In the currently unstable financial markets where some traditionally secure investments are looking somewhat shaky then personalised car number plates may represent a worthwhile choice as a place to put your money.
There is a whole culture surrounding private number plates including creative use of letters and numbers with plenty of fun combinations available. So long as you stay within the UK DVLA licensing laws then what you have on your plate is only limited by your imagination. You don’t even need a car in order to get your private number plate so long as you have the legal certification. There are a number of companies who can support you through the buying and/or selling and registration process, which is relatively straightforward.
Why would you get one and what would you have? Apart from the investment opportunity a personalised number plate is in part a bit of fun whereby your plate may say something about you, your passions or your car for example. Maybe your initials in some way combined with something about your character, your profession or your favourite football team. They can also make a great present for someone.
Once you have an idea of what you might want on your number plate then there are various ways of finding out if your choice is available. Unsurprisingly there are some numbers that are difficult to obtain such as 007 in combination with initials, but you never know. In a similar way to personalised email addresses you may be able to change a number or a letter and still make it yours. There is a culture of ‘plate speak’ whereby swapping certain numbers or letters that look similar produces the effect that you want. Alternatively you may be able to buy it, as there is an active trade in car number plates.
Some serious business people such as Dragons Den’s Duncan Bannatyne and Theo Paphitis, are increasingly becoming involved in the buying and selling of personalised registration plates because there is money to be made. In recent years F1 went for more than £400,000, VIP 1 for over £200,000 and in the United Arab Emirates personalised number plates have traded for figures in the millions. Given that the selling of plates is simple enough, and there are people who will manage it for you, personalised number plates are becoming a burgeoning area of investment in a changing economic climate where it is no longer clear where to put your money.