It is compulsory to have a number plate on the vehicle in order to show the registration mark of the vehicle. Number plates are in existence in UK since the year 1904.

It is mandatory by law that every motor vehicle that is running on the public roads to have a number plate with some exceptions of this law. The number plates not only provide a different identity to the vehicle but it also helps in tracing the car in case of some accident or if some vehicle has violated the law.

The shape of the number plates in UK is rectangular or square and the dimensions are fixed by law. The lettering style is also fixed by law. There are two types of law regarding number plates in UK. The law for Great Britain is called as DVLA which means driver and vehicle licensing authority. And the law for Northern Ireland is called as DVA which means driver and vehicle authority. The responsibility of DVLA is to maintain a database of all the drivers and the data base of all the vehicles that exist in Great Britain.

Where as DVA does same task in Northern Ireland. These agencies also issues driving licenses to people and are also responsible for the collection of excise duty of vehicles. These agencies also issue cherished number plates which are also called as private number plates or personal number plates. These are those number plates for which one has to pay in terms of money. The numbers plates of old vehicles which are now destroyed are date less, personal or private. These are very valuable as their demand in the market is high. Owners of these plates sell them at high price.