The
licence plate has one purpose: to quickly and easily identify the
vehicle that it is attached to. This is important enough that a whole
division of the Motor Vehicle Act Regulations is devoted to the subject.
Fines for failing to follow these rules may
be expensive as well, ranging from $109 to as much as $196.
The standard blue on white Beautiful British Columbia licence plate
design does the job well. It is immediately identifiable as belonging to
our province and the renewal decal system gives it a long life. Simple,
inexpensive and effective. What could possibly
go wrong?
Vehicles may be issued either one or two licence plates. If two are
issued, one must be securely fastened to the front and one to the rear
of that vehicle. In the case of a single plate, it goes on the rear of
the vehicle.
The characters are required to be displayed horizontally and the plate
must always be entirely unobstructed so that they can be read.
During darkness, the rear licence plate must be lit with a white light
to make the characters visible from a distance of at least 15 metres.
Transfer from one vehicle to another is strictly regulated as well.
Some people are lazy. They don’t attach the front plate or just throw it
on the dash. Plates are left completely covered by dirt or snow. One
loosely attached fastener allowing the plate to dangle should be enough.
What seems like a good idea is not. Plastic licence plate covers, clear
or tinted, can prevent a plate from being read in some circumstances and
must not be installed.
Other people are dishonest. Number plates are moved to their vehicle of
convenience without doing a proper transfer. Plates are covered or
purposely obstructed in some manner to thwart tolls and enforcement.
Even our provincial government has lost sight of the intent. Designs
such as personalized, veterans, Olympic and B.C. Parks make it more
difficult to read the characters and determine where they are from.
Oddly enough, failing to display any licence plates at all is a $109
ticket while obstructing a plate that is displayed costs $196.
Yes, the lowly licence plate has an important job to do. There is not logical or legal to make that difficult.
Story URL:
https://www.drivesmartbc.ca/vehicle-licencing/lowly-licence-plate
—
Constable Tim Schewe (Retired)
DriveSmartBC: Where better than average drivers satisfy their curiosity.