Licensed for Luxury

Taking a look at the priciest Private number plates in the UK

In the UK, we have two changes of registration marks for brand new vehicles every year. The first is at the beginning of March, with the numbers part of the plate (the age-identifier) declaring the year of release, 21 plates this time around to denote 2021. The second release of new plates is on September 1st each year and the age-identifier this time will be 71, also going up sequentially by one number each year.

Of course, number plates are how we display a vehicle’s registration mark, and each is unique, but when it comes to the combination of letters and numbers, there are certain sequences that are more sought after than others, making the right registrations very valuable indeed! Just check out the pricey plates in this top ten:

We start with the best of British, GB 1. Great Britain, perhaps? Good bargain? Either way, it sold for a whopping £325,000 back in 2009. It’s currently on a Rolls Royce Phantom.

What’s the best birthday present you ever had as a child? Because this £331,500 plate was bought by a multimillionaire for his six-year-old son! That was 15 years ago now, so we hope he appreciates the plate now he’s old enough to drive.

You could’ve bought this registration in 2010 if you had a spare £340,000 to spend. This registration also went onto a Rolls Royce Phantom. Because there is no point at the top of number ones on number plates, it looks like the word IS.

Another two-character dateless registration, this one was purchased by a property developer in 2009 for more than £352,000. It’s currently on a Bentley Bentayga and is very distinctive as it looks more like I D which we all know is the perfect mark for someone with the initials ID, or who perhaps wants to hide their ID instead!

This one sold for over £404,000 in 2008. It has the distinct honour of being the first number plate ever issued in Scotland, making it quite the collectors’ item. And what did the new owner do with it? Well they said they were going to stick it on their Skoda! Maybe they did, maybe they didn’t, but it’s currently on a Rolls Royce, this time a Ghost. Maybe it’s owned by someone called Simon shortened to Si, or an Italian who likes to say Yes?

We’re halfway through the top ten.

Up next is…

It may not hold pole position in this list, but F 1 sold for just over £440,000 back in 2008 and it remains one of the most expensive to buy in today’s marketplace. In fact, the current owner of this ‘Formula 1’ plate, a renowned automotive designer, has it listed on some dealers websites for over £20 million and has recently turned down offers exceeding £10 million!

Would it surprise you to know this ended up on a Rolls Royce? And you could’ve nearly bought two brand new Rolls Royce’s with the amount it went for, selling for a staggering £472,000 in 2018.

Coming close was this little registration, which sold for a cool half mil. That’s £250,000 per character! Bought in 2011, it only enjoyed the top spot as the most expensive plate in the UK for a year before someone bought X 1…

At just over half a million comes this two-character plate. Back in 2012 it sold for a fantastic £502,500, and that was considered a bargain – it was previously valued for a cool million!

This dateless registration was snapped up by a Ferrari-lover and fetched more than £518,000 at auction. It remains the most expensive plate ever sold by the DVLA.

Have you ever fancied getting personal with your plates?

These days, personal registration marks are even more popular than ever, with the recent lockdown actually increasing interest in private number plates. They’re also more affordable than the top-ten list above might suggest! Visit plates4less.co.uk and use our state-of-the-art search tool to browse your way easily through the millions of registrations we have to offer. We can promise you a wide range of affordable possibilities.

So don’t delay – find that perfect plate today at plates4less.co.uk !