New UK motorway cameras as instant number plate car seizure and points planned

A cutting-edge camera system deployed across major motorways in the UK ‘identifies illegal number plates’, it has emerged. The technological advancement arrives as the Department for Transport advances proposals to make the violation punishable by immediate penalty points and vehicle confiscation.

The BBC‘s Panorama programme reported the innovative camera technology is undergoing trials on motorways throughout south-east England. These registration plates have been modified to prevent their information being captured by automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) systems, which enforce speed restrictions and low emission zones, while also tracking criminal activity.

According to plans formulated by the Department for Transport, police forces will receive immediate authority to impound vehicles equipped with stealth plates, aligning the violation with sanctions for driving without insurance. Motorists additionally risk receiving as many as six penalty points, a level that would result in an automatic disqualification for recently qualified drivers.

The initiatives have been driven by mounting concern amongst police leadership and national security authorities regarding the widespread use of highly reflective treatments, modified lettering, and duplicated registrations. The alterations, which remain invisible to human observation yet make plates illegible to infra-red speed cameras and Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) technology, are available for purchase online for as little as £30.

Recent enforcement operations have exposed the extent of the issue. Figures gathered by transport organisations indicate that as many as one in 15 vehicles on Britain’s roads may now be fitted with plates that cannot be read by ANPR systems.

During a focused operation in London, enforcement officers found that 40 per cent of taxi and private hire vehicles stopped had illegal plate alterations designed to deceive cameras.

Police are worried that lawbreaking is escaping punishment – and are seeking enhanced powers to confiscate vehicles on the spot and issue fines. The consultation document, with responses expected to be released shortly, stated: “It’s harder for police to identify who is using a vehicle because some offenders go to great lengths to hide who owns it or who was driving – this makes it harder for the police to keep the public safe and pursue offenders.

“There is a significant amount of evidence of disguising a vehicle’s true ownership to avoid compliance with vehicle excise duty requirements and other payment requirements for the use of certain roads. This places an additional burden on those law-abiding drivers when revenue shortfall to the treasury due to fraud has to be made up.

“The police currently have the powers to seize a vehicle from those driving whilst uninsured, or not in accordance with their driving licence. The use of this power has to be proportionate and allows police to use their discretion not to seize where they feel that is an appropriate decision based on the merits of each situation.”

One of the leading suppliers of ANPR technology, MAV Systems, has been trialling innovative camera equipment designed to detect and interpret ghost plates. At a single testing location just outside London near the Dartford Crossing, the system has logged an average exceeding 1,000 ghost plates daily across several months.

Two additional locations have been operational for nearly two years. At one site close to the M25, detections have climbed from 1,000 per day to approaching 2,000 daily – while at the other, situated near the Eurotunnel at Folkestone, the technology is identifying more than 400 each day.

Sarah Coombes, the Labour MP for West Bromwich who has championed stricter legislation in Parliament, praised the consultation. “We must close this dangerous loophole,” she said.

“Those who deliberately alter their number plates to evade the law are making a mockery of road safety and placing law-abiding citizens at risk.”

Currently, motorists caught using ghost plates face a mere £100 fine, with no penalty points or driving ban imposed. This renders the offence less serious than a speeding violation and does precious little to deter reckless drivers or criminals looking to evade detection.

The West Bromwich MP is pushing for harsher punishments, including a £1,000 fine, six penalty points, and potential vehicle seizure.

Ms Coombes said: “The scale of the use of ghost plates is not yet widely known, although we do know there are major issues with cloned plates and wider forms of dodgy plates. One study found that as many as one in 15 drivers may already be using anti-ANPR technology, but among some groups it could be even higher.

“One police exercise conducted in London examined more than 1,000 taxi and private hire vehicles, and found that 40% of those vehicles had ghost plates.”

Ministers are warning that the proliferation of the “stealth plate” is fuelling a surge in lawlessness, enabling dangerous drivers to jump red lights and flout speed limits without consequence. It is also understood that cloned and altered plates are routinely exploited by organised crime networks and drug-trafficking gangs to travel across the country without being traced.

Introduction of Penalty Points: Operating or having charge of a vehicle fitted with an incorrect, modified, or fraudulent number plate currently constitutes a non-endorsable violation (typically incurring a £100 fixed penalty notice). The DfT is seeking views on transforming this into an endorsable violation, carrying penalty points (suggestions span from 3 points extending to 6 penalty points for intentional non-compliance).

Immediate Vehicle Seizure: Police forces will receive authority to confiscate vehicles immediately if discovered displaying illegal or altered plates, reflecting the enforcement system employed for uninsured drivers.

Panorama is on BBC One (BBC Two in Northern Ireland) at 8pm on Monday 28 September.