Replacement number plates: how to order a new set

Replacement number plates are straightforward to get. Choose the size and style you want in our number plate builder, show us one document that proves your name and address and one that proves you are entitled to the registration, and we make the plates. Order before 2pm on a working day with your documents approved and they are made the same day.

A replacement pair does not have to be a copy of what came off the car. Printed plates start at £29.99 for a pair including VAT, 3D gel at £39.99 and laser-cut 4D from £49.99, and you can change style, add a border or a flag, or move to a shortened plate at the same time. Our guide to 4D and 3D gel plate styles sets out what each style costs and how it is made.

When do you need replacement number plates?

Damage and age are the usual reasons. Plates fail for the things that have always failed them: wrong spacing, wrong font, damage, dirt, or a plate that has faded or cracked, and a plate that cannot be read properly is a problem long before the MOT is due. The other common reasons are a plate that never fitted the car properly, a plate a previous supplier made with the wrong spacing, a registration change, and theft.

If your plates were taken, replacing them is only part of it. What to do if your number plates are stolen covers the reporting steps, then come back and order the replacements.

What documents do you need for replacement plates?

Two, and we have to see them before we make anything: proof of your name and address, and proof that you are entitled to the registration. These requirements are set by law and apply to every number plate supplier in the UK. The point of them is that a plate can be traced back to the person it was made for, which is what stops someone having your registration made up for a similar vehicle.

Proof of name and address can be a utility, telephone or internet bill, a council tax or rates bill, a bank or building society statement, a photo-card driving licence or a national identity card, dated within the last six months where that applies. Proof of entitlement can be a V5C or V5C/2, a V750, a V778, a V11, a V379, a V948 stamped by DVLA or DVSA, or an eV948. The full list, including what fleet and trade customers can send, is on our valid documents page.

How you get them to us depends on how they were issued. A paperless utility, telephone or internet bill, a bank statement or an eV948 that was issued to you digitally can be emailed in its original digital form, such as the PDF you were sent. Everything else, including any bill or statement that arrived on paper, a driving licence, a council tax bill, a V5C or a V750, is posted to us or brought in as the physical original. A photo or a scan of a paper document is not something we can work from.

Ordering plates for someone else is fine. Your proof of address can be in your name while the entitlement document is in theirs, and the two addresses do not have to match.

How quickly can you get replacement plates?

If you can get to Durham, same day number plates are made while you wait at Unit 1, Dragonville Industrial Park, from 9:00am to 4:30pm, Monday to Saturday, and a pair typically takes ten minutes. Bring the two documents with you.

If you are ordering online, we make and dispatch the plates once your documents have been approved. Royal Mail Tracked 48 is free on orders containing number plates, and Tracked 24 can be added at checkout for faster delivery. Both are tracked door to door, and anything you posted to us comes back with the plates. The options are on our delivery options page.

What do replacement number plates cost?

Printed plates, the flat style most cars leave the factory with, start at £29.99 for a pair including VAT. 3D gel starts at £39.99, laser-cut 4D at £49.99 for 3mm characters and £54.99 for 5mm, and the layered styles above that. Prices are for a pair at standard car size before extras such as a border, a flag or a larger size. A standard car plate is 520mm by 111mm; shortened, square 4x4, oversize, hex, import size and motorbike plates are all made to order.

Does a replacement have to match the plate it replaces?

The registration has to be the same, and we only make plates with the standard spacing as it appears on your V5C. The style does not have to match: you can replace a damaged front plate in one style and change the rear at the same time, as long as each plate meets the standard in its own right. A plate is road legal when the finished plate meets the British Standard, BS AU 145e, which is what every plate we make is built to.

How to choose a number plate supplier

Wherever you order, these are worth checking before you hand over your documents:

• Registered supplier: they should be a Registered Number Plate Supplier and their plates should be made to the British Standard, BS AU 145e.
• Materials: the plate should be made from the reflective material the standard requires.
• Range: check they can make the size, shape and style you actually want, including custom sizes.
• Price: very cheap plates can mean sub-standard ones that do not meet the regulations.
• Reviews and support: look for recent reviews, and a supplier you can reach if something goes wrong.

We make every plate ourselves in County Durham and sell private registrations alongside them, under one roof at the Durham store, so there is more to us than just number plates if you are replacing a set and thinking about changing the registration while you are at it.

Fitting your replacement plates

Plates go on with sticky pads or a screw kit. Our fitting guide covers taking the old pair off, cleaning the surface underneath so the new pair sits flat, and which fixing to use on which bumper.

Cover if it happens again

Our Number Plate Protection Plan starts at £9.99 and covers a new set bought from us against theft, loss and damage for 24 months from the date of purchase, with up to two like-for-like replacements in that period. It can only be added at checkout alongside a new plate order, so it is worth deciding while you are ordering the replacements rather than afterwards.

Common questions

Can I order replacement plates for someone else's car? Yes. Your proof of address can be in your name and the entitlement document in the registered keeper's name, and the addresses do not have to match.