Has anyone else noticed the ridiculous amount of temporary paper plates on vehicles lately? (insurance, buying)

[Westpark Village]

I’ve been noticing a lot of cars with paper plates lately and most of these cars are trashy beaters (collision damage, rusting loose paint, missing hubcaps, etc.)
I have a funny feeling this is somehow connected with the uptick in crime, road rage, bond reform and criminals being set loose on the streets.

Or maybe I’m just being paranoid and there’s coincidentally a lot of car buyers lately, hard to tell.
(Probably the former rather than the latter)

[hbcu]

Noticed the same - someone asked a channel 2 about it and they did a story on it

[dd1153]

You can buy fake paper plates at Traders Village every weekend. Wonder who is buying them? And why?

[Taiko]

Originally Posted by dd1153

You can buy fake paper plates at Traders Village every weekend. Wonder who is buying them? And why?

To avoid registration fees, tickets from parking enforcement and police looking for expired tags and to fool traffic camera ticketing

[Texas Ag 93]

Originally Posted by Taiko

To avoid registration fees, tickets from parking enforcement and police looking for expired tags and to fool traffic camera ticketing

All of the above, plus to avoid paying insurance and quite possibly because the driver is unlicensed.

The majority of paper plates are fake and illegal. I think the Chronicle did a piece about them a couple of years ago. If you get into an accident with someone with a paper plate, assume you will be stuck with any and all bills.

I think there should be LEO task forces whose sole purpose is to cruise the freeways stopping people with paper plates and if found to be illegal, giving them large tickets and impounding their vehicles. OTOH, we have violent criminals out on bond who murder cops visiting from other cities in broad daylight, so maybe paper plates aren't where we should be spending our LEO resources.

I don't know.

[escanlan]

How about getting rid of paper plates altogether? No reason dealers and used car places can't be issues "X" number of plates for their vehicles and leave it to them to ensure they have sufficient numbers. For private resale the original plate can be kept with the vehicle for 30 or 60 days while the new owner waits for a new plate if that is what the State wants.


We're in a digital age and no reason that any applicable databases can't be kept up to date near immediately to prevent previous owners from holding the bag for a new owner's actions.

[gwarnecke]

Originally Posted by Texas Ag 93

I think there should be LEO task forces whose sole purpose is to cruise the freeways stopping people with paper plates, giving them large tickets and impounding their vehicles.

I assume that you mean the vehicles would only be impounded if they were unregistered/uninsured/stolen/etc.

I'm no fan of overzealous policing, but I'd support this, at least on a trial basis. Those of us who play by the rules (keep our vehicles inspected/registered/insured and drive safely) should expect the government to punish those who don't. If not, what's the point?

[Texas Ag 93]

Originally Posted by gwarnecke

I assume that you mean the vehicles would only be impounded if they were unregistered/uninsured/stolen/etc.

I'm no fan of overzealous policing, but I'd support this, at least on a trial basis. Those of us who play by the rules (keep our vehicles inspected/registered/insured and drive safely) should expect the government to punish those who don't. If not, what's the point?

Yes, of course. Only if the paper plates are found to not be legal dealer plates. I'm sorry if I wasn't clear before. I'll edit my post.

[gwarnecke]

Originally Posted by escanlan

How about getting rid of paper plates altogether? No reason dealers and used car places can't be issues "X" number of plates for their vehicles and leave it to them to ensure they have sufficient numbers. For private resale the original plate can be kept with the vehicle for 30 or 60 days while the new owner waits for a new plate if that is what the State wants.


We're in a digital age and no reason that any applicable databases can't be kept up to date near immediately to prevent previous owners from holding the bag for a new owner's actions.

I agree. When I lived in Europe for nearly two years, I don't recall once seeing paper temporary tags. I believe if you had a valid reason to need temporary tags for a vehicle, you would be issued a permanent-style metal plate that could be tracked + not easily knocked off.

[FriendswoodDad]

Hey watch it buddy I bought a new Jeep this week that has paper plates on it. Lol