I receive a surprising amount of email and comments in passing about licence plates.
I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.
In the Times Colonist’s online “trending” counter this week, the one about the guy from Prince George whose licence plate lamination failed, rendering it unreadable, was one of the top stories.
Who knew?
For some reason, licence plates or the lack thereof, strike a chord with people.
Naturally, there are two camps, the ones who put two plates on their vehicle and the ones who don’t.
For those who favour two plates, and I’m one of them, there are plenty of good reasons to have them on — front and back.
Stolen plates are often used to further other crimes like theft, robbery, drug trafficking and in worst case scenarios, such as we are seeing on the lower mainland, gangland murders.
Plates are also stolen for simple, perhaps even stupid, reasons such as someone’s own insurance has expired, avoiding traffic cameras or schlepping off parking tickets.
So why would we want to make it easier for the criminal cadre by allowing them to filch just one plate to go about their business?
Two plates are a deterrent to theft, albeit probably a small one, but I’m all for schemes which help create unemployment for crooks.
On the other side of the argument, the “one platers” have an assortment of views.
Two plates are another part of the “big brother” syndrome — the establishment rule makers who are always trying to keep their eyes on us,in this case from both the front and rear of our vehicles.
Then there’s the vanity sector who feel that front licence plates interfere with the design of their vehicle’s front end. Some go so far to say that a front plate interferes with their vehicle’s aerodynamics.
Finally, there’s the practical sector whose argument might have some merit. More and more of the new models offered now by car makers no longer include the space or even the bolt holes to attach a front plate. “What am I supposed to do?”
If you accept the big brother argument, why then bother with licence plates at all? We’ll be much freer then and what could possibly go wrong?
I also have a little sympathy for the vanity people. Who’d want to drop $75,000-plus on a beautiful car then be faced with drilling holes into it?
Unfortunately, it’s the law here and that supersedes your perspective on image. There’s always going to be an aftermarket fix for that problem.
Finally “one platers” say most of the other provinces have gone for the single plate only, so why not just go with the flow.
To me that’s “whataboutism” while also arguing for the lowest common denominator. The one-plate policy is an approach taken up by legislators doing some faux cost cutting, which on the scale of a provincial budget, amounts to practically nothing.
Back in the Model T days we figured out that it’s very much in society’s interest to regulate drivers’ behaviour as well as the vehicles they operate.
Two plates are more conspicuous. They offer witnesses a better chance of making note of vehicles involved in infractions, hit-and-runs and more serious crimes. In turn, this helps with insurance claims, better detection of unlicenced drivers and, according to ICBC, helps with forensic reconstruction efforts after serious crashes.
Put another way, two plates help keep all of us more accountable for our driving behaviour, and judging by the emails I receive, we seem to be falling short on accountability and responsibility out there on our roads.
Doing away with insurance decals is another concern and I’ll talk about that in the coming weeks.
Glove Box: Based on a scan of news items from across Canada, cops everywhere are still concerned about licence plate theft. Here are some pointers to help keep you from being a victim.
Do you actually know your plate number and do you check it regularly in case it’s been swapped? This will be even more of a worry with the requirement to display insurance decals now being dropped.
Report thefts immediately. It’s too risky for crooks to drive around with swapped plates for days on end. They grab plates, then get to work right away.
Consider using security screws to attach your plates. They have unusual configurations on their heads which defeat regular screwdrivers or even coins thieves may use in a pinch to loosen licence plate bolts. Just don’t lose the special unscrewing tool which comes with them.
Some agencies even recommend removing custom licence plate holders. They offer a crook a solid base to pry against, sparing the plate from marks and damage, so once it’s swapped it’s not as easily noticed.
