It’s been announced that authorities are deploying new AI-aided camera technology and funding specialised police coordination to crack down on illegal ghost plates, which are now thought to be so prevalent in the UK that as many as one in 15 vehicles have them. However, I’m not confident this is going to solve the issue.

 

Ghost, stealth and cloned plates, which help avoid detection from automated cameras, are a very British problem. They aren’t nearly as common in other European nations, so why aren’t we learning from them? In Germany and France, for instance, it’s a requirement to use strict state-issued, stamped metal number plates manufactured directly by government authorities, or by a small number of highly restricted, state-vetted contractors. Enforcement is taken seriously.