What would you do if you saw an 'outfit' with a different reg...

[Mike_5041040]

Just wondered that's all.

Twice this month I've seen a caravan being towed by a vehicle with different number plate.

It just goes through your mind that it might be stolen, but what a fool I'd look if I reported it and it was all innocent !

Regards,

Mike

 

[WatsonJohnG]

If its a continental oufit that is the norm.

I once let a friend test drive my car pulling his caravan

We hadn't got far when stopped by an alert policeman as we had overlooked the number plate.

He the accompanied us back to my friends house where the garage door had to be opened to show the car with the same plate as the van!!

 

[sparkes]

Well, this is legal in the UK. As long as the driver also owns the vehicle that the caravan reg belongs too

 

[RogerL]

It's not legal in the UK but it usually just gets a warning if everything is legitimate.

In reality, there are enough caravans without any number plate, or with a handwritten plate, that it's clearly not a priority - unlike speeding.

 

[Steve L]

Roger is quite right, the trailer by law has to show the same reg plate as the tow vehicle. The police are being both generous and cautious if they go home with you to varify the ownership. A fixed penalty ticcket is more the norm.

Also tampering with your number plate to obscure or appear to change letters/numbers is illegal too. I see it everyday. So called badly de-laminated number plates that are there to try to confuse speed cameras.

Better off not to speed in the first place, or if you do then have your brain switched on and be observant instead of driving blind!!

I would welcome anyone who challenged wrong number plates either police or members of the public.

Steve L.

 

[Rod_5041370]

I believe that farmers/agricultural workers do have do have a dispensation and may tow trailers with different numbers providing they do own a vehicle having the number being displayed.

 

[Rod_5041370]

I believe that farmers/agricultural workers do have do have a dispensation and may tow trailers with different numbers providing they do own a vehicle having the number being displayed.

Apologies for my hiccup......why no edit function?

 

[Cerbera]

You don't have to have a number plate on the back of the tow vehicle. The plates at the front and rear of the outfit must match. so in theory you could take the rear plate off your car and fix it to your van when you towed.

 

[RogerL]

You DO have to have the number plate on the tow vehicle at all times.

Practical Caravan magazine stated that it wasn't necessary but they were wrong.

 

[ericcaravanning4u]

I regularly put stolen caravans on my website and some of the stories are heartbreaking .So for me I am afraid I would ring the police every time and have done many times .

 

[lolly_5087162]

I regularly put stolen caravans on my website and some of the stories are heartbreaking .So for me I am afraid I would ring the police every time and have done many times .

Hi Eric

please could you let us know your website, it may prove helpful if we see something!

Lolly x

 

[colin-yorkshire]

hi. I report it every time I see one and have done although I have never had a follow up from the police as to the outcome.

I did once get pulled over in scotland and told I had no plate on the van the officer was courtious and friendly. when I explained that it was on at the start of the journey and that I had uesd double sided sticky tape to attach it. he suggested that I use the number plate off the car as the trailer must have one but the car did not as long as the van was attached?.

which I did before going any further, I now use a stick on type that is available from accessory shops and put it on the car under the normal plate so if I have to tow a borrowed trailer I've allways got a spare no plate to use.

 

[RogerL]

The flexible stick-on type of number plates are no longer permitted to be fitted to vehicles, although existing ones remain legal. It's all to do with the regulations about owner id etc.

Just use plenty of double sided sticky pads and the number plate won't fall off.

 

[Earlybird]

I regularly put stolen caravans on my website and some of the stories are heartbreaking .So for me I am afraid I would ring the police every time and have done many times .

Lolly miss the Eric put www.In sted and you will get the site.

 

[karenmshorter]

I have never witnessed this on the roads, but have noticed caravans and their accompanying cars with different number plates while pitched on site. Never felt the need to report it as surely no-one would be stupid enough to steal a van and then go straight anway and pitch up with it? Secondly, the innocent answer might be that it was towed there by someone for use by their friends. However, i did see a very strange thing on a site this weekend. The caravan on site still had what seemed to be its 'showroom' number plate, ie. read something like Explorer 2006!

 

[RJC]

Hi all

We have two towcars and we have heavy duty velcro on them which seems to work fine.

Last time we were out in the caravan we had my car so the number plate was the one for my car. I am presently working in Dublin and have my car over here so when we went away at the weekend we took the other car.

One of the things I asked SWMBO to do when she was getting the caravan ready to go (I could not do this as I was in Dublin) was to change the number plate on the caravan. Guess what, she forgot and I did not check. We only discovered this when we stopped for a break - two hours into the journey. As I own both vehicles and could explain the error I thought I would risk it rather than spend four hours going home again. Despite seeing a number of police cars (and maybe those that are not obviously police cars as they use a lot of unmarked cars on the A9)I was not stopped. In one way I am glad about that but in another I am disappointed as if my 'van had been stolen I would prefer someone to notice this and contact the police.

I have now put the other number plate in the caravan in case this is overlooked again and at least we can change it when we notice.

So apologies to anyone who saw a Kia Sorento pulling a Senator Wyoming with mismatched number plates at the weekend.

Cheers

Richard