International Travel - UK plate to replace GB plate

[NJSS]

By now I anticipate that we are all aware that for travel abroad we need to display a UK plate tin plate of the pre-Brexit GB plate.

I was surprised when searching for a suitable plate on Amazon to read comments from disappointed customers that the UK plates that they had ordered were undersized, and thus illegal.

Although the supplied sticker may look neater on your car apparently the French police are particularly keen to collect a €90 on-the-spot fine if you are caught with an undersized plate.

I checked one I bought last year & found it to be substantially undersized as the letters were only 6 cm tall.

The UNECE Convention on Road Traffic of 8 November 1968 - Annex 3 states (in part):

The distinguishing sign... shall consist of one to three letters in capital Latin characters. The letters shall have a height of at least 0.08 m and their strokes a width of at least 0.01 m. The letters shall be painted in black on a white ground having the shape of an ellipse with the major axis horizontal.

To sum up in essence the letters should be a minimum of 8cm/80mm high with a stroke thickness of 1cm/10 mm.

I hope this "heads-up" may ensure one or two of us avoid on-th-spot fines in France & elsewhere.

NJSS

 

[NJSS]

I am reminded that UK and flag on number plate removes the need for an oval UK plate, but not if travelling in Spain, Cyprus or Malta


https://www.gov.uk/displaying-number-plate...dentifiers

Quote:​

Driving outside the UK

If your number plate includes the UK identifier with the Union flag (also known as the Union Jack), you do not need a UK sticker.

However, you will need to display a UK sticker clearly on the rear of your vehicle if your number plate has any of the following:

a GB identifier with the Union flag
a Euro symbol
a national flag of England, Scotland or Wales
numbers and letters only - no flag or identifier
If you’re in Spain, Cyprus or Malta, you must display a UK sticker no matter what is on your number plate.

If you have a GB sticker, cover or remove it before driving outside the UK.

For those travelling in Europe these links might also be helpful:-

Driving in Europe checklist | RAC Drive

https://www.theaa.com/european-breakdown-c...-do-i-need

NJSS

 

[W1ghty]

I bought some of the new UK one‘s when I went to France on holiday last September . You are right though you need to verify the sizes when buying online

 

[Deleted member 159894]

I haven't bothered for years, my old magnetic GB plate is on the washing machine.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

I haven't bothered for years, my old magnetic GB plate is on the washing machine.

Don’t put one on a radiator. Ask me how I know…

 

[markjay]

I haven't bothered for years, my old magnetic GB plate is on the washing machine.

Isn't that too prudent? I had a vibrating washing machine once that used to travel on its own, but I doubt it could cross the channel.