The vehicle registration number retention scheme is changing

By:malcolm forster




The Vehicle Registration Marks Act recently became law ( 19th July 2007 ) , it was instigated by the CNDA ( Cherished Number Dealer Association ) and was presented by Richard Ottaway MP.It will change the way a vehicle registration number can be retained.

Previously , when a private number plate was taken off a car and put on retention using form V778/1 , the applicant would be the registered keeper who would become the Grantee on the V778 retention certificate.The Grantee was able to nominate a third party as Nominee but this person only had one right and that was to assign the number to a vehicle registered in his name.The Grantee was the only person who could extend the certificate, change the nominee or importantly request a duplicate from DVLA.This created a potential fraud situation whereby a retention number could be sold by the grantee who could then request a duplicate ( which supercedes the original ) and the buyer would lose the registration number.Similarly a buyer could pay the seller to put the reistration number on retention and never receive the V778 retention certificate.

Under the new Bill the applicant ( registered keeper ) will be able to nominate a third party to be the Grantee on the V778/1 thereby giving full rights to the buyer.Note that registration numbers already on retention will not be able to transferred in this way purely new applications for registrations still on vehicles. Nevertheless this greatly improves the security of the scheme and cuts out a possible fraud situation.

Members of the public wishing to sell their private number plate would now be best advised to keep it on their vehicle until a buyer is found so they can take advantage of this new legislation , especially if they think they may be selling to a cherished number dealer.

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