Rich Dubai residents aren't the only ones buying license plates at outrageous prices.
The British economy may not be in top form, but luxury cars are still popular in the United Kingdom. For owners, the issue is not just about having a beautiful vehicle. On the other side of the Channel, some motorists do not hesitate to spend several hundred thousand pounds sterling to buy license plates.
Moreover, sales of luxury cars have resumed in the United Kingdom, after a considerable decline in 2020. This situation is even the subject of criticism in the local press. A few weeks earlier, The Telegraph pointed out that many Britons are taking on unprecedented levels of debt to finance the purchase of a luxury vehicle. It is all the more surprising to learn that certain number plates are traded at gold price UK.
Number plates sold at outrageous prices in the UK
When it comes to number plates, it was Dubai that made the biggest news last year. In 2023, a wealthy car owner actually acquired a plate for no less than 13.7 million euros. Before this exceptional transaction, another record was set in 2008, with a plaque sold for 13 million euros.
But Dubai isn't the only place in the world where license plates sell for such staggering prices. The UK also has some car enthusiasts who are willing to pay crazy amounts of money just to have a plate. The motivations of the British who embark on such acquisitions differ slightly from those of the inhabitants of Dubai. While the latter see in license plates a chance to enter an elitist circlethe first are simply looking to personalize their vehicle.
Except that some of these plates end up seeing their value soar. This is what recently happened on the specialized site absolutereg.co.uk. A BAR 81E plate was put up for sale there for 1.2 million euros. And it is far from the only one to be offered at an astronomical price on British territory.
Plates for all tastes… And all types of vehicles
In the United Kingdom, some owners have number plates whose value even exceeds that of supercars. The most expensive would belong to the driver of a Ferrari 250 GT SWB. He equipped it with a 25 O plate valued at more than 600,000 euros! Another plate on which the reference X 1 is inscribed went for more than 580,000 euros. And examples of this type are still numerous.
Even without going to such extremes, it is not uncommon for car owners to buy license plates for a few thousand euros. Some of them contain a number close to the motorist's name. In other cases, one of the numbers is considered lucky.
As a result, the market for personalized number plates in the United Kingdom is particularly developed. In 2020, the Office for National Statistics estimated that Britons together would own a total of 3.5 billion euros personalized plates. An absolutely mind-blowing figure, which clearly demonstrates the special relationship between the United Kingdom and cars.