General News
9 January, 2023
New number plate safety feature launched
Local police are encouraging residents to turn unwanted and unused number plates in to VicRoads, as number plates with embedded safety features enter circulation. From the start of January, all new number plates now feature directional security...
Local police are encouraging residents to turn unwanted and unused number plates in to VicRoads, as number plates with embedded safety features enter circulation.
From the start of January, all new number plates now feature directional security markings to provide an additional level of authentication, making it harder for them to be copied.
According to the State Government, it’s a step that will help tackle the growing number plate thefts in Victoria.
While new, standard issue plates feature the additional security features, existing plates do not and Central Goldfields Highway Patrol Acting Sergeant Paul Schroeder said it was important for locals to mitigate the risk of their plates being stolen.
“Theft of plates does happen and certainly anti-theft screws are the first line of defence in preventing that,” he said.
“If you’ve got old number plates or personalised plates, if you’re not using those make sure you return them to VicRoads or make sure they’re somewhere safe — not lying around inside your car or a shed where they could be stolen.
“The other thing that happens quite often is the cloning of plates which can be more challenging to prevent.
“Say if I wanted to clone plates, I could go to carsales.com, contact a seller and ask for the number plate so I could run checks on it — it can be as simple as that.
“It’s difficult to prevent that sort of thing, but it’s important to be mindful of where you advertise your vehicle for sale and how much information you’re providing, particularly if you’re selling your vehicle on Facebook marketplace.”
Act Sgt Schroeder said stolen or fake number plates can have a variety of uses in crime.
“We do see false plates, cloned plates and stolen plates on vehicles, it’s not a regular occurrence, but we do see it,” he said.
“Cloned plates can vary in quality, you can get everything from fairly well-made number plates to cardboard and sticky tape.
“We had someone who had a registered vehicle and decided to clone the plates from that vehicle to put on a second one because they didn’t want to pay registration twice.
“People can use plates to avoid paying registration or in criminal activities, like petrol drive offs, smash and grabs and robberies.”
Act Sgt Schroeder said old number plates or plates which are no longer registered should be returned to VicRoads to prevent them being stolen.
“If people do either have number plates stolen or lose their plates, report it to police,” he said.
“Aside from personalised number plates, standard plates belong to VicRoads and should be returned to them.
“If your vehicle is unregistered, just turn those number plates in — it saves you the worry of the plates being stolen and the opportunity for theft.”