What to Do if Your Number Plate Has Been Cloned | PrimoReg

What Is Number Plate Cloning?

Number plate cloning is when somebody illegally copies the registration number from a legitimate vehicle and displays it on another vehicle.

Criminals will often choose a registration belonging to a car that is the same make, model, age and colour as their own vehicle. This makes it more difficult for police officers, witnesses and automatic number plate recognition cameras to distinguish the cloned vehicle from the genuine one.

Cloned number plates may be used to:

• Avoid speeding fines
• Avoid parking charges
• Evade congestion charges and Clean Air Zone fees
• Drive without valid insurance or vehicle tax
• Commit fuel theft
• Disguise a stolen vehicle
• Commit other criminal offences

Because the registration displayed on the cloned vehicle belongs to your vehicle, penalty notices and official enquiries may initially be sent to your address.

How Do You Know if Your Number Plate Has Been Cloned?

Many motorists only discover that their number plate has been cloned when an unexpected letter arrives through the post.

Common warning signs include:

• A speeding ticket from a location you have never visited
• A parking penalty for somewhere your vehicle has never been
• A ULEZ, congestion charge or Clean Air Zone penalty
• A police enquiry about an incident you know nothing about
• An insurance enquiry concerning an unfamiliar accident
• A fuel station contacting you about alleged fuel theft

Always examine any photographs included with the notice. Even where the cloned vehicle is similar to yours, there may be visible differences.

Look carefully for differences such as:

• Different alloy wheels
• Different trim or specification
• Different stickers, badges or dealer branding
• Different lights or bodywork
• Existing scratches or damage
• A different number plate style
• Different accessories, such as roof bars or a towbar
• Different occupants

What to Do if Your Number Plate Has Been Cloned

Follow these steps as soon as you suspect that somebody is using a copy of your vehicle registration.

Step 1: Report the Cloned Number Plate to the Police

Contact the police by calling 101, unless a crime is currently taking place or there is an immediate emergency.

Explain:

• Your vehicle registration number
• The make, model and colour of your vehicle
• Why you believe the registration has been cloned
• Details of any fines or penalty notices you have received
• Any visible differences between your vehicle and the vehicle shown in photographs

Ask the police for a crime reference number or incident reference number.

Keep this number safe. You may need to provide it to the DVLA, your insurer, parking companies, local authorities and police forces when challenging penalties.

Step 2: Do Not Ignore Any Fines or Penalty Notices

It can be tempting to ignore a fine when you know that you were not responsible. However, ignoring official correspondence may make the situation much worse.

Respond to every notice before the stated deadline, even if you have already reported the cloning to the police.

Include:

• Your police crime or incident reference number
• A written explanation that your number plate has been cloned
• Photographs of your genuine vehicle
• Evidence showing where your vehicle was at the time
• Details of any differences visible in the enforcement photograph

Keep copies of every letter, email, photograph and document you send.

Failing to respond can lead to increased penalties, court action or enforcement proceedings, even where you were not responsible for the original offence.

Step 3: Gather Evidence

Evidence can make it much easier to prove that your vehicle was not involved.

Useful evidence may include:

• Dashcam footage
• Home or workplace CCTV
• Work attendance records
• Parking receipts
• Fuel receipts
• Garage invoices
• Mobile phone location records
• Timestamped photographs
• Witness statements

For example, if a penalty was issued in Manchester while your car was parked outside your workplace in Hampshire, workplace CCTV, access records or photographs could provide strong supporting evidence.

Step 4: Photograph Your Vehicle

Take clear, current photographs of your genuine vehicle from several angles.

Photograph:

• The front of the vehicle
• The rear of the vehicle
• Both sides
• The wheels
• The interior where visible
• Any distinctive marks, damage, stickers or accessories
• Both number plates

These photographs can be compared with enforcement images of the cloned vehicle.

Step 5: Contact the DVLA

Inform the DVLA that you believe your vehicle registration has been cloned.

Provide:

• Your registration number
• Your vehicle details
• Your police crime or incident reference number
• Copies of relevant penalty notices
• Any evidence showing that another vehicle is using the registration

The DVLA can record the information and provide guidance based on your individual circumstances.

You can find official information on the GOV.UK number plate guidance page .

Step 6: Tell Your Insurance Company

Contact your vehicle insurer and explain that your registration has been cloned.

You have not necessarily made a claim and you have not done anything wrong. However, informing your insurer creates a record in case an accident, claim or police enquiry is later incorrectly linked to your vehicle.

Ask the insurer to note the police reference number on your policy.

Step 7: Keep a Record of Everything

Create a folder containing all correspondence relating to the cloning.

Keep:

• Penalty notices
• Appeal letters
• Emails
• Police reference numbers
• DVLA correspondence
• Insurance correspondence
• Photographs
• Receipts and supporting evidence

Record the date, time and name of anyone you speak to by telephone. A tidy paper trail may not be exciting, but it is often your best friend when the fines start flying.

