Sell personalised car number plates

I want to sell my personalised car number plate Where do I start? Personalised car number plates have been growing in popularity over the past 20 years or so. And selling car registration numbers has become common-place. Selling a personalised number plate is fairly straightforward, provided you follow some general guidelines. Here are the most commonly asked questions about selling car registration numbers:

Before anything else, you should find out whether you can sell your car number plate. Not all number plates can be sold. To sell a car registration number

• the vehicle must be in your name
• the MOT and tax should be up to date
• the registration number should not be marked as 'non-transferrable'

See our detailed checklist for more on can i sell my private registration plate?

I have a personalised car number plate for sale. Where do I start?

1. Decide your car number plate selling price.Get a few number plate valuations.
2. Choose whether to put your car registration number plate onto a V778 Retention DocumentYou can leave your personalised car number plate on the car whilst it's for sale, or put it onto a V778 Retention Document to speed up the transfer when you have a buyer.
3. Decide how to sell yor car registration number.The method you choose will depend on your own circumstances...whether you're prepared to wait for the best price or whether you want to sell as quickly as possible. See how to sell a cherished car number plate for the options you could consider.
4. Be patient!With millions of personalised car number plates for sale at any time, they rarely sell overnight. It often takes months to sell a car registration number. See how long does it take to sell a car number plate?

I want to sell my personal number plate. How long will it take? First things first. Personalised number plates rarely sell quickly. At any time, there are literally millions of number plates for sale. How long it takes depends on a number of things. These are the two main things:

1. How many similar number plates are there? Compare number plate prices, and price your car registration number competitively with those. Make sure you compare similar number plate types.
2. How much are you selling your car registration number for?Remember that higher priced personalised number plates take a little longer to sell because there are fewer buyers with a bigger budget.

No. When you transfer your car registration number to a V778 Retention Document or to another car, the DVLA will issue you with another registration number that reflects the age of your vehicle. All you then have to do is buy new acrylic number plates. The DVLA usually try to return the vehicle's original registration number to the car, but this is not guaranteed.

Yes. If you are selling your car, it's very likely you will sell it more quickly than your car registration number. So, you will need to separate the personalised number plate from the car. To do this, you should retain the personalised registration number. You should allow 4-6 weeks for the retention to be approved, before selling the car. Once you've sold the vehicle, and it has been registered in the new owner's name, you lose all rights to the registration number.

Choose a company that will list your private car registration number on a number plate price comparison service.