Number plates with chips

There's been much talk about chips in number plates. But what does it mean, and how can the new number plate affect us as everyday motorists?

The new technology (known as RFID chips) is so small that it can be ebedded into a number plate without making it any bigger than the number plates we have today. They're said to send out a signal up to 300ft away, and it doesn't matter if there are other vehicles in the way.

 

The 'active' RFID tags (which have a battery bilt-in) are fitted in a special number plate called the e-plate, which was developed by a Birmingham based number plate company. They can broadcast a lot of data about the vehicle, including registration number, VIN number, etc. And can be picked up by readers on portable or fixed units.

 

 

 

The official view is that these will enable the Police to use the information on the number plate to quickly pick up vehicles which are on the road illegally, or speeding. The technology is said to be much more reliable than the current camera systems we use. In particular, motorbikes which don't have a number plate on the front.

 

There are a lot of other potential uses for these number plates, such as on toll roads and congestion charges.

 

And if anyone tries to steal the number plate, it breaks. The intention is tomake it difficult for criminals to commit offences using false number plates.

 

 

 

The new chipped number plates are said to cost 10 times as much as ordinary number plates that we buy today.

 

 

 

Well, that's not clear yet. The new number plates have been tested on police vehicles, and are looking promising.

 

There's a lot of controversy surrounding the RFID number plates, because of the implications on privacy. So it remains to be seen where things go from here......

 

 

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