How Do You Challenge a Fine Caused by a Cloned Number Plate?

The exact appeals process will depend on who issued the penalty. It may have come from a police force, local authority, private parking company, Transport for London or another charging authority.

Follow the appeal instructions shown on the notice and clearly state that you believe your vehicle registration has been cloned.

Your appeal should include:

• The notice reference number
• Your vehicle registration
• Your police crime or incident reference number
• A clear explanation of why the vehicle was not yours
• Photographs of your genuine vehicle
• Evidence of your location at the time
• Details of visible differences between the two vehicles

Keep your explanation factual and concise. Do not simply state that the fine is wrong. Give the issuing authority clear evidence that it can assess.

Should You Change Your Registration After It Has Been Cloned?

Changing your registration is not always necessary, particularly where the police quickly identify the cloned vehicle.

However, if you continue to receive repeated fines or enquiries, changing the registration displayed on your vehicle may help distinguish your genuine car from the vehicle displaying the copied plates.

Some motorists choose to purchase an affordable personalised registration and assign it to their vehicle.

Once the new registration has been legally assigned and new plates have been fitted, your vehicle will no longer display the registration being used by the criminal.

A replacement registration does not cancel any existing fines automatically, so you must still respond to every outstanding notice and explain that the original registration was cloned.

Can a Private Number Plate Be Cloned?

Yes. A personalised number plate can be cloned in exactly the same way as a standard registration.

Any visible registration can potentially be copied, whether it is a current-style registration, prefix registration, suffix registration or dateless private plate.

Having a private registration does not automatically make your vehicle more likely to be cloned, but it does not prevent cloning either.

Can You Prevent Number Plate Cloning?

Unfortunately, there is no guaranteed way to stop somebody copying a registration they have seen on the road, online or in a photograph.

However, you can reduce the risk and make disputes easier to resolve:

• Keep recent photographs of your vehicle
• Use a dashcam where appropriate
• Keep receipts and parking records
• Check unexpected penalties immediately
• Report suspected cloning without delay
• Avoid posting photographs that unnecessarily reveal your registration online
• Only buy replacement plates from a DVLA Registered Number Plate Supplier

Registered number plate suppliers must check documents that prove your identity and show that you are entitled to use the registration.

Official guidance explains that suppliers need to see original documents that prove your name and address and show that you are allowed to use the registration number.

Read the official requirements on the GOV.UK number plate supplier guidance page .

Do You Need New Physical Number Plates?

If your existing registration remains assigned to your vehicle, you do not normally need to replace the physical plates simply because the registration has been cloned.

However, if you assign a new private registration to the vehicle, you will need to fit new road-legal number plates displaying the newly assigned registration before driving.

You must not display the new registration until the DVLA has confirmed that it has been assigned to your vehicle.

Frequently Asked Questions About Cloned Number Plates

Is number plate cloning illegal?

Yes. Displaying a registration number that has not been legally assigned to a vehicle is illegal. Cloned plates may also be connected with further offences, including fraud, theft, driving without insurance or disguising a stolen vehicle.

Will I have to pay fines caused by a cloned vehicle?

You should not be held responsible where you can show that your vehicle was not involved. However, you must challenge each notice promptly and provide supporting evidence.

Should I call 999 about a cloned number plate?

Call 101 to report suspected cloning unless a crime is happening now, somebody is in immediate danger or there is another genuine emergency.

Can ANPR cameras tell the difference between cloned vehicles?

ANPR cameras primarily read the registration displayed on the vehicle. They may not immediately distinguish between the genuine vehicle and a similar cloned vehicle, which is why reporting the issue quickly is so important.

Can the police flag a cloned registration?

The police can record the report and use the information as part of their investigation. Ask for a crime or incident reference number and keep it with you while the issue is ongoing.

Can I change my registration to stop further fines?

Changing your registration may help where cloning continues, but you should still report the original cloning and respond to every outstanding penalty notice. A new registration does not automatically cancel previous notices.

Cloned Number Plate Checklist

1. Report the suspected cloning to the police on 101.
2. Obtain a crime or incident reference number.
3. Respond to every fine or penalty notice before its deadline.
4. Take detailed photographs of your genuine vehicle.
5. Gather CCTV, receipts, work records and other evidence.
6. Inform the DVLA.
7. Tell your vehicle insurance company.
8. Keep copies of all correspondence.
9. Consider changing your registration if the problem continues.

Final Advice

Being the victim of number plate cloning can be frustrating, but acting quickly will put you in the strongest possible position.

Report the matter to the police, obtain a reference number and challenge every incorrect penalty before the deadline. Keep detailed records and provide clear photographs showing how your vehicle differs from the cloned vehicle.

If repeated fines continue, changing to a new registration may provide a practical way to separate your vehicle from the cloned registration.