While having a personalised number plate can be fun, at times, owners of registration plates have a need to sell them. There are many reasons why a person who owns a plate would like to sell it.
- It no longer applies to you
- The personal attachment is gone
- The plate rises in value
If you’ve sold or closed a business and the registration plate that’s on your personal car promotes that business, well then, it’s time to sell it on.
If you’ve broken up with your girlfriend/boyfriend and your registration plate contains reference to both your names, well then, it’s time to sell.
Personalised number plates are investments – they go up in value. It’s time to sell when you want to cash in your investment.
This article gives you three pieces of advice to consider when selling your personalised plate.
3 things to know when selling your number plate
1. Make sure the basics are in order
Sometimes, I see owners get very excited about the value of their registration plate and they decide to sell it on only to find out that they can’t.
In order to sell your personalised plate, there are a few basics that need to be in order before you can sell it. These include:
a. Are you the registered owner?
For Personalised registration numbers that are held on vehicles, you must either be the registered keeper or have written permission from the registered keeper to be able to sell the registration. Most number plates are registered to the car and when sold on, the plate is sold on also. If you have a personalised number plate, then you must be the legal owner to sell it.
b. Do you have a retention certificate?
A retention certificate is valid for 12 months. Thereafter, it has to be renewed on an annual basis. You need to be named as the Grantee who owns the certificate, or have written permission from the Grantee to sell the registration.
c. Is it transferable?
You should check your registration documentation to make sure that it is transferable. Some registrations can be marked as ‘non-transferable’, which means that you can’t sell the registration plate.
Lastly, your vehicle that currently has your number plate should have tax, insurance and be fit for road purpose or have a tax expiry within the last 12 months and currently SORN, however there must not be a break in the Road Tax Expiry and the date SORN was declared.
2. Get it Valued
You should use a reputable registration company to value your personalised plate. What you should look for is the current value – what the experts believe that you could get upon the sale of your registration.
It’s best to know the current value rather than future value.
There are many factors that are taken into account when valuing a plate:
a. Will it appeal to a wide audience?
b. Are there substitutions in its spelling?
c. Does it have a very popular and therefore desired name or number?
These factors among others will determine the value of your registration plate.
3. Where to sell
You have a number of options available to you when selling your number plate. These include:
a. You can sell it yourself by taking out your own adverts in local or national papers.
b. You can use the the services of a number plate registration company.
There are pros and cons for both but you will get the right advice when you use a reputable and established number plate registration company.
In summary,
This article discusses tips if you are thinking of selling your number plate. The three pieces of advice will equip you to know what to do and make the right decision about selling your investment.