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France - obtaining replacement UK registration plate


rooster63

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Arrived at campsite in Biarritz to find that rear number plate had dropped off (self adhesive pads) somewhere on route.

Was able to paint a temporary set of digits using Tippex, easily found in supermarkets and cheaper than buying a pot of paint and brush.

 

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That only ever almost happened to me once when the plate was found hanging by the last remnants of a sticky pad, ever since then I have always added two stainless steel self tapping screws when I purchase a vehicle to prevent that particular cut price lash up from spoiling my day!
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Hi,

 

In France, number plates must be made of metal, and be rivetted on.

 

Question ... what is the LEGAL solution when you lose or damage a number plate when you are in Darkest EU.? Are you required to courier all the necessary documents to the Dover branch of Halfords?

 

602

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  • 3 weeks later...

Regarding 602’s comments above:

 

The registration-plates of French-registered vehicles may nowadays be made of metal OR plastic. This will be evident from this Feu Vert on-line advert

 

https://www.feuvert.fr/plaques-dimmatriculation/r2777.html

 

French law demands that the registration-plates of French-registered vehicles must be attached via a "façon inamovible”, but does not stipulate that riveting MUST be used to achieve this.

 

However, It’s advised in France that the uncontroversial way of attaching the plates is to rivet them, as this is the historically-used method that French authorities are comfortable with. It’s probable that gluing the plates on with a high-strength adhesive would comply with French legislation, but it would then be a helluva job to get them off if they needed to be replaced. Using self-adhesive ‘pads’ and/or screws (attachment methods common in the UK) to fix plates to a French-registered vehicle would invite a €90 fine.

 

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I met a German national at Calais a few years ago who had lost his rear number plate and was due to cross to England the next day. He asked for advice as to where he could get a replacement plate and I suggested Halfords, but have no idea as to how successful he was.

 

When I had my front number plate ripped off by flood water in Roses, Spain, I made a temporary one out of Duck Tape and a spirit based felt tip pen, it lasted for 8 further weeks and saw me through Spain, France, Andorra and the UK without any comments from anyone. Interestingly DFDS who use number plate recognition at the ferry check-in points, raised no comments at all, so my shaky lettering (on a silver background) was good enough to pass muster.

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Randonneur - 2018-07-12 9:54 AM

 

Derek, In all the motoring outlets I have attended they will only use the rivet method to attach numberplates.

 

That does not surprise me, but French legislation does not specifically demand that riveting should be the sole attachment method - just that registration-plates must be ‘immovable’ after they have been attached to the vehicle.

 

Plainly, if a French motorist (or a French mechanic) is a ‘wise virgin’ he/she will make sure that the riveting method has been employed, as this is the time-honoured attachment method and avoids potential arguments with French police and at controle technique time - but riveting ain’t the law.

 

The relevant law is here

 

https://tinyurl.com/yac6jaus

 

The significant paqragraph is

 

"Chacune des plaques d'immatriculation est constituée par une pièce rigide rapportée fixée au châssis ou à la carrosserie du véhicule d'une manière inamovible, la face portant le numéro d'immatriculation étant tournée vers l’extérieur.”

 

No mention of rivets...

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Billggski - 2018-07-13 10:44 AM

 

French plates are permanent for the vehicle, so rivetting seems the simplest solution.

 

I thought that if the vehicle was moved to a different Department, the plate was changed, or have things changed with the 'new' numbering system introduced a few years ago?

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Tracker - 2018-07-13 11:31 AM

 

By riveting I presume they mean blind or pop rivets, which is pretty daft as it is just as easy to drill out a pop rivet as it is to remove a screw!

 

This webpage emphasises the requirement that French registration plates must be ‘immovably’ attached to the vehicle, and that riveting meets that requirement whereas just using screws does not.

 

https://www.eplaque.fr/infos/riveter-vos-plaques-une-obligation-legale

 

The same website advises on DIY-attaching registration plates using pop-rivets and coloured covers (coloured rivets are also sold for this task).

 

https://www.eplaque.fr/infos/poser-ses-plaques-dimmatriculation-soi-meme

 

There are arguments on French motoring forums regarding what fixing methods might qualify for making the plates ‘immovably attached’ and there have been instances where French motorists with plates not held by rivets have had prosecutions dropped because of the regulation's lack of clarity.

 

Unless one owns a French-registered vehicle it’s academic really.

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I was recently on a campsite in Cornwall, meet a guy and motorhome talk was had, any way the chap had just traded up to a newer unit.

 

He tows a small car and so asked the dealer for a number plate to be fitted to the trailer as part of the deal.

 

All good you might think until another chap pointed out that the plate on the trailer was incorrect.

 

The letters at the end of the plate were in a slightly different sequence on the trailer than on the MH, so a new plate required for the trailer.

 

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  • 3 years later...

I know this is an old thread, but 3 or 4 years ago we lost a front plate in France, not realising until a French MHer pointed it out. We had major problems getting a replacement. The metal plates were ruled out because there are certain letters which are not used in French registrations, so they didn’t have the stamps needed. And when we tried to get a plate made up in plastic, the computer program used wouldn’t accommodate a UK format plate.

 

In the end we traced the shapes of the digits from the rear plate and constructed our own plate out of sticky black and white plastic! It did us until we got a replacement sent from our supplying dealer at home.. But we do carry a spare set of plates with us now!

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  • 2 weeks later...
Tracker - 2018-07-13 11:31 AM

 

By riveting I presume they mean blind or pop rivets, which is pretty daft as it is just as easy to drill out a pop rivet as it is to remove a screw!

 

when you are trying to pinch somebody's number plate without being heard *-)

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I can’t see the benefit in responding to a ‘throw-away’ comment that’s over 3 years old.

 

These forums have threads in them that are 15 years old and a fair amount of the early material contains information/advice that was incorrect and/or is no longer relevant. This particular thread was revived by a posting advertising a UK numbrer-plate-making firm and it might have been better with hindsight if I had just deleted that posting rather than edit it.

 

So - once again - please don’t ‘necropost’ unless what you’ve got to say has real value.

 

(Thread now frozen)

 

 

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