How do I buy a personal number plate?

Do a search of personal number plates on any search engine, and you'll find hundreds of results. That's a lot of trawling around to find the right personalised registration plate.

And.....

• where do you start anyway?
• aren't the number plate companies all the same?
• how can they all sell the same personal number plates?

The truth of it isn't really which number plate company to buy from. There's only one of any car registration number. So it's just down to a number plate price comparison, and of course....service.

Don't necessarily assume that larger companies will give the best service....some of the smaller companies will spend more time giving you advice and suggestions.


So... where do you start buying a personalised number plate?

1. Get some ideas for a personalised number plate. Don't restrict yourself to your name or initials - think about hobbies, nicknames, car models, special words...etc. What would you like your personal number plate to say about you?
   Use the various websites to give you some ideas, and get suggestions from your friends.
   
2. Decide on your budget. Be realistic - it's unlikely you'll find your first name without a very large budget.
3. Use a number plate price comparison site (of course!) to check out the best prices across the dealers. Remember, some personal number plates will be subject to vat - so factor that in when comparing prices. Then check the registration number is still available - it's possible that it may have been sold.
   
4. Make an offer. Be realistic. If your offer is too low, it may not be taken seriously. If you want to offer significantly less than the asking price, explain why. Is it priced high compared to other similar number plates?

You'll usually find many of the same personalised number plates being offered for sale by a number of different companies. But in the end, there's only one of any registration number....and one owner. So don't make offers to a number of dealers - it gives the owner the impression that there's more than one person interested!



Aren't all number plate companies the same?

The truth of it isn't really which number plate company to buy from. There's only one of any car registration number. So it's just down to a number plate price comparison, and of course....service.

Don't necessarily assume that larger companies will give the best service....some of the smaller companies will spend more time giving you advice and suggestions.

And remember, buying a number plate direct from the owner will save you paying a dealer's premium. Some personalised number plate companies put you in direct contact with the owner.



How can companies sell the same personal number plates?

Firstly, see how the company is selling personalised number plates. Are they a number plate dealer? If so, there's a commission fee built into the selling price. Almost all number plate companies work this way.
However, there are one or two companies that do not. Look for words like 'commission free' or 'no commission fees'.


Secondly, it's possible that an owner may advertise their personal number plate with more than one company. Prices may vary dependent on how much the number plate company decides to add on top as commission.

Thirdly, some dealers may advertise their own commission sales with other dealers. That potentially puts more than one dealer between you and the seller!

For more info, check out these Top 5 tips for buying personal number plates.