day by late 2024. He argued that the system’s dependence on physical plates creates a vulnerable weak point in an otherwise sophisticated network. According to him, the humble number plate operates in a largely unregulated market and represents a single, easily exploitable flaw that can undermine the ANPR network’s effectiveness.
He stressed the ease with which the system can be deceived: applying reflective tape to distort a plate or buying stealth plates from online sellers are simple means to defeat current recognition technology. Some estimates have suggested that as many as one in fifteen drivers are already using anti-ANPR methods, and this number could rise as more traffic-management schemes rely on ANPR.
What this means for drivers and policymakers
- The availability of cheap, easily altered plates poses a real challenge to enforcement and road-safety efforts that increasingly depend on ANPR-based technology.
- Authorities are planning coordinated actions across DVLA, police leadership, and government departments to tighten controls on plate production and improve detection of cloned or ghost plates.
- The conversation about road-safety policy is shifting toward considering changes to motoring offences and how resources are allocated to enforcement in light of evolving technologies and evasion tactics.
In short, while ANPR has transformed traffic enforcement, its effectiveness hinges on secure, tamper-proof plates and robust oversight of the market for number plates. The debate now centers on balancing technological capability with practical, enforceable regulations—and whether stronger rules could reduce evasion without imposing undue burdens on ordinary drivers. Which approach do you think would most improve road safety without unfairly penalizing compliant motorists?
