This week on wheelsforwomen.ie we decipher some of the more common foreign plates we tend to see on Irish roads.
We have a straight forward system of registering cars in Ireland. It is a unique system which allows the easy identification of the year and location of registration. It’s not so easy to decode the plates on other European cars we see from time to time on our roads.
Britain
We will start with our closest neighbours. With all those ferry links between Ireland and the UK it is not surprising that UK registration plates are probably one of the most common foreign plates on our roads. But they have enough letters and numbers to leave you scratching your head. Since 2001 British number plates come in the format of AB12 CDE. The first two letters are the area where the car was registered for example cars registered in London would have a special two letter code.The next two digits are the age identifier. Cars registered between March and September are given a number, and those registered between September and March of the next year are given a different number. The three letters at the end are a randomly chosen identification number and individual to each car. The blue strip on the left hand side of the plate bears a GB for Great Britain.
France
Since 2009, French number plates come in the format of AB-123-CD; a maximum of two letters in the first position, a maximum of three numbers in the middle, and a maximum of two letters at the end of the plate. There is an F for France in the blue strip on the left hand side of the number plate. The letters and numbers are randomly allocated and a department code indicating where the car was registered is located on a blue strip at the right hand side of the number plate.
Belgium
In Belgium, when you sell your car you keep your number plate. The number plate stays with the owner, not the car therefore the registration plate cannot be reliably used to judge the age of the car. The blue strip on the left hand side of the number plate has a B for Belgium. Since 2010 Belgian number plates have been issued with seven characters in the format of 1-ABC-234 (a leading number, followed by three letters and three numbers).
Poland
Polish number plates consist of two or three letters followed by a series of digits (numbers and/or letters). The first letter shows the region where the car was registered and the next letter/s show the district of registration. Polish cars come with a PL in the blue strip at the left hand side of the plate.
Germany
Ireland remains a popular destination for German tourists and they sometimes bring their cars on holiday here too. On a German number plate, there are one, two or three letters at the start and these indicate the area or town where the car was registered. For example, cars registered in Berlin get a B and cars registered in Dresden get DD. The blue strip on the left hand side of the number plate bears a D for Deutschland. After the location letters, there are emissions and vehicle safety test and provincial seals. The letters and numbers after this are randomly allocated.
13 September, 2012
