Do you know your license plate number?

Hey, do you know the number on your license plate? I do. but apparently, not everyone does. Specifically, not my brother.

Yesterday morning he got pulled over, the officer had him sitting in the car for ages, two more police cars come up, then the 3 officers approach him, guns out, have him get out of the car, hands on the roof, frisk him, handcuff him. His car has plates from a stolen car. My brother pays no attention to this, so he had no idea! All he can say (which is the truth, and all he knows about this particular matter) is that they are the plates the registry gave him, when he got the car a few years back.

So with his permission, they get his registration out of his glove box, and show him the plates don't match his registration. "Oh well, then DMV messed up when they gave them to me. How do I fix that?"

Takes a Sergeant to come over from HQ, he finally believes brother is clueless, hasn't any idea his plates were switched back in June when the other car was stolen. They have him follow one of them to the police station. They remove the plates, and give him a report, so he won't get stopped, driving w/ no plates. And he goes to another city's police dept., they have the stolen car, with his plates. He eventually gets his plates, which (he grumbles) he had to put on himself.

Only my brother! Let me say, Dad and I were busting with laughter as he's telling us this; which only made matters worse! :D

A funny situation - but not for your brother I suppose. I know my plate number and would definitely know if the one on my car had been switched. I also have a specialty plate with a lighthouse on it, so the regular state plate would stand out like a sore thumb too.
Glad the situation was resolved tho. :D

I would notice in a flash. I have always known my license plate number!

Good question. And one that will make me go check out my plate number - I've never paid attention to it but this makes me realize everyone should know it.

I know the letters at the end, I think, but I definitely don't know the whole thing. I laughed a bit at this story, that's funny! However, I'm glad your brother was proven innocent. What a bad situation for him!

How terrible! :eek: I'm glad the issue got resolved!

I know mine since I kept having to write them down for everything.

Wow...that is unbelievable.

I have the Wild Resource Conservation Plate on my vehicle so I would notice if it was replaced with a regular license plate for Pennsylvania. I know the beginning letters and numbers but can't recall at the moment the entire thing. I have way too many numbers in my head as it is. :D

I don't really inspect my car and license plate every time I go somewhere. Maybe I should?

That is scary and a bit funny. Glad everything worked out okay for your brother.

I have personalized plates so of course I know mine and would definitely notice if they were switched. Bruce also has personalized plates.

I remember about 5 years ago I stopped off at a major outlet on the way home from work to do grocery shopping. As I was was wheeling my cart full of food through the parking lot I panicked because I couldn't find my car. Many people have my colour and make of car so I look at the plates. Turns out that in the space of an hour while I was in the store, someone had changed my plates. How does one get away with that in a busy shopping mall parking lot? Mind you, it was dark at the time.

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Originally Posted by slick

I remember about 5 years ago I stopped off at a major outlet on the way home from work to do grocery shopping. As I was was wheeling my cart full of food through the parking lot I panicked because I couldn't find my car. Many people have my colour and make of car so I look at the plates. Turns out that in the space of an hour while I was in the store, someone had changed my plates. How does one get away with that in a busy shopping mall parking lot? Mind you, it was dark at the time.

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:eek: I did not realize this was being done. What did you do? Did you call the police?

It is really important to know your license, how would you report your car stolen without them if something happened?

I've had the same plate all the years I've been driving so I know it inside out and backwards. I am however contemplating changing it once the divorce is all settled so that I can become truly annonymous - I don't know if he recalls my plate or not, but figure I'm safer to change it.

I don't know what mine is either, but I've got a big fancy neon frame around it and it would take forever to swap plates and put the frame back on. I think most no-gooders would pass mine by and just find a car with the tags bolted straight on.

I know mine and my husband's. We have personalized plates that are different by just one number.

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Originally Posted by happylabs

I don't really inspect my car and license plate every time I go somewhere. Maybe I should?

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You should make it a habit to walk around your car once before you drive anywhere - check your tires, and your plates, and make sure everything else looks fine. It's just a good habit to get into, wherever you live!

We had a plate switched on us once. We are not sure when it happened, exactly, but as soon as we noticed we called the police to report it.

We have been checking the plates on the cars daily, ever since then.

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Originally Posted by Karen

You should make it a habit to walk around your car once before you drive anywhere - check your tires, and your plates, and make sure everything else looks fine. It's just a good habit to get into, wherever you live!

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I actually do this every morning. And usually I try to park somewhere that I will walk up to my car on the passenger side so then I check both sides all the time. It's a very good habit to get into. I almost drove over an hour with a very low tire. Well, I wouldn't have gotten very far before it went flat. But because I had parked where I came out to the passenger side, I saw the tire and was able to get it fixed before the long drive.

Wow.. I'd never even thought of looking out for this.

I still remember my Mass. license number (557-SRF [I think]) and my Rhode Island license number (OK-502!), but I still don't know my Michigan number, which I've had for more than a year now! It is one of the pretty plates with the silhouettes of the peninsulas and the Detroit skyline and the Mackinac Bridge.

I will make it a point now to memorize that one or at least write it down somewhere handy in case anything like this should happen.

I know my plate number, check before every time i get in the car, :) lol. when i got my license thats one thing i made sure of, to sit in front of the car and memorize the plate and then i still wrote it down and put it in my wallet lol.

I do now.;)

I know the number of every plate I've ever had. As a matter of fact, I still have my last license plate in my room now for a rememberance!