New cameras are uncovering thousands of cars that are driving round displaying so-called ‘ghost’ number plates every day. These plates are designed to look no different to the naked eye, but are unreadable by most automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras, allowing criminals to dodge fines or travel around undetected.
ANPR tech firm MAV Systems has begun the test deployment of new camera tech, which can identify and read ghost plates by analysing both infrared and colour images with artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms. The result is that one camera mounted near the Dartford Crossing identified more than 1,000 ghost plates in a single day; other sites near Folkestone and the M25 captured anything from 400 to almost 2,000 over a 24-hour period.
Such high numbers are not a surprise when you consider that a recent report by the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Transport Safety (APPGTS) estimated that one in 15 cars on UK roads are likely displaying ghost or similar number plates designed to dodge ANPR tech. Many of these illegal plates can be bought from several of the country’s more than 34,000 plate suppliers. While buying these plates isn’t illegal in itself, displaying them on a vehicle and driving it on the road can leave you liable to a fine of up to £1,000 and potentially your vehicle being seized.
A Freedom of Information request by the BBC found that just two number plate suppliers have been forcibly removed from the DVLA register since 2020, with only six officers monitoring registered suppliers in the UK.
Earlier this month, the Government announced extra measures to crack down on this seemingly growing issue. A new National Roads Policing Coordination Centre will bring forces together to control intelligence efforts, while trials of ghost number plate detection goggles could help officers spot illegal plates while on patrol. All this comes after the announcement earlier this year of the UK’s new Road Safety Strategy, which touted tougher enforcement for those caught displaying illegal plates.
Roads Minister Justin Madders described the Government’s recent actions as “a signal to anyone using illegal number plates that their time is up”.
The Labour MP for Ellesmere Port and Bromborough, added: “We’re cracking down on illegal number plates with new policing resource and innovative tech. Illegal number plates are used for crimes from evading parking charges to drug trafficking and we’re stepping in to protect drivers.”